SAN JOSE -- Following arguably their worst performance of the season on Saturday, the Sharks made a pair of roster moves on Sunday.
Center Chris Tierney and goaltender Alex Stalock have been reassigned to the Barracuda, while goaltender Troy Grosenick has been recalled from the Sharks’ AHL affiliate.
Stalock’s reassignment is for conditioning purposes, as the backup has not started a game for San Jose since Dec. 18, his only start in the last 11 games. He came on in relief of Martin Jones in Saturday’s 4-1 loss to Winnipeg, making six saves on six shots.
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He is expected to start the Barracuda game at SAP Center on Sunday against Texas, and perhaps Wednesday against Stockton, too, as the Sharks do not play again until they host the Red Wings on Thursday.
"We want Al to be able to get some playing time," coach Pete DeBoer said in a statement. "With the Barracuda playing in San Jose this week, it offered us the opportunity for him to get some minutes."
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The stint with the Barracuda could give Stalock a chance to get his game in order. The 28-year-old is 2-5-0 with a 2.98 goals-against average and .893 save percentage, and simply hasn’t looked right this season.
San Jose Sharks
An AHL conditioning assignment can last up to two weeks, so it will be interesting to monitor whether the Sharks recall Stalock in time for Thursday’s home game with the Red Wings, or if they keep Grosenick around for a bit. San Jose has back-to-back games on Jan. 11-12 in Calgary and Winnipeg, so perhaps the club is considering giving Grosenick one of those two games.
Grosenick hasn’t exactly been lights-out in the AHL, though, as the 26-year-old is 7-4-2 with a 3.03 GAA and .902 SP in 16 games. Last season, he recorded a 45-save shutout in his NHL debut on Nov. 16, 2014 in Carolina, before losing in Buffalo two nights later, allowing three goals on 13 shots.
In his second NHL season, Tierney, 21, has eight points (3g, 5a) and 14 penalty minutes in 36 games, with just one of his goals coming in a manned net. He has failed to build off of a strong finish to his rookie year when he had 15 points (5g, 10a) in the final 21 games.
Last season, Tierney, who made the 2014-15 team out of training camp, returned from the AHL in early February as a different player after spending a month and a half in Worcester.