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LAST SEASON<\/p>\n
The Sharks haven\u2019t made the playoffs since 2019, and nobody expected anything different last season. But after years of high picks \u2013 namely Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and Michael Misa \u2013 most expected at least a solid leap forward. The season started horribly, with the club sitting 31st at the end of October with a 3-6-2 record.<\/p>\n
But by the Olympic break, the Sharks were just five points out \u2013 Celebrini\u2019s MVP-caliber season had given the club some new life. That put the Sharks in a fascinating position heading into the Trade Deadline. After half a decade of being sellers, were they going to get a bit more aggressive and force their way into the playoffs? The team ended up mostly staying pat, trading Timothy Liljegren to the Washington Capitals<\/a> for a draft pick and swapping a pair of minor leaguers.<\/p>\n In the end, the Sharks missed the playoffs \u2013 but that\u2019s where everything got interesting. The club climbed up in the NHL Draft lottery, securing the second overall pick. They then made a couple of high-profile trades, which included landing Michael Kesselring and a first-round pick from Buffalo. General manager Mike Grier then sent William Eklund, Kasper Halttunen and prospect Brandon Svoboda to the Ottawa Senators<\/a> for another first-round pick, before landing Philly\u2019s first-rounder three days later in a deal that sent Buffalo\u2019s pick, among others, the other way. That led the Sharks to have three first-round picks, giving them one of the best draft days of any team.<\/a><\/p>\n Was the year a success? Absolutely. They got stronger, proved they could contend and still landed some huge long-term assets. By all accounts, Grier did the most with what he had and deserves full credit for what he pulled off leading to the draft in Buffalo.<\/p>\n KEY ADDITIONS & DEPARTURES<\/p>\n Additions<\/p>\n Ivar Stenberg, LW Departures<\/p>\n William Eklund, LW (Ott) OFFENSE<\/p>\n Macklin Celebrini reached true NHL superstar status<\/a> last year, finishing with 45 goals and 115 points, 56 more than the second-highest Shark, Will Smith, who had 59. Celebrini\u2019s rise forced him onto Canada\u2019s Olympic team, where he had an impressive 10 points in six games as one of the tournament\u2019s most lethal forwards. Celebrini is now one of the biggest faces of the NHL (figuratively and literally<\/a>), with new fans becoming heavily attached to him. Celebrini is just getting started, but he\u2019s already a top-five player in the league<\/a> and should continue to climb up the scoring charts.<\/p>\n But he can\u2019t do it all himself. Smith is going to need to step it up as a third-year NHLer, and there\u2019s little reason to believe that won\u2019t be the case. He would have likely finished somewhere in the 65-70-point area had he played the full 82-game schedule, which would have been incredibly impressive as a second-year forward. He\u2019s been so productive at every level and that\u2019s not going to change; he\u2019s a strong two-way forward, too.<\/p>\n Sticking with the young core, Michael Misa had his ups and downs as an 18-year-old rookie, but he still produced at just under half a point-per-game. He\u2019ll be given more responsibility this year, but don\u2019t be surprised if the Sharks still choose to ease him in a bit while giving Alexander Wennberg tougher matchups. Wennberg had 55 points last year \u2013 his best output in nearly a decade \u2013 with his skill shining quite frequently. If he can crack the 50-point mark again, that would be an absolute win. He\u2019s only done it twice, though, so we\u2019ll see how sustainable it is.<\/p>\n Igor Chernyshov had 19 points in 28 games with the Sharks last year, making an excellent first impression. That\u2019s a full-season pace of 56 points, something that feels fully attainable in his first full season. The young Russian winger\u2019s skating is still a work in progress, but he\u2019s smart and skilled enough to make that more of a non-issue. <\/p>\n Returning forwards Collin Graf and Tyler Toffoli should remain important offensive contributors. Toffoli is more of a bottom-sixer now on this team, but one who can play on the power play and is fully capable of fitting in anywhere in the lineup. Graf, meanwhile, had 21 goals and 46 points last year and is projected to remain around there again as an important secondary scorer. Mason Marchment, meanwhile, is typically good for around 45-50 points a year and should achieve that as a top-six forward this year.<\/p>\n This is by far the deepest San Jose\u2019s forward crop has looked in more than half a decade \u2013 and that\u2019s without talking about Ivar Stenberg (more on him later). The Sharks finished 17th in goals-for per game last year <\/a>at 3.04 despite being 26th in shots (25.8). Look for both numbers to get substantial boosts \u2013 and they\u2019ll need to do so to offset the ugly 3.54 goals against per game they operated at.<\/p>\n DEFENSE<\/p>\n This\u2026 is where things start to fall a bit. The Sharks moved on from the likes of Mario Ferraro and John Klingberg, both of whom played more than 20 minutes a night. Vincent Desharnais was quite solid defensively, too. Given the Sharks were already one of the worst defensive teams in the league last year, that\u2019s not ideal.<\/p>\n In come Darnell Nurse and Jacob Trouba \u2013 two no-nonsense defenders coming off poor seasons. Nurse\u2019s offense continued to fall, and his defensive GAR of -1.4 wasn\u2019t ideal.<\/a> Neither was Trouba\u2019s -5.2 defensive GAR \u2013 sure, the offense was there, but he was ugly defensively.<\/p>\n Could a fresh start be what both players needed? Nurse wasn\u2019t a total pylon last year, but the noise surrounding his ugly contract made the fit with the Edmonton Oilers<\/a> a poor one. If he can get back to his pre-salary bump play, he\u2019ll be a totally serviceable blueliner capable of playing 22 minutes a night and dealing with tough matchups. But there\u2019s so little room for him to fall any further at this point. The same goes for Trouba. For now, the two should eat a ton of minutes and serve as mentors for some of the younger guys.<\/p>\n Speaking of old geezers, 34-year-old Dmitry Orlov is coming off his most productive season to date with 34 assists and 37 points. He played more than 21 minutes a night last year but could see that eased back a bit with Nurse and Trouba joining the fray. Given Orlov\u2019s age, that might not be a bad thing. He played all 82 games last year, so he\u2019s still reliable. Defensively, he\u2019s definitely not at the top of his game anymore, though as a second-pair guy, he\u2019ll be more than serviceable.<\/p>\n On the opposite side of the age bracket, look for 20-year-old Sam Dickinson to play significantly more this year. He had just one goal and 14 points last year, which isn\u2019t ideal for an offensive defenseman, but also perfectly understandable out of a junior-aged rookie blueliner. Turns out, it\u2019s hard to be a 19-year-old NHL blueliner \u2013 any growing pains were to be expected. Dickinson started the year by bouncing in and out of the lineup, but he ended up with 82 games played and some power-play time. By all accounts, he should be a top-four blueliner this year \u2013 give him a few years to show his true offensive potential, though.<\/p>\n Kesselring will likely play on San Jose\u2019s third-pair \u2013 and if he remains healthy, he\u2019ll be an excellent addition. The 6-foot-5 defender played between 15-17 minutes a night in Arizona\/Utah, but that fell to 13:24 with the Buffalo Sabres.<\/a> He only had two points in 34 games, but a fully healthy Kesselring has proven capable of 25-plus points a year without playing heavy minutes. If the Sharks are looking for a bit more offense, Luca Cagnoni has been one of the more productive AHL defenders in recent years. He\u2019s a high-volume shooter who loves to move the puck, and he\u2019s also a bit feisty for a 5-foot-9 blueliner. He\u2019s a great skater who can do some highly dangerous things with the puck,\u00a0which could lead to him earning power-play time.<\/p>\n Is this a great blueline? Not in the slightest. Everyone needs to take a step up \u2013 especially the high-cost additions<\/a>. If not, it\u2019s going to be another ugly year defensively for the boys in teal.<\/p>\n GOALTENDING<\/p>\n Yaroslav Askarov entered the 2025-26 season as the top goaltending prospect in the world. Finally \u2013 the 2020 first-round pick was going to prove himself at the highest level. Instead, Askarov had some of the worst numbers of any goalie with at least 40 games played last year. He was near the bottom of the league with a -5.9 goals saved above expected <\/a>at 5-on-5. Maybe it was nerves; maybe he fell victim to playing behind a young core. Or, maybe, the Nashville Predators<\/a> thought he wasn\u2019t the right man for the job all those years ago and bailed while they still could. Hopefully for the Sharks, it was simply the struggles of being an NHL rookie goaltender and not something worse.<\/p>\n Alex Nedeljkovic is a solid veteran presence and actually played some of his best hockey down the stretch last year. He was definitely the better of the two goalies, which, depending on your long-term view of Askarov as the starter, could be either a good or bad thing. Nedeljkovic registered a 4.7 GSAx last year despite rumors that he was one of the top goaltenders on the trade block. The Sharks clearly didn\u2019t feel confident enough to let Nedeljkovic go at the Trade Deadline while the team was still in playoff contention. Honestly, good call.<\/p>\n Since then, Grier has added two others to the mix: Eric Comrie and Ilya Samsonov. Between them, they have 584 regular-season games under their belts, with Samsonov leading the way at 200. But, ironically, he\u2019s the least likely to play NHL games this year after signing a two-way deal <\/a>with the Sharks\u00a0(and subsequently not getting added to the team\u2019s training camp roster). Comrie boasted the best goals saved above expected <\/a>at 5-on-5 of the group of 7.15,\u00a0while Samsonov spent the past year in the KHL. Comrie was signed to seemingly serve as the third goalie, but don\u2019t be surprised if he pushes himself into a bigger role before too long.<\/p>\n COACHING<\/p>\n Ryan Warsofsky came into a no-win situation as a rookie coach in 2024-25. The team won 20 games with one of the least experienced rosters in the game \u2013\u00a0but that was to be expected. Warsofsky managed to earn an extra 19 victories in 2025-26, bringing the team to fifth place in the Pacific Division. Given he\u2019s the youngest head coach at 38 years old, that was huge.<\/p>\n And he\u2019s well-respected, too. Warsofsky showed his coaching prowess when he served as head coach of the American World Championship team, which won gold for the first time in nearly a century in 2025. Nobody had USA pegged as a winner, but he got the most out of that squad and turned them into champions. Could he do that with the Sharks before long? He\u2019s a player\u2019s coach that seems to have good relationships with his players; that goes a long way to getting full buy-in.<\/p>\n ROOKIES<\/p>\n Despite Misa and Chernyshov appearing at the team\u2019s prospect tournament earlier this month, they\u2019re not rookies. Stenberg, however, is a serious contender for the Calder Trophy. He was instrumental in Sweden\u2019s success at the World Juniors, had a standout effort at the World Championship and was easily the best junior-aged player in the SHL. By all accounts, he\u2019s ready to step into a top-six role immediately and contribute thanks to his high hockey IQ and raw skill. <\/p>\n On defense, both Cagnoni and Eric Pohlkamp should see some action. They\u2019re smaller defenders, but they\u2019re highly skilled and capable of driving the play from the point. San Jose made some moves to beef up the blueline this year, but the pair should see some extended action throughout the campaign. <\/p>\n Two forwards hoping for a chance to crack the big club at some point include Quentin Musty and Filip Bystedt. Musty spent all of last year in AHL, where he put up an impressive 21 goals and 45 points in 61 games as a rookie with the Barracuda. Musty has always felt like a high-risk, high-reward winger because he truly needs to be in a scoring role to thrive. Fortunately, he got that opportunity last year, and the Sharks must be happy with his development. Bystedt, meanwhile, had 60 points in 65 games with the Barracuda. The Swedish forward boasts an impressive shot and does a great job of getting himself into scoring lanes. He\u2019s not a great skater, and hasn\u2019t really improved over the past three years. But in a middle-six role, you can do a lot worse. Both Musty and Bystedt are currently injured, but don\u2019t be surprised to see them with the big club later on. <\/p>\n BURNING QUESTIONS<\/p>\n 1. Can the goaltending be trusted? Neither Askarov nor Nedeljkovic looked like true No. 1s last year. You don\u2019t need a clear-cut guy to win games, but you need consistency \u2013 something that plagued San Jose\u2019s options last year. If that changes, the Sharks will absolutely be in the playoff conversation. It\u2019s hard to feel truly confident with the Sharks\u2019 goaltenders, but don\u2019t give up on Askarov too quickly. He\u2019s a big, athletic goaltender who, for the most part, hasn\u2019t had to deal with a ton of adversity wherever he\u2019s played. Maybe last year was the learning lesson he needed, and he\u2019ll be completely fine moving forward. If not, San Jose\u2019s in trouble \u2013 at least, until Joshua Ravensbergen is ready (and he\u2019s not close<\/a>).<\/p>\n 2. Will Nurse improve the team\u2019s blueline? Nurse\u2019s $9.25-million cap hit might feel light now, given what we\u2019ve seen this summer. But Nurse has never come close to living up to his contract and saw his ice time fall below 21 minutes for the first time in nearly a decade. While the first power-play unit isn\u2019t completely out of the conversation, it feels like Cagnoni will secure the gig if he ends up making the team full-time. If there\u2019s one positive to take out of the Nurse acquisition, it\u2019s that he actually played some impressive hockey with Canada at the 2026 World Championship to close the season. Beyond that, though, expectations are low for a guy who almost certainly will play top-pairing minutes this year.<\/p>\n 3. Can Misa take a big step forward? The 2025 second overall pick made the Sharks out of training camp and finished with 21 points in 41 games. He dealt with injuries early in the season, but still found himself on pace for around 40 points over a full season. Misa will be back full-time with the Sharks this year and could end up being the team\u2019s No. 2 center behind Celebrini. It feels like 50 points is definitely not out of the question \u2013 that would be a win for all parties involved.<\/p>\n PREDICTION<\/p>\n The Pacific is shaping up to be the weakest in the NHL this year. The Vegas Golden Knights <\/a>are the obvious favorite, while Edmonton and the Los Angeles Kings <\/a>should remain in the conversation. The Wildcard battle within the West will be fascinating, with the Anaheim Ducks<\/a>, Utah Mammoth<\/a> and Winnipeg Jets<\/a> all likely challenging for the two final spots. While they\u2019ll definitely be in the Wildcard race, don\u2019t count them out of the conversation for second in the Pacific. If the club\u2019s own zone play takes a step forward, San Jose will absolutely be a force to be reckoned with. If not, they\u2019ll have to outscore their problems \u2013 and that\u2019s easier said than done. Playoff success is a totally different conversation here, but the goal should be getting themselves there first. That seems very attainable with the forward crop the way it is.<\/p>\n _____<\/p>\n
Mason Marchment, LW
Darnell Nurse, D
Jacob Trouba, D
Michael Kesselring, D
Andre Gasseau, C
Tye Felhaber, LW
Alex Barr\u00e9-Boulet, LW
Brett Leason, RW
Phillip Sinn, D
Eric Comrie, G
Ilya Samsonov, G
Kyle Keyser, G<\/p>\n
Mario Ferraro, D (Wpg)
John Klingberg, D (Retired)
Shakir Mukhamadullin, D (Edm)
Vincent Desharnais, D (Wsh)
Ryan Reaves, RW (Retired)
Colin White, RW (NJ)
Kasper Halttunen, RW (Ott)
Pavol Regenda, LW (SHL)
Jeff Skinner, LW (Sui.)
Yegor Afanasyev, LW (KHL)
Jakub \u0160karek, G (DEL)
Gabriel Carriere, G (AHL)
Laurent Brossoit, G (ANA)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1789758490_441_image.png\"\/)
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