Morgan has skills that thrill on the ice, too

Nyjer Morgan took to the ice Wednesday, fulfilling a longtime dream of skating with the National Hockey League's San Jose Sharks.The Milwaukee Brewers' 31-year-old outfielder, dressed in a black Sharks jersey featuring the No. 2 he wears with the Brewers and his nickname, "Plush," on the nameplate, watched from the bench for about 30 minutes before taking part in a breakaway drill.It took four tries and a little indifference from Sharks goaltender Thomas Greiss but Morgan finally found the back of the net and celebrated a bit on the ice.Oh you know well Griess, joked Morgan, who made it as far as the Western Hockey League before he turned his attention to baseball. He was giving me the stick side, but for some reason I saw that five hole open up, so I had to go with the five hole instead of the stick side because he seemed pretty strong on the stick side."Morgan a Milwaukee favorite for his play on the field and his fun-loving antics off it -- was a bit rusty on a different playing surface.It's been many moons, many moons, Morgan said of the time that has passed since he last played competitive hockey. It's been a lot of years. And I still got it! You see that? I still got it! In fact, he left an impression on Sharks captain Joe Thornton."I'd give him a B-plus, to be honest with you," Thornton said. "I was impressed with how good he was."Morgan, a Bay Area native, grew up playing hockey and played in both the British Columbia (Junior A) and Western (major junior) Hockey Leagues alongside future NHL players like Derek Boogaard and Eric Godard. He's been a fan of the Sharks since the team joined the league in 1991 and often wears the team's sweater to Miller Park in Milwaukee.We love him, we love him for it," Thornton said. "He wears the Shark, and he's proud to be a Sharks fan. We're kind of Brewers fans now I guess. "The San Jose Sharks contributed reporting to this story.Follow Andrew Wagner on Twitter.