{"id":477899,"date":"2026-09-28T02:36:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T02:36:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/477899\/"},"modified":"2026-09-28T02:36:16","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T02:36:16","slug":"yaroslav-askarov-and-michael-kesselring-stock-rises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/477899\/","title":{"rendered":"Yaroslav Askarov and Michael Kesselring stock rises"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last night the San Jose Sharks closed out the preseason with a 4-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights.\u00a0 With heavy-hitting, full NHL lineups, a clearer idea of what the regular season might look like was formed.\u00a0 Although they won, the game was not the prettiest and very telling of what needs to be worked on.\u00a0 However, there were two players on the back end who stood out positively: Yaroslav Askarov and Michael Kesselring.<\/p>\n

Last season, Askarov\u2019s position was a bit unclear.\u00a0 With abysmal defense in front of him, it was nearly impossible to get an accurate gauge on him-or Alex Nedeljkovic for that matter.\u00a0 He split the season almost directly down the middle with Nedeljkovic, but their quality of play was hard to determine with most of the defensive responsibility falling onto their backs, not their defenders.\u00a0 In 47 games played, Askarov had a rough record of 21-20-4, save percentage of about 88%, and a goals against average of 3.63.\u00a0 These stats are pretty mediocre, but all things considered\u2026it could have been worse.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now with a slightly better defensive core in front of him, fans are starting to get a better idea of what the 24-year-old goaltender can do.\u00a0 Especially after last night, stock on Askarov has gone up.\u00a0 Last night\u2019s game was kind of tough to watch, with the Sharks playing a very large chunk of the game in their own defensive zone.\u00a0 Vegas was firing everything they had at Askarov, who handled the pressure nicely.\u00a0 While support from his defenders certainly could\u2019ve been better, Askarov was incredibly solid throughout the night.\u00a0 He even earned himself second star of the game with 27 saves and a save percentage of about 93%!\u00a0 He also clearly has been working on his positioning during the off-season, and the results are noticeable.\u00a0 However, the one criticism lies in his post awareness.\u00a0 His positioning has improved, but if he can be more aware of his posts and how to use them he can propel himself to new heights.<\/p>\n

Also with a sneaky-good performance was Michael Kesselring.\u00a0 Kesselring came over to the Sharks via trade ahead of the draft: the Sharks traded the 20th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Kesselring and the 27th overall pick.\u00a0 Less than two weeks later, he signed a 3-year, $13.5 million contract.\u00a0 A great trade, and a reasonably priced contract, Kesselring entered the organization with positivity surrounding him.\u00a0 However, most of the positivity came from the quality of the trade and contract and not necessarily what he can bring to the team.\u00a0 This preseason, though, he showed he has immense value.\u00a0 Last night, in particular, he stood out by being hard on his opponents and on the puck.\u00a0 At many points during the night he was seen battling hard in front of the net, blocking shots, using his 6-foot-five inch frame to create ruckus and move the puck along, and decisively shooting.\u00a0 It\u2019s clear now the Sharks got Kesselring for an absolute bargain.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The sky is the limit for the San Jose Sharks, and there is only room for improvement after last season. Although the team still has a long way to go until they can be true Stanley Cup contenders, they are more than likely on their way to at least earning a playoff spot.\u00a0 Only time will tell, but for right now it looks like the Sharks have made the right decisions regarding Askarov and Kesselring.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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