​LAS VEGAS — The Sharks didn’t need any reminders about what they were thankful for Thursday.

The last time they had looked upon the lights of the Strip, they were on a flight headed for San Jose after an Oct. 1 exhibition game against the Vegas Golden Knights. Less than an hour later, a gunman opened fire on thousands of concert-goers from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, killing 58 people in the largest mass shooting in modern American history.

There but for the grace…

​”I have no doubt if that had been an off night, we would have been at the concert,” Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said Thursday. DeBoer is a country-music fan, as are several of his players. It was a country-music concert.

“You feel fortunate,” DeBoer said, “but you don’t want to feel too fortunate because there were a lot of people who weren’t fortunate. It’s really a lot of mixed emotions.

The Sharks had traveled round trip that October day — in and out, no hotel stay — and organizational decision that had disappointed many of the players. There was a lot of talk about the fun they might have had with a free night in Vegas.

When they landed in San Jose, they learned how lucky they were.

“I got texts, saying, ‘Are you OK?'” forward Ryan Carpenter recalled. “It was friends watching from back home in Florida. They thought we’d stayed the night there.”

The logical next thought…

“What if we had spent the night there?” said defenseman Joakim Ryan. “Maybe some of the guys would have gone to that concert…. You’re just grateful that you’re still breathing. You realize how quickly it can all end.” Get Sharks news in your inbox. Sign up now for the free Sharks Report newsletter.

In the words of Chris Tierney, the Sharks returned to Las Vegas Wednesday with “heavy hearts”.

​On the bus from the airport to their hotel, which is attached to Mandalay Bay, the driver pointed to the windows ​from which the gunman had sprayed the crowd with more than 1,100 rounds of ammunition.

DeBoer,​Tierney and Joel ​Ward ​all used the same ​word to describe the bus ride: Eerie. Like our Sharks Facebook page for more San Jose Sharks news, commentary and conversation.

“Every time we come here now it’s going to be in the back of your mind,” Tierney said. “We’re all going to remember what happened and have heavy hearts. It’s just terrible. We’ve got to remember the victims and try to play around it.”

​After checking into his room Wednesday night, Ward ​glanced out the window — and was jarred.

“At first I was like, ‘There’s the Strip. But then I’m like, oh my God, there’s the big Mandalay Bay sign and there’s the site across the street​. I did close the drapes, actually. I just got on my laptop. I had to get away from thinking about it — I needed a distraction.”

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Sharks’ Kane insulted by NHL’s lack of action in response to Jacob Blake shooting Ryan had a similar experience in his room.

“I was looking out the window wondering what room that guy was in, I could see the concert venue that he shot up,” Ryan said.

​This is a daily experience for the people of Las Vegas. The Golden Knights, and their surprising performance, has provided a diversion. Get top headlines in your inbox every afternoon. Get the free PM Report newsletter.

The expansion team played its first-ever regular season game at T-Mobile Arena nine days after the shooting, honoring the shooting’s survivors and its first responders with an emotional pregame ceremony​.

The Golden Knights won that game. They have won eight of nine at home and, at 13-6-1, they are in first place in the Pacific division.

​The Sharks are rivals. But they also are fans of what the Golden Knights have brought this city.

“I’ve dealt with some things in my past, and sports and hockey have always been my avenue to escape,” Ward said. “It’s isn’t 24 hours a day, but those one, two, three hours that you can just be free and get your mind off of things can be really powerful.”

Friday, the Sharks will play a hockey game with heavy hearts and deep gratitude.

“You start thinking about what you’re thankful for: your family, your friends, the people you love, what I get to do for a living right now — we’re all living out our dreams playing professional hockey,” Ryan said. “And then you just feel so bad for the people that aren’t around after that shooting.”

People run from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after gun fire was heard on Sunday night in Las Vegas, Nevada. A gunman has opened fire on a music festival in Las Vegas, leaving at least 58 people dead and more than 500 injured. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)

People scramble for shelter at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after apparent gun fire was heard on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A gunman has opened fire on a music festival in Las Vegas, leaving at least 58 people dead and more than 500 injured. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)

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A man in a wheelchair is taken away from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after apparent gun fire was heard on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)



Investigators walk through debris on festival grounds across the street from the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017, in Las Vegas. Authorities said Stephen Craig Paddock broke windows on the casino and began firing with a cache of weapons, killing dozens and injuring hundreds at the festival. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

The Mandalay Bay resort and casino, right, overlooks an outdoor festival grounds across the street, left, Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017, in Las Vegas. Authorities said Stephen Craig Paddock broke the windows on the casino and began firing with a cache of weapons, killing dozens and injuring hundreds at a music festival at the grounds. (AP Photo/John Locher)

This undated photo shows Sonny Melton, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)



This undated photo provided by Avonna Murfitt shows her son, Adrian Murfitt, of Anchorage, Alaska, who was one of the people killed when a gunman opened fire at a country music festival in Las Vegas on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. (Courtesy of Avonna Murfit via AP)

Melissa Fierro of Whittier takes a selfie at the Route 91 Harvest Festival. Fierro was shot in the shoulder when a gunman opened fire at an outdoor country music festival in Las Vegas on Sunday, October 1, 2017. (Courtesy Melissa Fierro)

Rachael Parker, a Manhattan Beach Police Records Technician was killed in the Las Vegas shooting Sunday Night. Credit Manhattan Beach Police Department.



In this June 6, 2015 photo, U.S. Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Charleston Hartfield of the 100th Quartermaster Company poses for a photo at Rainbow Falls near Hilo, Hawaii. Hartfield was one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Sgt. Walter Lowell/U.S. Army National Guard via AP)

San Bernardino County Deputy Recorder Dana Gardner, a county employee of 26 years, was killed in Sunday night’s mass shooting in Las Vegas.

Manhattan Beach Middle School Teacher Sandy Casey who was killed in Sunday nights shooting in Las Vegas. Photo via Facebook



This undated photo shows Jessica Klymchuk, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)

Carrie Barnette, 34, was one of those listed as killed in the mass shooting in Las Vegas, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. She worked at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim. (Photo by Janice Chamber)

This undated photo shows Denise Burditus, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)



This undated photo shows Quinton Robbins, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)

This Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, photo provided by Tom Day Sr., shows his son Tom Day Jr, with Day Jr.’s family, at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas. Day Jr., was one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at the music festival. (Courtesy of Tom Day Jr. via AP)

This undated photo shows Bailey Schweitzer, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)



This undated photo shows Stacee Etcheber, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)

This undated photo shows Angie Gomez, one of the people killed in Las Vegas after a gunman opened fire on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, at a country music festival. (Facebook via AP)

Debris litters a festival grounds across the street from the Mandalay Bay resort and casino Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017, in Las Vegas. Authorities said Stephen Craig Paddock broke windows on the casino and began firing with a cache of weapons, killing dozens and injuring hundreds at a music festival at the grounds. (AP Photo/John Locher)



A sign asking for prayers is displayed at the MGM hotel on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017, in Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Las Vegas resident Leah Wells, 49, comforts her grandson Alex Wells, 8, during a prayer vigil at Las Vegas City Hall in Las Vegas, Nev. on Monday, Oct. 2, 2017. A gunman on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay opened heavy fire on a crowd of more than 22,000 at an outdoor country music festival, killing at least 59 people and injuring at least 527, becoming the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. (Photo by Rachel Luna, OC Register/SCNG)

A woman cries while hiding inside the Sands Corporation plane hangar after a mass shooting in which dozens were killed at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, in Las Vegas. (Al Powers/Invision/AP)



San Bernardino sheriff’s Sgt Brad Powers suffered a gun shot Sunday, October 1, 2017 during the shooting in Las Vegas. He is listed in critical condition. (Courtesy photo)

Melissa Fierro of Whittier was shot when a gunman opened fire at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas on Sunday, October 1, 2017. (Courtesy Melissa Fierro)

This undated photo provided by the Ontario Police Department shows Officer Michael Gracia. On Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, Gracia was off duty when he was injured during a mass shooting at a concert in Las Vegas. (Ontario Police Department via AP)



This photo provided by Marissa Nino shows a spring, 2017 self-portrait by her cousin Karessa Royce, 22, lower right, and her friend Pam Rios in Las Vegas. When Royce was wounded in the mass shooting in Las Vegas Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, Rios rushed her to an ambulance which took her to a hospital. She was shot in the shoulder and is in intensive care following surgery for a collapsed lung, but is expected to survive. (Marissa Nino/Karessa Royce via AP)

Concert attendees Nate Andor and Summer Neria, of Huntington Beach, Calif., near the scene where hours earlier a gunman rained a rapid-fire barrage over an outdoor concert from the nearby Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, in Las Vegas, Oct. 2, 2017. The gunman Ð identified as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock Ð killed at least 58 people, and wounded hundreds of others, officials said. Police believe Paddock killed himself, and that he was the sole gunman. (Isaac Brekken/The New York Times)

Reed Broschart, center, hug his girlfriend Aria James on the Las Vegas Strip in the aftermath of a mass shooting at a concert Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. The couple, both of Ventura, Calif., attended the concert. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)



People run for cover at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after apparent gun fire was heard on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)

Debris is strewn through the scene of a mass shooting at a music festival near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

People hug and cry outside the Thomas & Mack Center after a mass shooting at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival on October 2, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A gunman, identified as Stephen Paddock, 64, of Mesquite, Nevada, opened fire from the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on the music festival, leaving at least 58 people dead and hundreds injured. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)



Police run to cover at the scene of a shooting near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, in Las Vegas. Multiple victims were being transported to hospitals after a shooting late Sunday at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. (AP Photo/John Locher)

This undated photo provided by Eric Paddock shows his brother, Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock. On Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, Stephen Paddock opened fire on the Route 91 Harvest Festival killing dozens and wounding hundreds. (Courtesy of Eric Paddock via AP)

People assist a wounded woman at the Tropicana during an active shooter situation on the Las Vegas Stirp in Las Vegas Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Multiple victims were being transported to hospitals after a shooting late Sunday at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)



Investigators work the scene Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, after a mass shooting at a music festival near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip on Sunday in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky, left, and Congresswoman Dina Titus embrace during a prayer vigil at Las Vegas City Hall in Las Vegas, Nev. on Monday, Oct. 2, 2017. A gunman on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay opened heavy fire on a crowd of more than 22,000 at an outdoor country music festival, killing at least 59 people and injuring at least 527, becoming the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. (Photo by Rachel Luna, OC Register/SCNG)

An injured person is tended to in the intersection of Tropicana Ave. and Las Vegas Boulevard after a mass shooting at a country music festival nearby on October 2, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)



People run from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after apparent gun fire was heard on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)

(David Becker/Getty Images) Police guard along the streets outside the the Route 91 Harvest country music festival grounds after a active shooter was reported on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)

People embrace after arriving at Metro Headquarters to check on loved ones early Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, after a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Sunday. (Yasmina Chavez/Las Vegas Sun via AP)



Melissah Burke and her husband Stephen, of Seattle, walk along the Las Vegas Strip near Mandalay Bay hotel and casino Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. The couple, who were attending the music festival last night where a mass shooting occurred, found refuge in a nearby apartment and casino. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)

An officer stands outside a gate for the Route 91 Harvest concert venue on the Las Vegas Strip Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. A mass shooting occurred late night Sunday at the music festival. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)

A police officer takes cover behind a police vehicle during a shooting near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)



A funeral home van leaves the site of a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Drapes billow out of a broken window at the Mandalay Bay resort and casino Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, on the Las Vegas Strip following a deadly shooting at a music festival in Las Vegas. A gunman was found dead inside a hotel room. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)

A sign hangs at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival venue Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. A deadly shooting occurred Sunday at the music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)



A body is covered with a sheet after a mass shooting in which dozens were killed at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. (Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

(L-R) First lady Melania Trump, U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Karen Pence are joined by cabinet members and White House staff as they observe a moment of silence on the South Lawn of the White House October 2, 2017 in Washington, DC. The White House observed the moment of silence to honor of the victims of Sunday’s mass murder in Las Vegas, the deadliest shooting in recent American history. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

People tend to the wounded outside the Route 91 Harvest Country music festival grounds after an apparent shooting on October 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. There are reports of an active shooter around the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)



Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officers run down Tropicana Ave. near Las Vegas Boulevard after a mass shooting at a country music festival nearby on October 2, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A gunman has opened fire on a music festival in Las Vegas, killing at least 58 people. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot dead. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

People head to buses as they leave the Thomas & Mack Center after a mass shooting at a country music festival on October 2, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. People who could not go to hotel-casinos that were closed after the shooting temporarily stayed at the center. The gunman, identified as Stephen Paddock, 64, of Mesquite, Nevada, opened fire from the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on the music festival, leaving at least 58 people dead and hundreds injured. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

A woman sits on a curb at the scene of Sunday night’s shooting outside of the Route 91 Harvest Festival along the Las Vegas Strip, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)



Trisha Erickson, left, is greeted at the Long Beach Airport by family members after she and a friend from Fountain Valley arrive from Las Vegas on Monday, October 2, 2017. They both survived a mass shooting at a Jason Aldean concert which killed at least 58 people. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Ryan Hultner of Fountain Valley greets his tearful wife Katy at the Long Beach Airport after she arrives back from Las Vegas. She and her friend escaped serious physical injury when a shooter opened fire at a Jason Aldean concert, killing at least 58 people. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Eric Paddock, left, brother of Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock, speaks to members of the media outside his home, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Orlando, Fla. Paddock told the Orlando Sentinel: “We are completely dumbfounded. We can’t understand what happened.” (AP Photo/John Raoux)



President Donald Trump makes a statement about the mass shooting in Las Vegas, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017 at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 02: A Park Service employee lowers the U.S. flags on the grounds of the Washington Monument to half-staff, on October 2, 2017 in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump ordered the flags on all federal buildings to fly at half-staff following the mass shooting that left more than 50 dead in Las Vegas. The gunman, identified as Stephen Paddock, 64, of Mesquite, Nevada, allegedly opened fire from the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on an outdoor music festival. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

The damaged windows on the 32nd floor room that was used by the shooter in the Mandalay Hotel and the Route 91 festival venue (front) after a gunman killed more than 58 people and wounded more than 500 others when he opened fire on a country music festival in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 2, 2017. Police said the gunman, a 64-year-old local resident named as Stephen Paddock, had been killed after a SWAT team responded to reports of multiple gunfire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay, a hotel-casino next to the concert venue. (MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)



Drapes billow out of broken windows at the Mandalay Bay resort and casino Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, on the Las Vegas Strip following a deadly shooting at a music festival in Las Vegas. A gunman was found dead inside a hotel room. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Police vehicles block a street after sunrise Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. A mass shooting occurred late night Sunday at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)

A woman hides inside the Sands Corporation plane hangar after a mass shooting in which dozens were killed at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, in Las Vegas. (Al Powers/Invision/AP)



Police escort people to an evacuation bus after hiding inside the Sands Corporation plane hangar after a mass shooting in which dozens were killed at Route 91 Harvest Festival on early Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. (Al Powers/Invision/AP)

Metro Police conduct a search on people bringing supplies to the people taking refuge inside the Thomas & Mack following a mass shooting at the Route 91 music festival along the Las Vegas Strip, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. (Yasmina Chavez/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

People wait for their ride outside the Thomas & Mack center, which served as a refuge, following a mass shooting at the Route 91 music festival along the Las Vegas Strip, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. (Yasmina Chavez/Las Vegas Sun via AP)



People load into buses destined to different Strip Casinos following a mass shooting at the Route 91 music festival along the Las Vegas Strip, Monday, Oct. 2, 2017. UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center was opened as a place of refuge. (Yasmina Chavez/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Police vehicles block a street after sunrise Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Las Vegas. A mass shooting occurred late night Sunday at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)

Concertgoers head for shelter outside of the Route 91 Harvest Festival after a gunman opened fire at the festival on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, in Las Vegas. (Al Powers/Invsion/AP)



People arrive early Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, to Thomas & Mack center via bus after hiding inside the Sands Corporation plane hangar after a gunman opened fire at the Route 91 Harvest country festival in Las Vegas. (Al Powers/Invision/AP)

WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 02: A Park Service employee lowers the U.S. flags on the grounds of the Washington Monument to half-staff, on October 2, 2017 in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump ordered the flags on all federal buildings to fly at half-staff following the mass shooting that left more than 50 dead in Las Vegas. The gunman, identified as Stephen Paddock, 64, of Mesquite, Nevada, allegedly opened fire from the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on an outdoor music festival. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Las Vegas police sweep through a convention center area during a lockdown Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, at the Tropicana Las Vegas following an active shooter situation on the Las Vegas Strip. Multiple victims were transported to hospitals after a deadly shooting late Sunday at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)



Police tape blocks off the home of Stephen Craig Paddock on Monday, Oct. 2, 2017, in Mesquite, Nev. Paddock killed dozens and injured hundreds on Sunday night when he opened fire at an outdoor country music festival in Las Vegas. Heavily armed police searched Paddock’s home Monday. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

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