Most rebuilds are long, grueling processes. Teams have to preach patience and show glimpses of progress, so fans can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The San Jose Sharks are the outlier.

Usually, finishing dead last in the league would crush the vibes and momentum a team is trying to gain through a rebuild. Instead, the Sharks made a 52-point season interesting, thanks to some breakout performances and overall resilient play.

The Sharks built on that with a playoff push, led by Macklin Celebrini. San Jose was in the mix till the very end, finishing just four points outside of eighth place. And with that, the next wave of Sharks hockey didn’t just look hypothetical or miles away; it looked real.

As if the future couldn’t get brighter in San Jose, the team got some lottery luck on Thursday night with the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

It’s easy to get swept up in the excitement of the last couple of years in San Jose because the Sharks jumped into the playoff picture a lot sooner than expected. But this team still has a ways to go, using the Cup Checklist is one way to measure how much room to grow there really is.

Here’s where the Sharks stand going into the 2026-27 season. All projected values are age-adjusted based on each player’s profile of comparable peers.

What the Sharks have  

Everything runs through Celebrini in San Jose. He is already an ace in transition, an elite playmaker, a dangerous scorer, dominant on the power play and an outright clutch player. That multi-faceted, all-around game was the reason the Sharks were anywhere near the playoff picture this year.

Usually, players don’t take the leap until their physical attributes mature enough to match their skill in potential. Celebrini did it in just his second season. And with that, the conversation shifted from comparing him to other young guns around the NHL to him jumping into the same tier as some of the Big Dogs. He wasn’t just in the thick of the scoring race for much of the year; he likely landed on a lot of Hart Trophy ballots with his MVP-caliber play, despite little star-powered support around him.

Celebrini is the kind of franchise cornerstone any team would be lucky to build around. He is a game-breaker with an incredibly high ceiling; next year, it projects to be around a plus-18.1 Net Rating. With more growth around him, he could push the bar even higher next season. Celebrini is the only under-23 forward who qualifies for franchise status.

As it stands, the Sharks have the makings of a solid support core and some depth. It’s a mix of up-and-comers, plus veterans such as Dmitry Orlov and Alex Wennberg. The idea is that the next wave — Will Smith, William Eklund, Michael Misa and Igor Chernyshov — all grow into something more than what they’re expected to be next season.

What the Sharks need  

The gap between Celebrini and the next most valuable Shark this year was massive, so it’s no surprise this team still needs to build an elite core behind him.

Smith checks the boxes as a scoring forward at the top of the supporting cast. But ideally, he can develop into that star forward behind Celebrini. Some of his comps, such as Jordan Eberle, Clayton Keller and William Nylander, point to that being in his future, but if Smith follows in the footsteps of, say, a Trevor Zegras, then San Jose will need someone else to level up into that slot.

If Smith moves up the checklist, then it’s up to players such as Chernyshov and Misa to grow into roles in that second layer.

Misa’s only 19, so it may take him some time to hit difference-maker status. The potential is there; he headlines the Sharks’ second-place prospect pipeline with a star-caliber ceiling. If Smith takes the leap, it should buy Misa more leeway to move higher in a supporting role. Or, Chernyshov, fourth in the Sharks’ prospect pool, could slide up.

Eklund may have the capacity to move up a tier as a shutdown forward. He shows signs of having Elias Lindholm, Brandon Hagel and Mikael Backlund in him, and real top-six upside.

If those players move up the ranks, the Sharks should have internal depth replacements, such as Kiefer Sherwood.

Defense is where things get a little trickier. The only veteran defenseman signed past July 1 in San Jose is Orlov; he caps out as a passable supporting defenseman and could slide even further, depending on how he ages.

Sam Dickinson, the Sharks’ No. 2 prospect, could be the eventual answer here. He’s still pretty green and may not blossom enough next year, but he has a top-pair ceiling and the potential to become a real force in all three zones. Dickinson is already showing shades of Noah Dobson, a good path to follow. But since his base level trajectory is closer to second-pair, he may be a better option for other defensive needs, since the Sharks still need a true shutdown threat, another defensive defenseman, and a replacement for Orlov after next year.

Maybe Luca Cagnoni is another option for one of those defensive slots. Or, maybe this could come into play with the No. 2 pick in the draft, with two defensemen, Albert Smits and Chase Reid, in Wheeler’s top five. A team shouldn’t draft for need, but could get creative and trade down here.

If there isn’t a viable option in the pipeline or through the draft, San Jose at least has room to get creative here with a lot of cap space and trade assets.

That leaves goaltending, and it’s a similar theme here: The Sharks have someone poised for that role in Yaroslav Askarov. It’s just a matter of finding consistency to truly take over as a reliable No. 1. As the team grows in front of him, he should be better positioned to reach that level.

The big question  

How can the Sharks build a contender around Celebrini?

The Sharks are at the next step of Mike Grier’s construction of a future Stanley Cup contender. And it’s the most important: Building an elite team around its 19-year-old mega-star.

It is a tougher job for Grier than tearing it down. To his credit, the Sharks have amassed other young pieces to grow with their superstar that shape what could be the core of an annual playoff participant.

The path is there. Smith is a terrific offensive talent. He has the ability to level up and be a potent scorer, but his game management and inconsistent battle level frustrated coach Ryan Warsofsky on occasion. The Sharks have other developing weapons. Misa seemingly improved with each week of experience and could give them a strong one-two punch at center behind Celebrini. Chernyshov is big, rangy and has hands. He showed in flashes that he can play with Celebrini and Smith.

San Jose doesn’t have a great shutdown forward, though Eklund and Wennberg often drew the tougher assignments. Collin Graf emerged as an impactful two-way winger and reliable penalty killer. A full season of Sherwood does improve their depth, but the Sharks still need improvement from their bottom six, whether internally or externally.

Defense is an obvious area to address. Dickinson could be ready for more responsibility after being sheltered during his rookie year. But the Sharks don’t have an ideal top-pairing option at the moment. There could be possibilities in free agency. (Tampa Bay’s Darren Raddysh is due for a big payday, but there is risk his monstrous 2025-26 season is an anomaly.) Grier should see how available some younger, long-term options are across the league. He has enough quality assets to have a serious conversation with a fellow GM looking to deal.

It will be interesting to see what he does with his No. 2 pick after a surprise leap of several positions in the draft lottery. Could he dangle that for a massive package where he’d drop a few spots but get back a quality young defenseman that’s under team control? Could he make the pick — if, for instance, it is Swedish winger Ivar Stenberg — and peddle one of his other skilled forwards along with the first-round pick from Edmonton to get that minutes-munching blueliner in his early-to-mid 20s?

It is a time of great promise in San Jose. And it is time for Grier to deliver on that promise.

More and more, the Sharks’ promise is turning into actual skill — and this past year, it almost landed them in the playoffs. That put San Jose ahead of the curve, and now opens the door to a new challenge: Balancing the newly developed expectations without losing sight of the big picture. The foundation of a contender may be in place, but some of these young stars still need time to cook.