Jasper Weatherby scores in NHL debut

In the span of eight days in February, Jasper Weatherby scored almost the exact same goal, three times, against the exact same team.

Weatherby got the puck in the left circle on the power play, skated a couple of strides and launched a wrist shot into the back of the net.

He did it on Feb. 19, 20 and 26 against Omaha.

Weatherby made his NHL debut Saturday night for the San Jose Sharks and proved he could do the same at the next level, too.

Weatherby scored a power-play goal and added an assist in his first NHL game, leading the Sharks to a 4-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets in San Jose's SAP Center.

His goal was nearly identical to the three he scored against the Mavericks.

The center from Ashland, Ore., hauled in a pass from defenseman Erik Karlsson in the left circle, took a step and picked the corner of the net on Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck.

"It was awesome," Weatherby said when asked how it felt. "It was something to help the team there and a great pass from Karly there, so you just shoot it as hard as you can and hope it goes in."

The goal was assisted by Karlsson and Kevin Labanc.

"It was two great players making great plays," Weatherby said. "I was just lucky enough to be in the right spot and able to shoot a shot and get a good look. It's awesome when you can play with players like that."

Weatherby became the 108th former UND player to play in the NHL and the fourth from last season's team, joining Shane Pinto, Matt Kiersted and his old roommate, Jacob Bernard-Docker. Pinto, Kiersted and Bernard-Docker made their NHL debuts last spring.

Weatherby played 10:25 on Saturday, including 3:59 on the power play. His first shift came 2:03 into the game.

"You dream of that moment," Weatherby said. "Just to be able to play in this league is an honor. Once you get out there and the puck drops, the butterflies kind of go away and you're just playing hockey. I've done it (played hockey) for a long time now. But it was a pretty cool experience."

Weatherby, a fourth-round draft pick of the Sharks in 2018, played three seasons for UND, tallying 27 goals and 47 points in 100 games.

USA TODAY Sports