Tomas Hertl’s superhero origin story is unlike that of any other Shark. After being drafted, the 19-year-old forward quietly put together a season in which he scored 0.71 points per game in the Czech professional league. The following year, he did not so much as glance at the mother club’s AHL franchise dressing room before walking onto the ice and picking up his first big-league assist in his first NHL game. He emerged, a fully proportioned NHL butterfly, a few nights later when his fourth goal of the evening, a between-the-legs pop shot over Marty Biron’s shoulder, sent the backup goaltender into immediate and early retirement.
Top 25 Sharks Under 25: No. 1 Tomas Hertl is the superhero the Sharks need right now
