Five games all at SAP Center, a couple of wins, three losses and now the Sharks hit the road for their first extended trip of the season.

I think they’re ready to get out of town for a bit.

But before the journey begins in coach Pete DeBoer’s former home of New Jersey on Friday night, here’s our latest 10 observations from the Sharks’ so-so season-opening homestand …

1 — The Sharks need more skill on their wings. We realized it in the second half of last season, we knew it in the offseason (especially after Patrick Marleau signed in Toronto), and it’s still an issue today.

So, who might be available to help right away? One name to keep an eye on is Detroit’s Andreas Athanasiou, who is locked in a contract squabble with the Red Wings. Athanasiou is a speedy winger that posted 18 goals and 29 points in 64 games last season and is currently a restricted free agent.

Word on the street is the Red Wings would be open to trading him if the right offer came along. A young player or two, including probably a defenseman, would surely be necessary to pry the 23-year-old from the Motor City.

According to MLive.com, Athanasiou is seeking a deal worth $2.5 million per season, while the Red Wings’ best offer is two years at $1.9 million per season. The London, Ontario, native is currently skating in Switzerland.

To borrow a phrase from Sharks general manager Doug Wilson — not used in this specific case, of course — Athanasiou is a player who could fit now and for the future. Wilson told The Athletic last week that the approximately $6 million in salary cap space the Sharks enjoy “leads to conversations,” and I’d be surprised if he hasn’t at least called his friend Ken Holland to see what might be necessary to get a deal done.

2 — It’s time to wonder if the Tomas Hertl-to-center experiment is over for the foreseeable future. It took just a pair of ineffective games as the third line pivot for DeBoer to move Hertl to the wing of the Logan Couture line, where he simply looks like a more effective player. After going scoreless with four shots in the first two games, Hertl has two goals (both on the power play), an assist and 12 shots over the past three games. He’s also able to use his big body much more effectively as a winger.

Perhaps Hertl would have projected as a center had he not endured three knee surgeries since he broke into the league. But at this point, DeBoer has him in the right place. Even if the move were to hurt the Sharks’ depth on the bottom two lines — and so far, the difference has been negligible — Hertl has just never shown enough consistency or drive to carry his own line.

Further, as we mentioned above, the Sharks don’t have enough talented wingers to fill out three scoring lines. Their best chance to create consistent offense may be to load up the top six, or they risk wasting Couture’s talents with subpar linemates.

Hertl has always played his best hockey on the wing, and I’m just about ready to say he should stay there for the rest of the season, if not the rest of his career.

3 — Since the Sharks don’t find it necessary to release a post-season injury list anymore, it’s taken until now to learn about what some of the players were going through down the stretch and in the 2017 playoffs. Those of you that have been following along lately surely know that Paul Martin is suffering from a setback due to offseason ankle surgery and that he’s doubtful for the five-game road trip.

But we also learned that Joonas Donskoi was dealing with “foot issues” last season along with his twice-dislocated shoulder.

Donskoi didn’t really want to talk about whatever he was trying to play through, saying: “I had some (foot) issues, yeah, it’s true, but I don’t want to talk about it to the media. It’s all behind (me) now.”

“(Injuries are) a part of the game. Almost everybody has something. … But yeah, it’s true I had some issues.”

4 — Sharks captain Joe Pavelski has taken just nine faceoffs this season. That’s especially odd, considering that he took a team-leading 856 last season.

Health could have something to do with it. According to a source, Pavelski is “a little banged up, but fine (to play).” Pavelski, if you recall, missed some time in training camp for what was simply termed as maintenance. He has taken part in every mandatory team practice since the regular season began.

Against Montreal on Tuesday Pavelski took four draws, all coming after Joe Thornton was tossed from the circle, winning one of them. He’s 3 for 9 on the season.

5 — While it’s true the NHL has more parity than perhaps ever before, the Sharks’ October schedule really isn’t all that daunting. In their first 10 games, they will have played just three teams that made the playoffs last season, and none that got out of the first round.

The five-game homestand after this road trip, though, is looking tough. The Sharks will host Toronto, Nashville, Anaheim and Tampa Bay in succession — all teams that look like legitimate Stanley Cup contenders at this stage — before capping it off with a game against Vancouver.

Hertl mentioned after Tuesday’s game that the Sharks need to get eight of 10 points on the upcoming road trip. I don’t know that they need that many, but they had better come home with at least as many wins as losses, because right now I wouldn’t put the Sharks in the same tier as those four opponents they’re set to host.

6 — As the game has gotten faster over the years, more coaches have put a priority on playing a right-handed and left-handed defenseman on each pair. DeBoer is among those that would prefer to deploy his defenders that way, and agreed with a suggestion that this strategy has evolved in recent years.

“I think so, for sure,” he said. “I think it’s a critical element. I think particularly with a guy like (Brent Burns), who’s a shooter. It’s hard for someone on his off-side to play that spot just because a big part of your job is getting him the puck in the right spots, and it’s tough to do that on your off-hand. … It’s definitely high on my list of importance.”

Joakim Ryan, of course, has been filling in for an injured Martin. He played well in his first game, but struggled a bit in the third period against New York and was caught flat-footed on Ales Hemsky’s breakaway try against Montreal on Tuesday.

I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again — don’t underestimate Martin’s importance to Burns, and, subsequently, the team. Although Ryan has played admirably for a rookie and has some long-term potential, the Sharks need Martin back in the lineup at 100 percent health, which he clearly wasn’t at in the first two games he played.

7 — Of the other teams in the Pacific Division, the Sharks should probably be most concerned about their main rival in Southern California, as the Kings have burst out of the gate with a 5-0-1 mark after pounding Montreal on Wednesday.

Not only did they embarrass the Sharks on their home ice in the second game of the season, but it looks like Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown are primed to have rebound years. (Kopitar has 8 points, leading the team, while Brown is second with 7.) They were both dominant in the one game we saw them play in San Jose. Let’s not forget that the Kings also still have the perennially underrated Jeff Carter, former Norris Trophy winner Drew Doughty and a healthy Jonathan Quick in goal.

I asked John Stevens, their new coach, if the Kings were maybe a bit like the 2015-16 Sharks, in that they’re eager to prove to the hockey world that they were still a contender after a rough playoff-less prior season.

“Not only collectively, as a group I think there are some individuals that had off years last year that are really looking to right the ship,” Stevens said. “I think they’re all anxious as a group. They know what success feels like, they know how hard it is, and they know what it takes. Certainly their commitment over the summer leads us to believe that they’re serious about getting back on track here and putting the work in necessary to become a much better team.”

Is there room in the playoffs for both the Kings and the Sharks in a more competitive Pacific Division? That’s difficult to envision.

8 — Another note on the Kings, here’s Doughty after the morning skate on Oct. 7 talking about Thornton, who was pursued by Los Angeles in the offseason before he re-signed in San Jose:

“Joe Thornton is however old and he’s still the best player on their team,” Doughty said. “It’s pretty special when you can be the best player on your team for all 20 years you’re in the league. You’re a special player when you can do that. Every time he’s circled when we play them, and every time it’s usually my job and my partner’s to shut him down.”

You can decide for yourself whether you think Doughty is trolling some other members of the Sharks with those words.

9 — The Sharks won’t get their first look at Jaromir Jagr in a Flames jersey until Dec. 14, after the legend signed with Calgary on a one-year deal.

I’ve heard a few times from others that Jagr loved playing for DeBoer in New Jersey. DeBoer, too, seems to have lots of respect for the NHL’s second-leading scorer of all-time.

“It’s great that he found a place,” DeBoer said. “He deserves to be in the league. Having worked with him, seen what he’s done the last two years, he belongs playing in this league. So, I’m happy for him.”

Jagr has one assist in three games with the Flames.

10 — Finally, a complaint that I believe most Sharks fans would agree with.

The Sharks have attempted to hold two moments of silence this season. In the home opener, it was for the casualties of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. In the third game, it was for victims of the fires in Napa and Sonoma counties.

Both times, these moments were interrupted by the “Hey (insert city here), you suck!” chant that has become commonplace just before the anthem. Both times I cringed, and I know I’m not the only one.

I’ve never thought it to be a reporter’s place to tell paying fans how they should or shouldn’t cheer, but anytime moments of silence are broken, I’d like to see that fan flung into the parking lot. These fires happened in our own local area, for crying out loud.

And I know that San Jose obviously isn’t the only place this has happened before. The worst I ever saw was in Philadelphia, when the Flyers were holding a moment of silence for a fallen officer and someone yelled “F— the police.” There was an audible gasp from the crowd, the perpetrator was identified by horrified fans, and he rightfully was kicked out of the arena.

You want to do the “you suck” chant, do the chant. But either find a time to do it that isn’t disrespectful to those that the team is trying to honor and embarrasses the rest of the fan base, or keep quiet.

(End rant.)

(Top photo: Rocky W. Widner/NHL/Getty Images)