Written By Mauricio Segura // Photo: Golden Bay Times Graphics Dept.
OCT 21, 2025
The San Jose Sharks opened the 2025-26 season yet again without a victory in their first five games, making them the first team in the NHL, NBA, NFL, or MLB to begin four straight seasons winless through five games. The latest loss came in a 3-0 defeat to the Pittsburgh Penguins at the SAP Center, which left the Sharks sitting at 0-3-2 and the only winless team in the league at that point. For any franchise, opening a season without a win is painful. For the Sharks, it has become a pattern that raises serious questions about where the team is headed and why progress remains out of reach.
Head coach Ryan Warsofsky didn’t sugarcoat it, admitting that the situation “sucks” and acknowledging frustration among players that this kind of start keeps happening. The roster has youth and promise, including recent first-round pick Macklin Celebrini, but the results simply aren’t following. The Sharks sit near the bottom of the NHL not only in wins but in goals scored and points collected. It’s not just a slow start; it’s an alarming sign that the rebuild still hasn’t found traction.
A few issues stand out. The team is still struggling to find chemistry and consistency on the ice. When expectations are low but history keeps repeating itself, it wears on a locker room mentally. The offense has been stagnant, often failing to convert scoring chances, while defensive lapses and inconsistent goaltending have added to the problem. Perhaps most troubling is the psychological hurdle. When a team begins yet another year without a win, every mistake feels heavier, every goal allowed feels like déjà vu.
For Sharks fans, this kind of start hits deep. It’s one thing to rebuild, but it’s another to watch the same storyline play out season after season. Being the only team in any major U.S. sports league to open four straight seasons winless through five games isn’t just an embarrassing statistic; it’s a record that defines how far the team has fallen from its playoff-contending days. The Sharks were once known for consistency, toughness, and postseason grit. Now, they’ve become a case study in how quickly stability can slip away when a team can’t get out of its own way.
Still, there are signs of life beneath the losses. Celebrini and other young players have shown flashes of skill and determination. The front office insists that the rebuild is on track and that growing pains are part of the process. The challenge is that patience wears thin when fans are watching the same script unfold each fall. Rebuilds are supposed to show progress, but this particular one has been more of a holding pattern than a climb.
Warsofsky has maintained that the team isn’t hitting the panic button yet. “We know we can play better. We know what we have,” he said, signaling confidence in the locker room’s ability to turn things around. But belief only goes so far. At some point, the Sharks need results to match their words. The first win of the season would mean more than two points in the standings. It would symbolize a small but vital step away from being defined by futility.
The pressure is mounting not just to win, but to prove that this is not the same team it has been for the past four years. The Sharks don’t need to become contenders overnight, but they do need to show growth, urgency, and a willingness to evolve. Because at this point, the losing streak isn’t just a statistic—it’s an identity. Breaking that identity begins with one win, one night, and one spark that finally turns history in their favor.
