Labanc didn't travel with the team for its two-game road trip due to an undisclosed injury, ending his 2023-24 campaign, Max Miller of The Hockey News reports Monday.
Labanc has been in and out of the lineup this season as a healthy scratch, limiting him to just 46 contests. He registered two goals and seven assists while averaging a career-low 11:37 of ice time per game. Without Labanc in the lineup, Danil Gushchin will get back into action after playing two NHL games back in November.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Gathers helper Tuesday
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Labanc notched a power-play assist in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the Kings.
Labanc snapped a four-game point drought when he set up a Jacob MacDonald tally late in the contest. Four of Labanc's six points this season have come in December. The winger is doing enough to stick in the lineup for now, but it's not uncommon for him to get scratched. He's produced one goal, five helpers, 32 shots on net, 21 hits and a minus-11 rating over 24 outings.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Tallies first goal this season
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Labanc scored a goal on his lone shot in Tuesday's 5-4 overtime win over the Islanders.
Labanc got the Sharks' third-period comeback started with his first goal of the season -- he deflected a Nikita Okhotyuk shot past Ilya Sorokin to cut New York's lead to 4-2. Labanc now has a goal and an assist in his last two games after tallying just two points, both assists, in his first 15 contests. The 27-year-old winger won't offer much fantasy upside in a bottom-six role with San Jose, though he has averaged 1:04 of power-play time on the Sharks' second unit.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Not quite ready to play
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Labanc (upper body) took part in the pregame warmups, but he won't return for Friday's contest against Montreal, per the NHL media site.
Labanc appears to be very close to playing, but he'll nevertheless miss his second straight game. He has two assists, 13 hits and four blocks in 13 appearances this season. With Labanc not quite ready to return, Jacob MacDonald will remain in the lineup Friday.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Ready to rock
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Labanc (upper body) will be back in the lineup Saturday against Vancouver, Max Miller of The Hockey News reports.
Labanc, who sat out the past two games, will replace Filip Zadina (upper body) in the lineup. The 27-year-old Labanc has two assists, 18 shots on goal and 13 hits through 13 outings this season.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Slated to return Friday
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Labanc (upper body) is set to play in Friday's game against Montreal, per Curtis Pashelka of The San Jose Mercury News.
Labanc, who missed Wednesday's 7-1 loss to Seattle, has two assists, 13 hits and four blocks in 13 contests this season. He's slated to serve in a bottom-six capacity in his return.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Dealing with upper-body injury
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Labanc will miss Wednesday's game against Seattle because of an upper-body injury, according to Max Miller of The Hockey News.
Labanc has two assists in 13 games this season. With Labanc out, defenseman Nikolai Knyzhov might draw into the lineup Wednesday as a forward. Labanc is day-to-day, so it's possible he'll return as early as Friday versus Montreal.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Registers assist in win
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Labanc posted an assist and two shots on goal in Tuesday's 2-1 win over the Flyers.
Labanc has picked up an assist in each of his last two games, though he was a healthy scratch for one contest in between. The 27-year-old winger's overall game continues to put his playing time at risk due to the threat of being scratched. He's at two helpers, 13 shots on net, eight hits and a minus-6 rating through eight appearances this season, typically in a middle-six role when he's in the lineup.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Adds power-play helper
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Labanc posted a power-play assist, two PIM and a minus-2 rating in Thursday's 10-1 loss to the Canucks.
Labanc helped out on a Fabian Zetterlund goal late in the third period. The helper was Labanc's first point in seven appearances this season. The 27-year-old winger has also gone minus-6 with 11 shots on net, eight hits and four PIM. He'll likely remain in a bottom-six role most of the time, though it's also possible he could be an occasional healthy scratch.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Snags helper
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Labanc notched an assist, three shots on goal, two hits and a minus-3 rating in Thursday's 6-2 loss to the Avalanche.
Labanc has turned up the offense lately with three goals and two assists over his last five outings. His strong play has helped him get back into a top-six role while the Sharks are dealing with a handful of injuries to wingers. For the season, the 27-year-old has 15 tallies, 33 points, 123 shots on net, 66 hits and a minus-16 rating through 68 appearances.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Tallies twice in loss
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Labanc scored two goals on four shots in Tuesday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Avalanche.
Labanc scored once each in the second and third periods, with his second goal forcing overtime. The 27-year-old has disrupted the Sharks' tanking efforts -- he has three goals and an assist as the team has picked up seven of a possible eight points over the last four games. He's up to 15 tallies, 32 points, 120 shots on net, 64 hits and a minus-13 rating through 67 appearances.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Deposits goal Tuesday
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Labanc scored a goal in Tuesday's 3-0 win over the Jets.
Labanc tallied early in the third period to give the Sharks a 2-0 lead. The 27-year-old winger has three goals over his last seven contests despite being shuffled around the lineup. He's had some good moments in 2022-23, but it's hard to see him finding success if he remains stuck on the third line. Labanc has 13 goals, 29 points, 114 shots on net, 60 hits and a minus-16 rating through 64 appearances.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Scores lone goal in loss
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Labanc scored a goal, added four hits and logged two PIM in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Islanders.
Labanc's goal gave the Sharks a 1-0 lead in the first period, but it was all downhill from there. The winger has two goals over his last three contests, a stretch that has seen him regain a top-six role with power-play time. He's up to 12 tallies, 28 points, 106 shots on net, 55 hits, 28 PIM and a minus-11 rating through 60 games this season.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Contributes goal to rally
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Labanc scored a goal on three shots and added two hits in Tuesday's 6-5 overtime loss to the Blue Jackets.
Labanc snapped a 16-game goal drought -- in which he had just one assist -- with his third-period tally to cut the deficit to 5-4. The 27-year-old has regained a near-everyday role over the last month, but he's been playing on the fourth line. Labanc has 11 goals, 27 points, 103 shots on net, 50 hits and a minus-11 rating through 58 contests overall.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Rejoins Sharks
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Labanc (personal) rejoined the Sharks for Wednesday's skate, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports.
Labanc missed Tuesday's 3-1 loss to Montreal as he awaited the birth of his child. He has 10 goals and 25 points in 51 contests this season. Labanc hasn't recorded a point over his last 10 outings. The 27-year-old should be an option for Thursday's game against St. Louis.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Unavailable against Habs
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Labanc is awaiting the birth of his child and won't be in the lineup versus Montreal on Tuesday, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports.
Labanc's game has been struggling of late, as he remains stuck in a 10-game pointless streak during which he managed 20 shots, 11 hits and three blocks. With Labanc unavailable, new additions Andreas Johnsson and Fabian Zetterlund are set to make their Sharks debuts on a line with Tomas Hertl.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: May not play Thursday
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Labanc may not play Thursday against the Golden Knights as he could return to San Jose for the upcoming birth of his child, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports.
Labanc finally returned to the lineup Tuesday as he had been a healthy scratch the previous four games and eight of the last 10. The winger has 10 goals and 25 points in 46 games this season. Stay tuned.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Absence was performance related
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Labanc was a healthy scratch Saturday versus the Penguins, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports.
There was talk of an illness going around the Sharks' locker room, but it apparently hasn't reached Labanc at this time. Noah Gregor scored a goal while playing in Labanc's usual top-line role Saturday, so this will be a playing-time situation to monitor after the All-Star break.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Not playing Saturday
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Labanc (undisclosed) isn't expected to play Saturday versus Pittsburgh, Curtis Pashelka of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
Labanc has 10 goals and 25 points in 45 contests this season while averaging 15:29 of ice time. Sharks coach David Quinn previously told Pashelka that the team is dealing with some illness issues, so it wouldn't be surprising if Labanc's absence is linked to that. Noah Gregor, who entered Saturday's action averaging 12:24 of ice time, is projected to take Labanc's place on the top line with Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl.
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Sharks' Kevin Labanc: Two points in win
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Labanc scored a goal on two shots, added an assist and logged two PIM in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Coyotes.
Labanc opened the scoring in the first period, but he failed to do his defensive diligence on one of the Coyotes' tallies. The 27-year-old was benched for about half of the middle frame, then went on to pick up an assist in the third. This was Labanc's third two-point outing in his last six games -- he's put up goose eggs in the other three outings in that span. The winger has 10 goals, 25 points, 75 shots on net, 35 hits, 22 PIM and a minus-1 rating through 41 contests.
