Sharks Still at the Bottom, But the Future is Bright

Hey all and it’s time to talk about the teams who missed the playoffs, starting with the Sharks.

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34 comments

  2. How I see the next season of my Sharks : Askarov first season as a starter + one vet, Celebrini and Smith sophomore slump (of course), Schaefer in the organisation (I hope so much, we need high skill dmen) and one or two UFA veterans added for short to mid terms. Things could start to get spicy in 2026-2027, maybe not playoffs but close.

  3. Mack Black is sorely missed in San Jose, as are most of the trades that happened later at the deadline. I'm just happy he most of them now have a chance in the playoffs. Only criticism would be that Eklund is definitely not a vet, with only two seasons in the NHL. Other than that, great analysis of the most fun last place team in the league.

  4. SAN JOSE is building a great foundation; only saw about 5 games (teacher who gets up early, so miss out on great West Coast NHL games). Once it hits you, that you TRULY love a sport and are a fan of a league, your fandom expands and enriches. You cheer for team great stories, follow new rising stars, and truly cherish seeing teams reborn. (BLACKHAWKS fan here…go easy, see too many fans on social media/across all platforms, saying they want our 10, 13, + 15 cup wins vacated and hate our fanbase when we are 4th in popularity in a sports mad city! P.S. Shannon…you are my hockey daily Multivitamin!!!

  5. One thing I'll add: the atmosphere around the team. Last year you could tell the players quit and the vibes were BAD. This season was completely different in terms of dynamics despite the team only winning one more game. How much do the vibes matter around a rebuilding team? Just ask Buffalo.

  6. Few things,

    Grier has already said they're going to try Smith again at center starting next year. That can change, but likely Smith and Celebrini are split beginning next year.

    Also, I have a feeling that Kovalenko likely goes to the KHL next year unless Grier convinces him to stay. Kov didn't like the repeated healthy scratches, and I don't think he gelled with Warsofsky. Which sucks because Kov can be a good middle 6 forward.

    Finally, SJ has never been a place where big name free agents sign. My fear is they overpay for player to get them to come play in SJ.

  7. I say they take a page from the Blues playbook and weaponize their cap space to improve their team and go after some FA or RFA after all how much longer will a fanbase be patient if they don't see management not being hungry for the fans the fans need to see some movement too

  9. As well as a lot of things went in the way of improving I cannot stress enough how often Blackwood kept the Sharks in games they had no business being in or even straight up stole games. We simply did not deserve that man and I hope he wins a cup. As soon as Granlund and Blackwood were dealt the while foundation of the team crumbled after the deadline.

  11. The draft should not be based on standings. The Sharks have been tanking with intent, just like the Oilers were doing ten years ago. It is cheating, as far as I am concerned.

  14. Two stats that really jumped out at me through the year for the Sharks: 1) the Sharks this year had 11 more games where they lost by 1 or 2 points than they did the year prior (last i checked now than half their losses were either 1 point games or 1 plus empty netters), and 2) with Blackwood on the team this year, their PK was over 80% and on the top 10 in the league, without him they were dead last in the league. I take that to mean Askarov and a solid partner for him will be an amazing step up next year.

  15. SJ makes the Playoffs again before Buffalo, and Pegula had better be ran out of town on a rail. But despite a plethora of talented youth, going from 19 wins to 20 and then Playoffs (by 2028) would be some Miracle Max magic.

  16. If I were MG I'd go out and sign one top F talent for a couple years, like a Marchand. Same on D. With their cap space money is no object. However, these players would be invaluable for the kids to play with and observe by example. Imagine what Celebrini and Smith could learn from a Marchand. Same on the D. This would be a developmental strategy. The cap space will remain quite a while given the numbers of ELCs and RFAs with years left on them.
    These are players who could sit down with Warsofsky and discuss training and development, set plays, and report on weaknesses that perhaps W has missed. Or just sit down with players individually and talk about things like how to beat a goalie.

  20. no team should rebuild so badly like Sharks did, they got rid of Superstars pavelski, hertl for no reason, look how many years they at the bottom

  25. 2-4 years is when I can see competition from the Sharks again. Cap space will be freed up a little bit because the Burns payout is over, but the Karlsson and Hertl payouts are still there (another 3 years for Karlsson and a decade for Hertl.) Vlasic is done after this year for sure, so I can see Ferraro being their blue line guy for a while. Couture despite retiring from injury will still be paid the last two years of his contract which sucks for cap purposes. Defense and goaltending is a must for the draft. I would love to see the Round 1 pick be a defensemen or a goaltender (depending on who's available of course) Building around Celebrini, Smith, and Eklund is the right thing to do, Grier better not screw this up like how Doug Wilson screwed over the team of the 2000's 2010's that SHOULD HAVE won a Stanley Cup.

  26. nooo i always tell people blackwood is a good goalie bit inconsistent but he was good in san jose and sure in a good team his stats looks fantastic bc he actually have a good defense and good offense in front of him also idk should have put wennberg as vet instead of eklund lol hes only 22 years old its not like he hit his peak…

  28. season before this one, the losses were a lot more devastating than the losses this most recent season which at least felt competitive. That's a big improvement even if the record doesnt 100 percent showcase it.

    I'm very positive on the sharks near future and honestly, just super impressed with GM MG. Doing a fantastic job.

  32. Will probably be another rough season next year, but it's trending in the right direction.

    As for what they'll do with the cap space, maybe they could lure someone like Marner, but I'm all for Grier using cap space to take on another bad contract to acquire draft capital and hopefully rehabilitate the player's value and either keep the player or trade him for more draft capital like with Walman.

  34. If they win the draft lottery I can see pressure get higher after next season just cause that’s 2 1st overall picks back to back, both of whom are projected to be very very good(not selling them short) but if they don’t I could easily say this might take another 2 even 3 years before we really see this team back in wild card contention.

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