How Collin Graf, the undrafted son of engineers, became a top-line goal-scorer on a resurgent Sharks squad

"He's put in a lot of work," Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. "When he first came in, in the NHL, the pace is extremely high. So he went in after the summer, put a lot of work in last year to get the pace up. And now his details, his hockey sense is really what sticks out the most. He's a smart individual. And now he's added another layer to his game with the checking component."

"My mom just wanted me to learn how to skate," Graf said. "And then when I was skating, there were hockey players on the other side of the ice, and I guess I told my mom that I wanted to do that. So then it took me like two years to get good enough at skating to become a hockey player. And ever since, I've been a hockey player."

Collin Graf scored two goals in a 5-3 loss to the Dallas Stars, recording the first multi-goal game of his career while playing on San Jose's top line with Macklin Celebrini and Igor Chernyshov. Graf has emerged as an NHL breakout, sticking on the Sharks' roster out of training camp and appearing in 34 of 35 games with 18 points. Coach Ryan Warsofsky credited Graf's offseason work, improved pace, attention to detail, hockey sense, and added checking. Graf grew up in Lincoln, Massachusetts, the son of engineers, learned to skate because of his mother, was undersized and undrafted, and signed with Union College in 2021, scoring 11 goals and 22 points as a freshman.

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