Don’t blame Mario Ferraro if he’s run out of patience.
Ferraro has been with the San Jose Sharks for five years, missing the playoffs in every single season.
It’s through no real fault of Ferraro’s — he’s done his part, growing from a frenetic, fresh-faced rookie to minutes-munching alternate captain of the Sharks. It’s hard to believe that he’s still only 25.
But the young man has seen a lot of losing, maybe too much: From 2019 to 2024, San Jose is the worst team in the NHL with just 123 wins and a .398 Points %.
If he was a little shell-shocked, it wouldn’t be at all surprising.
But Ferraro met our exit interview questions with his customary gap-toothed smile and optimism this Saturday.
“I haven’t played playoffs yet, but what a story it would be to turn it around. That’s what really fuels my fire,” he said. “So no, my patience hasn’t ran out. It never will.”
In his exit interview, Ferraro also teased Brent Burns, shared the differences in Luke Kunin and Mikael Granlund’s leadership approaches, and what he wants to improve in his game.
Ferraro, on his summer camping plans:
I have some exciting places to see. I’m going down to Florida for a little bit and then I’ll be in Toronto for the majority of my summer training. But I look forward to that trip. I’m really excited about it. I mean, I got this setup for it.
Ferraro, on if Brent Burns helped him plan his camping trip:
Me and [my girlfriend] McKenna did that ourselves. I told you this, he’s more of a glamper. He’s got more of the high-end stuff. He did, all seriousness get me into it, and now I love it. But the route itself is kind of our own.
Ferraro, on if this is rock-bottom for the San Jose Sharks:
I sure hope so. That’s how you’re always looking at it, you’re not looking to go downhill. But sometimes, those moments happen, and for the better, at times.
So obviously we’re looking to climb. I think we got a high-ceiling here and that’s how all our mindset has to be. We do want to get there someday. So I’m excited moving forward. I always get excited for another opportunity to get better.
Ferraro, on if his patience is running out with the San Jose Sharks’ playoff-less streak:
No. We can go years and years and all you need is one opportunity and you can win. It only takes one. My job is here. My job is to to win here.
When you say it like that, it actually kind of motivates me a little bit more. Because I’m thinking what a story that would be, right? It’s been a long time. I haven’t played playoffs yet, but what a story it would be to turn it around. That’s what really fuels my fire. Something that’s very, very motivating for me.
So no, my patience hasn’t ran out. It never will. If it does, I won’t be in this league anymore. it’s just the way it works. I’m always ready to compete. Ready to get better and I’m excited for another summer building towards that.
Ferraro, on what new alternate captains Luke Kunin and Mikael Granlund add to the leadership group:
Kunny, you could see it the way he plays. He’s a leader. He does what it takes to win games. He’ll fight if he needs to, he’ll block a shot, he’ll do whatever it takes. That’s a guy that people look up to. We always have, even when he didn’t have the “A” on his jersey, so I’m proud of him. I thought he especially stepped up in the second half when game’s got tough. He was always in there, always in the scrum, to the last puck drop. Even in Calgary [in the season finale], at the end of the game there, got in there.
Granny, same thing. I think he’s a little bit different of an approach. He’s more of a quiet guy. But I’ve had conversations with Kunny, saying, “He’s one of the best guys that I’ve played with, he’s just always positive.”
I could be yelling on the golf course when I’m hitting a bad shot, he’s always trying to say it’s okay, it is what it is, just stay positive. He’s always positive. You think, in a year like this, as hard as it can be to be that way, that’s what he’s about. And obviously, his play speaks for itself. You guys see it.
Ferraro, on what he wants to improve in his game:
Defensively, I want to be better. I thought that when I came into this league, getting guys up against the glass and being aggressive in the corners was one of the better parts of my game, and I still believe that, and I still take a lot of pride in that.
I do think I need to improve on that as a few times this year where I got penalties, trying to get wrapped up with guys–that kind of showed me that I think that I can be a little bit better at getting guys up against the glass and ending plays quicker without taking a penalty. Holding penalties, and those are obviously–I’m a guy that likes the penalty kill, and I believe that I have an important role in the penalty kill, so if I’m in the box, I can’t really help my team out. That’s an area that I want to get better at.
I think that I had a lot more shots at net this year–a lot more– showed in my production this year compared to any other year that I had in this league. I’ll never take myself as a guy that’s gonna put up a ton of points, and I don’t really care about that kind of stuff, but just creating a little bit more offense. If we’re a team that is having more success and is creating more offense, it’ll show even more, so I want to continue to work on that, getting pucks to the net and just getting it down there for our forwards.
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