San Jose Sharks top prospect Michael Misa had seven points in seven games for Team Canada at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship and walked away with a bronze medal.

Unfortunately, his play at the tournament is being viewed as underwhelming. The 2025 No. 2 pick was a perennial tournament MVP and centered the top line. He displayed strong skating skills but failed to drive play consistently. Cory Pronman of The Athletic was at the World Juniors and wrote about Misa’s performance.

“Misa, the No. 2 pick in 2025 who dominated the OHL, was expected to be a leading player for Canada. Often, though, he found himself in the background and not a major part of Canada’s offense. His great skating was evident, but he struggled to make plays or look dangerous with any consistency. It’s easy to write it off as just a bad week for him, but unfortunately for Misa, this is not a one-off; he has a history of underwhelming performances at international events over the years. He was great in junior, and is a great pro prospect, but it’s reasonable to be concerned about how much he has disappeared in big games.”

So what’s next for Misa? San Jose Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky told reporters on Tuesday that the 18-year-old is returning to San Jose, and the plan going forward has yet to be determined.

“He’s on his way back here. We’ll give him a few days to catch his breath, and we’ll go from there,” Warsofsky said.

Misa has played seven NHL games, meaning his contract still doesn’t count towards the maximum 50 allowable by the NHL. The Sharks can play Misa for two more NHL games before having to decide whether to send him back to the OHL or complete a roster move by subtracting an active contract.

“I’ll meet with Mike [Grier] this afternoon, and when [Misa] gets back, but we’re gonna give him a couple days,” Warsofsky reiterated. “He’s been through a lot and played seven games in 11 days, so give him a little bit of time, and then we’ll come up with a game plan.”

To make space for his recall back to the NHL roster, the San Jose Sharks placed defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin on injured reserve. Mukhamadullin is dealing with an upper-body injury and will miss at least the next three games.

Warsofsky talked about what he saw from Misa and, if he stays in the NHL for the rest of the season, what makes him a good bet to have success.

“Misa’s got really good habits. His hockey sense is pretty high. He knows where to go. The structure is not a problem,” Warsofsky said. “He’s a smart individual. We just got to get to his skill set a little bit quicker, and that comes with the pace of the game.”

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