SAN JOSE — Joakim Ryan knows how to count. Simple math suggests that he will be the odd man out on the left side of the Sharks blue line after Brenden Dillon serves his one-game suspension Thursday.
As Paul Martin rejoins the Sharks lineup for their game against the Carolina Hurricanes at SAP Center Thursday, Ryan will get another chance to prove that he’s an NHL-caliber defenseman.
After that, Martin, Dillon and Marc-Edouard Vlasic will fill out the left side of the Sharks blue line, relegating Ryan to the seventh defenseman position until Tim Heed (upper body) returns from a day-to-day injury.