SAN JOSE – Tyler Toffoli was a significant part of the Los Angeles Kings’ run to the Stanley Cup in 2014, playing with fellow forwards Jeff Carter and Tanner Pearson on what was known as “That 70’s Line” because of each player’s jersey numbers.
“For Tanner and myself, obviously being young guys, we were there just to bring the energy every night,” Toffoli said. “That was right in the middle of (Carter’s) prime, and he led the charge and was incredible, especially in the playoffs.”
A decade later, some parallels may be drawn to Toffoli’s current team.
Toffoli, who signed a four-year contract with the San Jose Sharks in July and still wears No. 73, skated on a line with stars-in-waiting Macklin Celebrini (71) and William Eklund (72) during Sunday’s practice.
While Toffoli and Celebrini have been on the same line since the start of training camp as the right wing and center, respectively, this marked the first time Eklund had been placed alongside them on the left wing.
So do the Sharks now have their version of the 70’s line, with Toffoli playing Carter’s role as the sage veteran and the two young bucks, Eklund, 21, and Celebrini, 18, supplying the energy by his side?
“Obviously it’s a different situation in the sense of (Carter) being the centerman,” Toffoli said. “But if they need anything, I’m always there, and at the same time, I’m trying to work as hard as I can, too.
“If this line sticks, it’ll be good for me with how quick and fast they are. That makes me move my feet more and only helps my game as well.”
Certainly, the Sharks have a smaller version of the nicknamed line. Carter was a beast at 6-foot-3 and 220 pounds in his heyday, and the still-active Pearson isn’t small at 6-1 and 205.
Celebrini is listed at 6-0 and 190, and Eklund at 5-11 and 181, but they have different qualities than the L.A. original.
Eklund said he and Celebrini “both think we benefit from give-and-go hockey out there.”
“We aren’t the biggest guys, but we’ve got a lot of speed and a lot of vision,” he added. “(Toffoli’s) a great scorer, a great shooter.”
Coach Ryan Warsofsky said it was too soon to say whether the trio will be together for the Sharks’ next preseason game on Tuesday at home against the Utah Hockey Club. But it sure seemed Warsofsky liked what he saw in Sunday’s practice, with Eklund’s skill and speed complementing Toffoli and Celebrini.
“I thought they were good today,” Warsofsky said of the line. “Today was a little bit different of a day. We didn’t get into too much structure-driven stuff, more just some tempo up and down, some pace execution. But I thought (Eklund) looked good, probably one of his best practices of the training camp.”
Eklund played in last Thursday’s preseason game in Anaheim and was held out of Friday’s practice with an upper-body injury. Warsofsky described Eklund as a little “nicked up” but expects him to be ready once the season begins on Oct. 10 at home against the St. Louis Blues.
Warsofsky would like to see Eklund take the next step in his career after he had 45 points in 80 games last season. Playing with Toffoli and Celebrini can’t hurt in that respect.
“I think there’s another level he can get to, to really establish him as that top-six player,” Warsofsky said. “There’s another level we’ve got to get him to. We’ve got to push. He knows that. I know that. He’s committed to the way we want to play.”
Since Toffoli signed that $24 million contract with the Sharks on July 1, there has been some anticipation of him playing with Celebrini and Eklund.
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But there’s a lot of work to do before they can match the accomplishments of the Kings’ 70’s line, which had a combined 51 points in 26 playoff games in 2014. The Kings’ run, of course, included a reverse sweep of the Sharks in the first round, losing the first three games of the series to San Jose before coming back to win the next four.
“I don’t think we really played as a line until maybe right at the end of the year when the playoffs started,” Toffoli said of the decade-old trio. “And then things clicked right away, and we went on the run that we wanted.”