The Sharks have reason for optimism after winning the lottery and drafting Hobey Baker Award winner Macklin Celebrini with the No. 1 overall pick. Celebrini will team with 2023 first-rounder Will Smith as part of a youth movement that San Jose hopes will get the franchise back to the postseason soon after missing out the past five seasons.
The Sharks brought in some veteran depth to help the young players in Toffoli, Barclay Goodrow and Ty Dellandrea. San Jose acquired heralded goaltending prospect Askarov over the summer from Nashville in hopes of finding a long-term answer in the net but he may need time.
While the forward group got a boost, there are still big questions on defense for a team that allowed the most goals in the NHL last season. San Jose brought in veterans like Wallman and Ceci and hope better goaltending will also help.
The youth movement led by Celebrini and Smith, who are projected as top six forwards as rookies, join returning players like William Eklund and Shakir Mukhamadullin as the next generation of players being counted on to lead a turnaround.
Collection
[
|
...
]