Nieto has been demoted to the Sharks' fourth line, reports Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News.

EDGE Analysis

Nieto is still an important penalty killer, but with just six points and one even strength goal in 19 games, the team is turning to other sources for offense. Nieto's demotion isn't likely to be permanent, but not only is he struggling, opportunities are being taken away from him.

Nieto scored his first even strength goal of the season in Friday's win over Detroit.

EDGE Analysis

With three goals and three assists in 16 games, Nieto's totals are disappointing. Making matters worse is that just one of his three goals is at even strength. That's a red flag that things aren't going right. The other two were an empty netter and a shorthanded goal

Nieto popped in a shorthanded goal in Saturday's loss to Dallas.

EDGE Analysis

It's Nieto's second goal of the year. He hasn't had the kind of impact he had last year for San Jose. That his second goal of the year is coming down a man says a lot about how little you can count on his offensive production this season.

Nieto had an assist, a shot and a hit in Wednesday's loss to Nashville.

EDGE Analysis

Nieto's production has been close to what was expected preseason, with a goal and three assists through nine games. What's lagged has been the shots. He has just 13 in those nine games.

Nieto picked up an assist and an empty-net goal against the Capitals on Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

The third-year winger's been an active third-line presence for the Sharks in the early going -- while Tuesday's points were his first of the year, he's been noticeable on the offensive end in all three games so far. The former Boston University star has more skill and pedigree than last year's 27 points would seem to imply, and at only 22 years old, he's got nice upside for deeper and keeper formats.

Nieto suffered a fractured foot in the final few weeks of the regular season, CSN Bay Area's Kevin Kurz reports. While the injury didn't force Nieto to sit out any games at the time, it will prevent him from being available for the United States squad during the IIHF World Championships in May. The 22-year-old, who compiled 27 points over 72 games in 2014-15, should be ready to go when the Sharks reconvene for training camp in the fall.

Nieto had an assist, a plus-1 rating, and four shots in Wednesday's win over the Avalanche. With that assist, Nieto hits 25 points on the year, setting a new career-high total. He's still two goals shy of last year's total of 10 and he's had his slumps, but overall Nieto has taken a solid step forward this season.

Nieto scored the lone Sharks goal in a 2-1 shootout win over the Penguins on Monday. Nieto is on a nice little streak at the moment, posting three goals, an assist, a plus-3 rating, and 3.33 shots per game over the last three games. After a long drought mid-season, he's working his way back into fantasy relevance.

Nieto scored twice on four shots -- one into an empty net -- and added an assist Tuesday in a win over the Canucks. He'd managed all of one point in the prior six games coming into Tuesday's action, and with only 20 points on the year, the best thing we can say about Nieto's overall production is that he's poised to pass the 24 points he posted as a rookie last season.

Nieto assisted on two scores in Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the Capitals.It goes down as Nieto's first multi-point performance of the season. Since returning from an ankle injury Dec. 30, Nieto has picked up just one goal and five assists over 20 games. While the points aren't trickling in for Nieto, he's at least been active, recording two or more shots on goal in seven consecutive games.