In a Tuesday night loss to the New York Rangers, a bright spot shone in Conor Garland’s possible absence from the lineup. Earlier in the day, news had broken that Garland and his wife, Meghan, were expecting their first child to make their appearance. After playing in the game, Garland was taken to the hospital, where he would soon meet his newborn son, Quinton. While this name has caught the attention of many on X (some think he was named after Canucks captain Quinn Hughes), the name actually comes from shark hunter Quint from the movie Jaws.

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Garland’s affinity for sharks is far from breaking news — the forward has made his thoughts toward the ocean-bound species clear right from his arrival in Vancouver. Even recently, in a video tour of his house, a total of 22 sharks could be spotted in the form of lamps, figurines, and pool signs.

The love for sharks extends onto the ice, as well. Garland’s offensive success against the San Jose Sharks is unmatched, which is ironic, given how much he loves them. In 25 games against San Jose played both as a member of the Arizona Coyotes and the Canucks, Garland has put up a near point-per-game pace. He has scored in nine different outings versus the Sharks, putting up 15 assists for a total of 24 points against the team of his favourite animal.

On six occasions playing against San Jose, Garland has had a multi-point game. His two three-point excursions against the Sharks both came in his time with Arizona. On January 14, 2020, he scored a goal and assisted on two, helping the Coyotes along to a 6–3 victory. Exactly a year later, he had his highest registered shot total against San Jose with seven. In fact, 50% of Garland’s games versus the Sharks have seen the forward tally three or more shots on goal. He has hit the six-shot mark twice, both coming in his time with the Coyotes.

Garland’s second three-point game against the Sharks saw him also notch a goal and two assists, with this coming on May 7, 2021. In this matchup, the Coyotes beat San Jose 5–2. Throughout his time in Arizona, Garland put up six goals and eight assists (14 points) in 13 games against the Sharks. He finished his time with the Coyotes with 47 goals and 49 assists, good for 96 points. This means that 12% of his goals, 16% of his assists, and 14.5% of his points with the Coyotes all came against San Jose.

Garland’s first game against San Jose as a member of the Canucks resulted in the shark-aficionado going pointless, though he had two shots on goal and played 17:48. He has since developed a steady point pace against the Sharks, accumulating 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in 12 games. Of his 159 points with Vancouver, 6% have been tallied against San Jose.