NHL.com is providing in-depth roster, prospect and fantasy analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 1-Sept. 1. Today, three important questions facing the San Jose Sharks.

1. Will Michael Misa start this season in the NHL?

If Misa plays opening night against the Vegas Golden Knights at SAP Center in San Jose on Oct. 9, the Sharks will have four players in the lineup selected within the first seven picks of the NHL Draft beginning with William Eklund (No. 7 in 2021). The organization must decide if Misa, the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, starts in the NHL or the 18-year-old center returns for a fourth season with Saginaw of the Ontario Hockey League.

“He’ll tell us if he’s ready or not,” San Jose coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “With Michael, we have high expectations in what he can do on the ice, and I know he’s confident in what he can do.”

2. Can Yaroslav Askarov be a full-time starting goalie?

The 23-year-old is the projected starter entering training camp. Askarov went 4-6-2 with 3.10 goals-against average and .896 save percentage in 13 NHL games (12 starts) last season before going 3-2 with an American Hockey League-best 1.68 GAA and .935 save percentage in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

“It’s a different schedule, the grind of it, which he’ll have to adapt to,” Warsofsky said. “That’s really important to have internal competition. We get to make sure he’s in the right mindset and physically ready to go, but we believe that he’s, for sure, ready to take the next step.”

Askarov, the No. 11 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, was acquired in a trade with the Nashville Predators on Aug. 23, 2024. He’ll have to hold off Alex Nedeljkovic, 29, and down the road Joshua Ravensbergen, an 18-year-old from Prince George of the Western Hockey League chosen in the first round (No. 30) of the 2025 draft after he was No. 1 on NHL Central Scouting’s final ranking of North American goalies.

“Our job is to go out and find the best talent and this kid kind of fit that mold,” Sharks director of amateur scouting Chris Morehouse said. “(General manager) Mike (Grier) has always said to us, ‘Let’s get the talent right first and we’ll work off of need versus everything else when we get into a smaller group and start discussing.’”