2002–03 San Jose Sharks season

The 2002–03 San Jose Sharks season was the Sharks' twelfth season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Sharks placed 14th in the conference and did not qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the 1996–97 season, thus ending their five-year playoff streak. This would also be the last time the Sharks missed the playoffs until the 2014–15 season.

2002–03 San Jose Sharks
Division5th Pacific
Conference14th Western
2002–03 record28–37–9–8
Home record17–16–5–3
Road record11–21–4–5
Goals for214
Goals against239
Team information
General managerDean Lombardi (Oct.–Mar.)
CoachDarryl Sutter (Oct.–Dec.)
Cap Raeder (Dec.)
Ron Wilson (Dec.–Apr.)
CaptainOwen Nolan (Oct.–Mar.)
Vacant (Mar.–Apr.)
Alternate captainsVincent Damphousse
Mike Ricci
ArenaHP Pavilion at San Jose
Average attendance17,350
Minor league affiliatesCleveland Barons
Richmond Renegades
Team leaders
GoalsTeemu Selanne (28),
Patrick Marleau,
Marco Sturm
AssistsTeemu Selanne (36)
PointsTeemu Selanne (64)
Penalty minutesBryan Marchment (108)
Plus/minusMarco Sturm (+9)
WinsEvgeni Nabokov (19)
Goals against averageVesa Toskala (2.35)
← 2001–02
2003–04 →

Regular season

After 24 games and an 8–12–2–2 record, Darryl Sutter was fired. One game was coached by Cap Raeder before Ron Wilson, the former coach of the Washington Capitals was hired. Wilson was not able to guide the team to the playoffs and finished with a 19–25–7–6 record for the season. General manager Dean Lombardi was fired on March 18.

Captain Owen Nolan was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Sharks' penalty kill struggled, as they finished 30th overall in penalty-kill percentage, at 81.01%.

Final standings

Pacific Division
No. CR GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 1 Dallas Stars 82 46 17 15 4 245 169 111
2 7 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 82 40 27 9 6 203 193 95
3 10 Los Angeles Kings 82 33 37 6 6 203 221 78
4 11 Phoenix Coyotes 82 31 35 11 5 204 230 78
5 14 San Jose Sharks 82 28 37 9 8 214 239 73

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Western Conference
R Div GP W L T OTL GF GA Pts
1 Z- Dallas Stars PA 82 46 17 15 4 245 169 111
2 Y- Detroit Red Wings CE 82 48 20 10 4 269 203 110
3 Y- Colorado Avalanche NW 82 42 19 13 8 251 194 105
4 X- Vancouver Canucks NW 82 45 23 13 1 264 208 104
5 X- St. Louis Blues CE 82 41 24 11 6 253 222 99
6 X- Minnesota Wild NW 82 42 29 10 1 198 178 95
7 X- Mighty Ducks of Anaheim PA 82 40 27 9 6 203 193 95
8 X- Edmonton Oilers NW 82 36 26 11 9 231 230 92
8.5
9 Chicago Blackhawks CE 82 30 33 13 6 207 226 79
10 Los Angeles Kings PA 82 33 37 6 6 203 221 78
11 Phoenix Coyotes PA 82 31 35 11 5 204 230 78
12 Calgary Flames NW 82 29 36 13 4 186 228 75
13 Nashville Predators CE 82 27 35 13 7 183 206 74
14 San Jose Sharks PA 82 28 37 9 8 214 239 73
15 Columbus Blue Jackets CE 82 29 42 8 3 213 263 69

Divisions: PA – Pacific, CE – Central, NW – Northwest

Z – Clinched conference; Y – Clinched division; X – Clinched playoff spot


Schedule and results

2002–03 regular season
October: 3–6–0–1 (home: 1–3–0–0; road: 2–3–0–1)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
1 October 10, 2002 3–6 Detroit Red Wings (2002–03) Kiprusoff 0–1–0–0 L
2 October 12, 2002 3–5 @ Vancouver Canucks (2002–03) Kiprusoff 0–2–0–0 L
3 October 17, 2002 4–3 Edmonton Oilers (2002–03) Toskala 1–2–0–0 W
4 October 19, 2002 1–3 Colorado Avalanche (2002–03) Toskala 1–3–0–0 L
5 October 21, 2002 2–5 Vancouver Canucks (2002–03) Kiprusoff 1–4–0–0 L
6 October 24, 2002 2–1 @ Nashville Predators (2002–03) Kiprusoff 2–4–0–0 W
7 October 25, 2002 5–4 @ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03) Kiprusoff 3–4–0–0 W
8 October 27, 2002 2–3 @ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03) Nabokov 3–5–0–0 L
9 October 29, 2002 2–3 @ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03) Nabokov 3–6–0–0 L
10 October 31, 2002 1–2 OT @ Minnesota Wild (2002–03) Nabokov 3–6–0–1 OTL
November: 5–6–2–1 (home: 1–3–1–0; road: 4–3–1–1)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
11 November 3, 2002 4–3 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03) Nabokov 4–6–0–1 W
12 November 5, 2002 5–2 Los Angeles Kings (2002–03) Nabokov 5–6–0–1 W
13 November 7, 2002 2–2 OT Nashville Predators (2002–03) Nabokov 5–6–1–1 T
14 November 9, 2002 2–4 Minnesota Wild (2002–03) Nabokov 5–7–1–1 L
15 November 11, 2002 4–5 New York Rangers (2002–03) Kiprusoff 5–8–1–1 L
16 November 13, 2002 2–3 OT @ Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03) Nabokov 5–8–1–2 OTL
17 November 15, 2002 2–4 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03) Nabokov 5–9–1–2 L
18 November 16, 2002 7–3 @ Florida Panthers (2002–03) Nabokov 6–9–1–2 W
19 November 19, 2002 3–2 @ Washington Capitals (2002–03) Nabokov 7–9–1–2 W
20 November 21, 2002 2–2 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03) Nabokov 7–9–2–2 T
21 November 23, 2002 1–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03) Nabokov 7–10–2–2 L
22 November 25, 2002 4–1 @ St. Louis Blues (2002–03) Nabokov 8–10–2–2 W
23 November 27, 2002 2–4 @ Nashville Predators (2002–03) Nabokov 8–11–2–2 L
24 November 30, 2002 2–3 Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03) Nabokov 8–12–2–2 L
December: 7–3–2–1 (home: 5–1–1–0; road: 2–2–1–1)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
25 December 3, 2002 3–2 OT @ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03) Nabokov 9–12–2–2 W
26 December 6, 2002 3–2 Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03) Nabokov 10–12–2–2 W
27 December 7, 2002 2–4 Nashville Predators (2002–03) Nabokov 10–13–2–2 L
28 December 12, 2002 5–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03) Nabokov 11–13–2–2 W
29 December 14, 2002 2–0 Washington Capitals (2002–03) Nabokov 12–13–2–2 W
30 December 16, 2002 1–2 OT @ New York Rangers (2002–03) Kiprusoff 12–13–2–3 OTL
31 December 17, 2002 3–1 @ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03) Nabokov 13–13–2–3 W
32 December 19, 2002 3–9 @ Ottawa Senators (2002–03) Nabokov 13–14–2–3 L
33 December 21, 2002 3–3 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03) Nabokov 13–14–3–3 T
34 December 23, 2002 2–5 @ Boston Bruins (2002–03) Nabokov 13–15–3–3 L
35 December 26, 2002 4–1 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03) Nabokov 14–15–3–3 W
36 December 28, 2002 3–3 OT Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03) Nabokov 14–15–4–3 T
37 December 30, 2002 2–1 Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03) Nabokov 15–15–4–3 W
January: 4–6–2–2 (home: 3–5–2–1; road: 1–1–0–1)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
38 January 2, 2003 1–3 Dallas Stars (2002–03) Nabokov 15–16–4–3 L
39 January 4, 2003 1–6 Colorado Avalanche (2002–03) Nabokov 15–17–4–3 L
40 January 6, 2003 5–5 OT Edmonton Oilers (2002–03) Nabokov 15–17–5–3 T
41 January 9, 2003 1–4 St. Louis Blues (2002–03) Nabokov 15–18–5–3 L
42 January 11, 2003 3–0 Vancouver Canucks (2002–03) Kiprusoff 16–18–5–3 W
43 January 13, 2003 2–3 OT @ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03) Kiprusoff 16–18–5–4 OTL
44 January 16, 2003 2–2 OT Buffalo Sabres (2002–03) Nabokov 16–18–6–4 T
45 January 18, 2003 1–3 Dallas Stars (2002–03) Nabokov 16–19–6–4 L
46 January 20, 2003 1–3 @ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03) Nabokov 16–20–6–4 L
47 January 22, 2003 4–5 OT New Jersey Devils (2002–03) Kiprusoff 16–20–6–5 OTL
48 January 25, 2003 4–1 Minnesota Wild (2002–03) Nabokov 17–20–6–5 W
49 January 27, 2003 3–0 @ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03) Nabokov 18–20–6–5 W
50 January 28, 2003 3–1 Los Angeles Kings (2002–03) Nabokov 19–20–6–5 W
51 January 30, 2003 3–4 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03) Nabokov 19–21–6–5 L
February: 5–7–0–0 (home: 3–1–0–0; road: 2–6–0–0)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
52 February 5, 2003 6–2 Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03) Nabokov 20–21–6–5 W
53 February 7, 2003 3–4 @ Minnesota Wild (2002–03) Nabokov 20–22–6–5 L
54 February 8, 2003 1–4 @ St. Louis Blues (2002–03) Nabokov 20–23–6–5 L
55 February 10, 2003 4–5 @ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03) Nabokov 20–24–6–5 L
56 February 12, 2003 0–1 @ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03) Kiprusoff 20–25–6–5 L
57 February 14, 2003 4–2 @ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03) Kiprusoff 21–25–6–5 W
58 February 16, 2003 1–3 @ Dallas Stars (2002–03) Kiprusoff 21–26–6–5 L
59 February 17, 2003 2–3 @ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03) Nabokov 21–27–6–5 L
60 February 19, 2003 0–3 New York Islanders (2002–03) Nabokov 21–28–6–5 L
61 February 21, 2003 6–0 Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03) Nabokov 22–28–6–5 W
62 February 24, 2003 5–2 Calgary Flames (2002–03) Nabokov 23–28–6–5 W
63 February 27, 2003 3–2 @ Vancouver Canucks (2002–03) Nabokov 24–28–6–5 W
March: 4–9–0–3 (home: 4–3–0–2; road: 0–6–0–1)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
64 March 1, 2003 3–4 @ Calgary Flames (2002–03) Nabokov 24–29–6–5 L
65 March 4, 2003 1–2 @ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03) Kiprusoff 24–30–6–5 L
66 March 6, 2003 4–3 OT Montreal Canadiens (2002–03) Kiprusoff 25–30–6–5 W
67 March 8, 2003 4–6 @ Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03) Nabokov 25–31–6–5 L
68 March 9, 2003 0–3 @ Dallas Stars (2002–03) Kiprusoff 25–32–6–5 L
69 March 11, 2003 2–4 St. Louis Blues (2002–03) Kiprusoff 25–33–6–5 L
70 March 13, 2003 2–3 OT @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03) Kiprusoff 25–33–6–6 OTL
71 March 15, 2003 3–2 Calgary Flames (2002–03) Toskala 26–33–6–6 W
72 March 17, 2003 2–3 OT Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03) Toskala 26–33–6–7 OTL
73 March 20, 2003 0–2 @ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03) Kiprusoff 26–34–6–7 L
74 March 21, 2003 3–2 Boston Bruins (2002–03) Toskala 27–34–6–7 W
75 March 22, 2003 2–3 OT Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03) Nabokov 27–34–6–8 OTL
76 March 24, 2003 1–4 Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03) Nabokov 27–35–6–8 L
77 March 27, 2003 3–0 Detroit Red Wings (2002–03) Toskala 28–35–6–8 W
78 March 29, 2003 3–4 Dallas Stars (2002–03) Toskala 28–36–6–8 L
79 March 31, 2003 1–3 @ Colorado Avalanche (2002–03) Nabokov 28–37–6–8 L
April: 0–0–3–0 (home: 0–0–1–0; road: 0–0–2–0)
Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Recap
80 April 2, 2003 2–2 OT @ Calgary Flames (2002–03) Nabokov 28–37–7–8 T
81 April 3, 2003 3–3 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03) Toskala 28–37–8–8 T
82 April 6, 2003 3–3 OT Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03) Nabokov 28–37–9–8 T

Legend: W Win (2 points) L Loss (0 points) T Tie (1 point) OTL Overtime loss (1 point)

Player statistics

Scoring

  • Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sharks only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sharks only.
No. Player Pos Regular season
GP G A Pts +/- PIM
8 Teemu Selanne RW 82 28 36 64 −6 30
25 Vincent Damphousse C 82 23 38 61 −13 66
12 Patrick Marleau C 82 28 29 57 −10 33
19 Marco Sturm LW 82 28 20 48 9 16
11 Owen Nolan RW 61 22 20 42 −5 91
18 Mike Ricci C 75 11 23 34 −12 53
2 Mike Rathje D 82 7 22 29 −19 48
22 Scott Hannan D 81 3 19 22 0 61
17 Scott Thornton LW 41 9 12 21 −7 41
21 Jim Fahey D 43 1 19 20 −3 33
13 Todd Harvey RW 76 3 16 19 5 74
9 Adam Graves LW 82 9 9 18 −14 32
14 Jonathan Cheechoo RW 66 9 7 16 −5 39
3 Dan McGillis†‡ D 37 3 13 16 −6 30
16 Mark Smith C 75 4 11 15 1 64
7 Brad Stuart D 36 4 10 14 −6 46
23 Niko Dimitrakos RW 21 6 7 13 −7 8
24 Niklas Sundstrom RW 47 2 10 12 −4 22
27 Bryan Marchment D 67 2 9 11 −2 108
10 Alyn McCauley C 16 3 7 10 −2 4
10 Marcus Ragnarsson D 25 1 7 8 2 30
4 Kyle McLaren D 33 0 8 8 −10 30
5 Jeff Jillson D 26 0 6 6 −7 9
28 Matt Bradley RW 46 2 3 5 −1 37
26 Lynn Loyns LW 19 3 0 3 −4 19
38 Rob Davison D 15 1 2 3 4 22
46 Miroslav Zalesak RW 10 1 2 3 −2 0
15 Wayne Primeau C 7 1 1 2 2 0
23 Shawn Heins D 20 0 1 1 −2 9
41 Ryan Kraft C 7 0 1 1 2 0
53 Jesse Fibiger D 16 0 0 0 −5 2
4 John Jakopin D 12 0 0 0 0 11
37 Miikka Kiprusoff G 22 0 0 0 0
20 Evgeni Nabokov G 55 0 0 0 10
29 Vesa Toskala G 11 0 0 0 0
49 Chad Wiseman LW 4 0 0 0 −2 4

Goaltending

No. Player Regular season
GP W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
20 Evgeni Nabokov 55 19 28 8 1561 146 2.71 .906 3 3227
37 Miikka Kiprusoff 22 5 14 0 537 65 3.25 .879 1 1199
29 Vesa Toskala 11 4 3 1 287 21 2.35 .927 1 537

Awards and records

Awards

Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League
(in-season)
NHL All-Star Game selection Teemu Selanne
Team Sharks Player of the Year Teemu Selanne
Sharks Rookie of the Year Jim Fahey

Milestones

Milestone Player Date Ref
First game Jonathan Cheechoo October 10, 2002
Lynn Loyns October 21, 2002
Ryan Kraft November 23, 2002
Jim Fahey December 12, 2002
Niko Dimitrakos February 12, 2003
Chad Wiseman March 4, 2003
Jesse Fibiger March 6, 2003
Rob Davison March 9, 2003
Miroslav Zalesak March 11, 2003
400th goal Vincent Damphousse October 17, 2002
750th game coached Ron Wilson March 11, 2003

Transactions

The Sharks were involved in the following transactions from June 14, 2002, the day after the deciding game of the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 9, 2003, the day of the deciding game of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals.

Trades

Date Details Ref
June 22, 2002 (2002-06-22) To San Jose Sharks
  • Phoenix's 2nd-round pick in 2002
To Tampa Bay Lightning
  • 2nd-round pick in 2002
  • 5th-round pick in 2002
To San Jose Sharks
  • 3rd-round pick in 2002
To Chicago Blackhawks
  • 3rd-round pick in 2002
  • 4th-round pick in 2002
June 23, 2002 (2002-06-23) To San Jose Sharks
  • 6th-round pick in 2003
  • Future considerations
To New York Rangers
  • 6th-round pick in 2002
To San Jose Sharks
  • New Jersey's 7th-round pick in 2002
To Atlanta Thrashers
  • 8th-round pick in 2002
  • 7th-round pick in 2003
July 16, 2002 (2002-07-16) To San Jose Sharks
  • Future considerations
To Florida Panthers
  • Hannes Hyvonen
December 6, 2002 (2002-12-06) To San Jose Sharks
  • Dan McGillis
To Philadelphia Flyers
  • Marcus Ragnarsson
January 23, 2003 (2003-01-23) To San Jose Sharks
  • Jeff Hackett
To Montreal Canadiens
  • Niklas Sundstrom
  • 3rd-round pick in 2004
To San Jose Sharks
  • Rights to Kyle McLaren
  • 4th-round pick in 2004
To Boston Bruins
  • Jeff Hackett
  • Jeff Jillson
February 9, 2003 (2003-02-09) To San Jose Sharks
  • Conditional 5th-round pick in 2003
To Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Shawn Heins
March 5, 2003 (2003-03-05) To San Jose Sharks
  • Brad Boyes
  • Alyn McCauley
  • 1st-round pick in 2003
To Toronto Maple Leafs
  • Owen Nolan
March 8, 2003 (2003-03-08) To San Jose Sharks
  • 3rd-round pick in 2003
  • 5th-round pick in 2003
To Colorado Avalanche
  • Bryan Marchment
March 11, 2003 (2003-03-11) To San Jose Sharks
  • 2nd-round pick in 2003
To Boston Bruins
  • Dan McGillis
To San Jose Sharks
  • Wayne Primeau
To Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Matt Bradley

Players acquired

Date Player Former team Term Via Ref
July 10, 2002 (2002-07-10) David Cloutier Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL) Free agency
September 5, 2002 (2002-09-05) Tavis Hansen Hershey Bears (AHL) Free agency
John Jakopin Pittsburgh Penguins Free agency
Jeff Nelson Schwenninger Wild Wings (DEL) Free agency
Scott Thomas Los Angeles Kings Free agency
September 20, 2002 (2002-09-20) Josh Gorges Kelowna Rockets (WHL) Free agency
April 4, 2003 (2003-04-04) Tom Preissing Colorado College (WCHA) Free agency
Craig Valette Portland Winterhawks (WHL) Free agency
April 18, 2003 (2003-04-18) Grant Stevenson Minnesota State University, Mankato (WCHA) Free agency

Players lost

Date Player New team Via Ref
N/A Joel Prpic Kokudo Tokyo (JIHL) Free agency (VI)
July 9, 2002 (2002-07-09) Alexander Korolyuk Ak Bars Kazan (RSL) Free agency (II)
July 16, 2002 (2002-07-16) Steve Bancroft St. Louis Blues Free agency (VI)
Andy Lundbohm Florida Panthers Free agency (VI)
August 2, 2002 (2002-08-02) Stephane Matteau Florida Panthers Free agency (III)
August 3, 2002 (2002-08-03) Brandon Smith New York Islanders Free agency (VI)
August 15, 2002 (2002-08-15) Theoren Fleury Chicago Blackhawks Free agency (III)
September 10, 2002 (2002-09-10) Gary Suter Retirement (III)
N/A Adam Colagiacomo Roanoke Express (ECHL) Free agency (UFA)
October 22, 2002 (2002-10-22) Adam Nittel Quad City Mallards (UHL) Free agency (UFA)

Signings

Date Player Term Contract type Ref
July 1, 2002 (2002-07-01) Shawn Heins Re-signing
Patrick Marleau Option exercised
Marco Sturm Option exercised
July 5, 2002 (2002-07-05) Teemu Selanne 1-year Re-signing
August 9, 2002 (2002-08-09) Marcus Ragnarsson Re-signing
August 16, 2002 (2002-08-16) Niklas Sundstrom 2-year Arbitration award
September 4, 2002 (2002-09-04) Jim Fahey Entry-level
Ryan Kraft Re-signing
Willie Levesque Entry-level
Mark Smith Re-signing
September 5, 2002 (2002-09-05) Niko Dimitrakos Entry-level
September 6, 2002 (2002-09-06) Matt Bradley Re-signing
September 13, 2002 (2002-09-13) Scott Hannan 1-year Re-signing
September 23, 2002 (2002-09-23) Tomas Plihal Entry-level
October 22, 2002 (2002-10-22) Evgeni Nabokov 2-year Re-signing
November 13, 2002 (2002-11-13) Brad Stuart 2-year Re-signing
January 25, 2003 (2003-01-25) Kyle McLaren 4-year Re-signing
May 22, 2003 (2003-05-22) Douglas Murray Entry-level
Mike Ricci 1-year Option exercised
May 30, 2003 (2003-05-30) Vincent Damphousse 1-year Option exercised

Draft picks

San Jose's draft picks at the 2002 NHL entry draft at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario.

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club team
1 27 Mike Morris Right wing  United States St. Sebastian's School (USHS-MA)
2 52 Dan Spang Defense  United States Winchester High School (USHS-MA)
3 86 Jonas Fiedler Right wing  Czech Republic Plymouth Whalers (OHL)
5 139 Kris Newbury Center  Canada Sarnia Sting (OHL)
5 163 Tom Walsh Center  United States Deerfield Academy (USHS-MA)
7 217 Tim Conboy Defense  United States Topeka ScareCrows (USHL)
9 288 Michael Hutchins Defense  United States Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)

See also

  • 2002–03 NHL season

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