Sharks’ Sturm and Kostin not expected to return to ice soon

Sharks center Nico Sturm (7) and right wing Collin Graf (51) react after a goal by right wing Barclay Goodrow against Islanders goaltender Marcus Hogberg (50) during the second period of Saturday’s game in Elmont, N.Y. COREY SIPKIN — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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By Curtis Pashelka

Bay Area News Group

SAN JOSE >> Injured forwards Nico Sturm and Klim Kostin will not suit up for the San Jose Sharks anytime soon.

Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said Thursday that Sturm and Kostin are considered more week-to-week with their respective injuries rather than missing just a few more days.

Kostin has a lower-body injury and has not played since Jan. 10, when the Sharks faced the Utah Hockey Club in Salt Lake City. Sturm, also out with a lower-body ailment, was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday, the same day the Sharks claimed forward Walker Duehr off waivers from the Calgary Flames.

Sturm, a pending unrestricted free agent, has 11 points in 41 games this season. He centers the Sharks’ fourth line, and is the team’s leader in faceoff percentage (63.2). This season, the Sharks were 2-5-2 without him in the lineup before Thursday’s game against the Nashville Predators.

Sturm blocked a shot in a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Jan. 2 and missed the next three games. He returned on Jan. 11 and played five games with a goal and an assist before he sat out Tuesday’s game in Nashville, where the Sharks coughed up a four-goal lead in a devastating 7-5 loss.

“It’s frustrating because he’s probably been our most consistent forward here as of late,” Warsofsky said of Sturm. “I give him a lot of credit. He’s really improved this game in the last couple of years. He’s playing with the puck more; he’s in the offensive zone more. He’s holding on to pucks down low.

“We’re going to miss him.”

It was not immediately clear how much more time either Sturm or Kostin would have to miss. After Thursday, the Sharks have six more games before the NHL breaks for the 4 Nations Face-Off on Feb. 8, then resume their regular season schedule on Feb. 23 on the road against the Calgary Flames.

Sturm is in the final year of a three-year, $6 million contract he signed with the Sharks in 2022. Speaking with the Bay Area News Group late last month, Sturm said without a new contract offer from the Sharks, he expected to be dealt to another team before the NHL trade deadline on March 7.

“Realistically, as long as nothing’s done, I might probably expect to get moved,” Sturm said. “If there’s no contract extension, that’s just the reality of life in the NHL.”

Kostin has been skating recently and was on the ice Thursday morning with fellow winger Collin Graf, who was a healthy scratch against the Predators.