SAN JOSE — Ethan Cardwell will play Friday, but Mikael Granlund’s availability remains a game-time decision as the San Jose Sharks get set to face the Seattle Kraken to close a four-game homestand.
Granlund will participate in pregame warmups before a decision is finalized on whether he’ll play against Seattle in the season’s first meeting between the two teams. The Kraken (11-11-1) have won six of its last nine games and enter Friday two points out of a playoff spot.
Granlund has missed the Sharks’ last two games because of an upper-body injury. San Jose beat Los Angeles 7-2 on Monday but lost 4-3 to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday.
Granlund, who leads the Sharks (7-13-5) with 24 points in 23 games, participated fully in Thursday’s practice, skating on a line with Tyler Toffoli and Will Smith.
Cardwell, who was recalled from the San Jose Barracuda on Thursday after Barclay Goodrow was placed on injured reserve with an upper-body ailment, will play against the Kraken in what will be his fourth career NHL game.
In Thursday’s practice, Cardwell skated on a line with Nico Sturm and Klim Kostin, but Warsofsky couldn’t say who Cardwell’s linemates would be Friday, likely because Granlund’s status remained in question.
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