San Jose Barracuda defenseman Luca Cagnoni should be returning to the lineup on Friday after missing the previous game due to an injury.

Per source, Cagnoni didn’t play in the ‘Cuda’s 4-3 win over the Colorado Eagles on Nov. 29 due to a swollen ankle.

Once again, the San Jose Sharks prospect is off to a tremendous start for the Barracuda. Cagnoni leads the team in points by a defenseman with 15 (4 goals, 11 assists) in 18 games. Among all AHL defensemen, Cagnoni is 5th in points. He is just five points away from first-place Zac Jones.

After a terrific 10-1-1-1 record in November, the San Jose Barracuda have their sights set on first place in the Pacific Division. The Cuda should be even better with Cagnoni back in the lineup against the Tucson Roadrunners on Friday. He’ll go back to his No. 1 defenseman role and get an even bigger boost on the power play as Michael Misa will make his debut during his conditioning loan.

Misa said he is playing tomorrow, and added that he was on the power play with Chernyshov, Musty & Cagnoni at practice today 😳 Was with Lund and Wahlstrom at 5-on-5

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 4, 2025

The swollen ankle Cagnoni dealt with appears to be in the rearview mirror. Along with watching Misa’s return from an ankle injury, the San Jose Sharks will want to make sure one of their top defense prospects doesn’t re-aggravate any issues.

With the World Juniors approaching, the Sharks could send both Sam Dickinson and Misa to play for Team Canada. If that happens, that could open the door for Cagnoni to gain an NHL recall and potentially help with the struggling power play.

Cagnoni has faired extremely well when put with Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, and others on the Sharks’ top PP unit. He’s only had a few opportunities during the preseason and late in the 24-25 season, but each time has been promising.

The San Jose Barracuda head to their back-to-back against the Roadrunners, who are in 9th in the Pacific, just three points out of first place. A two-game sweep over the Utah Mammoth’s farm team and some help could put the ‘Cuda in first when they wake up on Sunday.

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