Darnell Nurse scores in OT as Sharks win without Macklin Celebrini

Curtis Pashelka, Bay Area News Group on Oct 8, 2026

Published in Hockey

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The San Jose Sharks wanted to prove on Thursday night that they’re more than just a one-man team.

They took a big step in that direction in a back-and-forth game against the St. Louis Blues.

Darnell Nurse took a pass from Ivar Stenberg and beat Blues goalie Joel Hofer at the 1:03 mark of overtime, helping the Sharks earn a 3-2 win at Enterprise Center.

Collin Graf scored, Tyler Toffoli had a goal and an assist and goalie Alex Nedeljkovic finished with 23 saves as the Sharks overcame a slow start to record their third overtime win in four games this season.

The Sharks were without captain Macklin Celebrini for a second straight game, as the team’s leading scorer over the past two seasons was scratched with a lower-body injury.

Trailing the Blues 1-0, the Sharks got their first goal in four-plus periods without Celebrini. Just after a tripping penalty to Blues goalie Joel Hofer expired, Toffoli put a shot on net and followed up on his own rebound, knocking the puck past Hofer at the 8:48 mark of the second period for his second goal of the season.

After Dillon Dube scored a short-handed goal 1:39 into the third period, Graf responded with his first goal of the season less than five minutes later. Defenseman Sam Dickinson chased down a loose puck in the corner to the left of the Blues and sent it put front, where Graf buried a shot past Hofer.

The Sharks lost, 5-0, to the Dallas Stars on Monday in their first game without Celebrini.

Without Celebrini, the Sharks hoped for a positive start Thursday, but they were badly outshot and fell behind the Blues less than four minutes into the first period.

On the Blues’ first goal, as the puck swung around the boards inside their zone, Sharks defenseman Jacob Trouba pinched in and missed it, setting up an odd-man rush the other way. Inside the Sharks’ zone, Connor McMichael worked a give-and-go with Mason McTavish and tipped McTavish’s return pass past goalie Alex Nedeljkovic at the 3:52 mark for his second goal of the season.

Three days after the Sharks were outshot 11-2 by the Dallas Stars in the first period, they were outshot 11-3 by the Blues in the first period.

As the Sharks’ top-line center, Celebrini entered this week as the team’s leading scorer with five points, all assists.

Celebrini has been dealing with the injury for a short while and was scratched from Monday’s lineup after feeling discomfort during the team’s pregame warmups. Before Thursday, Celebrini had missed 13 games due to injury since the start of his 2024-25 rookie season, and the Sharks are 3-9-1 in those games.

After Celebrini’s work on Thursday, the Sharks might feel a little better about his chances of playing in Saturday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers.

“Really can’t get into the details,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky told reporters on Thursday about Celebrini’s injury. “I know I can say he’s worked extremely hard off the ice with our group to get healthy. He’s a true pro in every sense of that.”

Nedeljkovic started his first game of the season for the Sharks and made 10 saves in the first period.

Thursday’s game was the Blues’ home opener, after they opened the season with a 4-0 win over the Dallas Stars on Oct. 2, then lost 6-1 to the Colorado Avalanche the next night and 4-2 to the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday.

Leason on waivers

The Sharks placed winger Brett Leason on waivers Thursday, possibly indicating that forward Adam Gaudette is ready to return to the active roster.

Gaudette sustained an upper body injury in training camp and began the season on injured reserve. He joined the Sharks on their road trip through Dallas and St. Louis and is practicing with the team as he builds conditioning. Gaudette had 25 points, including 17 goals, in 66 games with San Jose last season.

The 27-year-old Leason, a veteran of 226 NHL games, signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Sharks in July, didn’t play in the Sharks’ first three games, and was slated to be scratched again on Thursday. If he clears waivers, he’ll be assigned to the Barracuda, who host Tucson on Friday and Saturday.