San Jose Sharks To Return To SAP Center

SAN JOSE, CA — The San Jose Sharks are finally coming home.

The Sharks on Thursday announced their return to San Jose starting next month after receiving approval from Santa Clara County.

The Sharks will play the remainder of their home games in San Jose at SAP Center starting on Feb. 13, when they host the Anaheim Ducks.

They will play before an empty arena for the foreseeable future amid the coronavirus crisis.

By the time the Sharks take the ice against Anaheim they won't have played at their home arena in more than 11 months. San Jose hasn’t played at the Shark Tank since March 8 of last year.

The Sharks will play their first regular season “home” games Monday and Wednesday in Glendale at Gila River Arena against the Vegas Golden Knights.

San Jose has been training in Arizona and played its first eight regular season games on the road.

The last-place Sharks are 3-5 and have lost three of their last five games but are within five points of first-place Vegas in the eight-team West Division.

Team officials said in a statement that they were cleared to play next week’s games in San Jose but decided to play in Arizona after consulting with the NHL and the Players' Association, citing health and safety considerations.

“While we are pleased to have received permission for the team to return to Santa Clara County, there are numerous health and safety issues - both from the County and League level - that need to be implemented to ensure the safety of the returning players and staff,” the team said in a statement.