NEWARK, N.J. _ A couple of weekends ago, I witnessed a live-musical collaboration between a pair of heavyweights in the modern rock scene.
Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam jumped on stage to join Mumford & Sons to finish out their headlining set at Ohana Fest in Orange County. In one corner, you have a band that's won Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards. In the other, one of the biggest-rock icons of the last 30 years.
But when they joined forces to perform a cover of "All Along the Watchtower," something was off. As to be expected, Vedder and Marcus Mumford's voices sounded superhuman, charisma dripped off the stage. But it was clear that they hadn't spent a lot of time playing together. The music itself sounded disjointed.
How is this related to Sharks hockey?
Five games into the season, Sharks fans are still waiting to be electrified by the rock star that joined their team's all-star lineup on the eve of training camp. Erik Karlsson is minus-4, having been on the ice for half (five of 10) of the five-on-five goals the team has surrendered. Offensively, he's recorded three assists. The power play that was supposed to be otherworldly in the wake of his addition entered Saturday ranked 21st in the league, converting at an 11.1 percent clip.
It isn't like Karlsson is playing poorly. He just hasn't been the dominant presence that defined his tenure with the Ottawa Senators.
Like Vedder and Mumford & Sons, Karlsson is still figuring out how to play with his new bandmates and vice versa. Think about Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Justin Braun. After spending years opposite one another on the Sharks blue line, it seemed like they communicated telepathically on the ice, like musicians who can intuit where their bandmates are taking a jam and respond in perfect timing.
This analogy seems particularly relevant for a player, such as Karlsson, whose greatest asset might be his creativity.
"It's just getting used to teammates," head coach Pete DeBoer said. "And some system stuff. Every coach stresses different things. I'm sure we stress some different things than he's been used to. You try to fit in. You try to do those things. He's got a lot on his plate, but we're only five games in."
In short, stay patient. Karlsson's best music with the Sharks is still to come.
