The Potential of the San Jose Sharks

[Stringer Bell]

What is everyone's overall opinion on the Sharks, their rebuild, and their potential to be a juggernaut?

I've ignored most of their rebuild, but I recently took a look at their young players, their prospects, and the years they're having in the leagues they're playing and am absolutely floored by the amount of potential.

Now that being said, a team needs a lot more than that to exit a rebuild and become an actual playoff team. Ottawa and Buffalo, for example, have had a plethora of great forward and defensive prospects for years and with all due respect to their fan bases they still stink.

But it's like I turned away for a bit, blinked, turned back and they're stacked (with potential).

Mack Celebrini, 18
William Smith, 19
William Eklund, 21
Fabbian Zetterlund, 25
Jack Thompson, 22
Yaroslov Askarov, 22
Sam Dickinson, 18
Quentin Musty, 19
Luca Cagnoni, 19
Filip Bystedt, 20
Thomas Bordeleau, 22
Collin Graff, 22
Kasper Haltunen, 19

(no order)
Is there anyone I'm missing? Anyone who does not belong on that list? Or are they to be another Buffalo and Ottawa like Montreal and Chicago look like they're headed to be?

 

[Stealth JD]

1G - Askarov
1C - Celebrini
2C - Smith
1D - Dickinson(?)

They already seem to have most of the difficult pieces to acquire; just need a few more quality defensemen and for their top wing prospects to pan out. Matthew Schaefer would be an ideal get for them at the draft.

 

[Peasy]

Celebrini is exactly the type of talent you want to build your team around. He does it all, wont have any glaring weaknesses in his game. They will not be like an Ottawa/Buffalo/Montreal.

I think they push for the playoffs next year, or the very least the year after that.

Only thing they are kinda lacking is on the back end but Dickinson should develop nicely and teams have gotten by/made playoffs without straight up legit #1 Ds.

 

[Elvs]

I know nothing about him, but Jake Furlong was on Team USA for the WHJC-U20 last year, so I'm guessing he should be on that list.

But yeah, definately the Sharks have some good building blocks for the future.

 

[DuncanMacpherson]

Would like to see them have one more monster draft then start trying to get back into the playoffs, don’t trade the first round pick though. Wouldn’t surprise me if they offer Marner 13 million this offseason. Him and Celly would be nasty together.

 

[TheGoldenJet]

What is everyone's overall opinion on the Sharks, their rebuild, and their potential to be a juggernaut?

I've ignored most of their rebuild, but I recently took a look at their young players, their prospects, and the years they're having in the leagues they're playing and am absolutely floored by the amount of potential.

Now that being said, a team needs a lot more than that to exit a rebuild and become an actual playoff team. Ottawa and Buffalo, for example, have had a plethora of great forward and defensive prospects for years and with all due respect to their fan bases they still stink.

But it's like I turned away for a bit, blinked, turned back and they're stacked (with potential).

Mack Celebrini, 18
William Smith, 19
William Eklund, 21
Fabbian Zetterlund, 25
Jack Thompson, 22
Yaroslov Askarov, 22
Sam Dickinson, 18
Quentin Musty, 19
Luca Cagnoni, 19
Filip Bystedt, 20
Thomas Bordeleau, 22
Collin Graff, 22
Kasper Haltunen, 19

(no order)
Is there anyone I'm missing?

I would add Liljegren to your list, especially if you’re including 25 year olds like Zetterlund. Unlike Zetterlind, Liljegren was a 1st round pick and has elite tools.

It also appears that Liljegren has now shed the Toronto stink, he was in a bad situation there. He’s acclimated to the Sharks now, and has four points in his last four games.

If you look at everyone from the 25 year olds in Zetterlund and Liljegren down to whichever 18 year old the Sharks draft this year, that is looking like an incredible up and coming core, possibly the best in the NHL if the Sharks can keep them together.

 

[CaptainShark]

On the d-side I would add Pohlkamp and Mukhamadullin…

Two years ago things looked soooo bleak. An aging roster that was neither here nor there, a lot of overpaid players and an empty cupboard at the farm. Grier has done an outstanding job so far and there are tons of good vibes around this team…

Looks really promising so far. I am so psyched, that i ordered a Will Smith jersey despite being in my mid 40s and originally having decided that i was too old to buy and especially wear overpriced jerseys and adore players that could be my sons…

 

[CaptainShark]

Here is GPT‘s „opinion“:

The San Jose Sharks’ rebuild could be graded as a B- on a school-grade scale. While they’ve made significant strides by drafting elite prospects like Macklin Celebrini (1st overall, 2024) and Will Smith (4th overall, 2023), there are still concerns about the overall depth of their roster and their ability to compete in the near future.

Positives:

1. Top-End Talent: Celebrini and Smith provide high upside, and Celebrini is seen as a potential franchise-changing player. Smith and other young players like William Eklund and Thomas Bordeleau have shown promise as well.

2. Improved Prospect Pool: The addition of highly-rated prospects like Sam Dickinson on defense and Yaroslav Askarov in goal fills key organizational gaps .

3. Cap Flexibility: By trading veterans like Erik Karlsson, the Sharks have created financial flexibility to focus on younger players and potential free-agent additions .

Concerns:

1. Defensive Depth: The defensive corps lacks immediate high-end talent ready for the NHL, and the current roster struggles with consistency .

2. Slow Transition: Despite the injection of young talent, the Sharks remain among the league’s weakest teams, and their timeline to contention is uncertain .

3. Goaltending Questions: While Askarov is promising, their NHL goaltending options are still unproven .

The Sharks are on the right path but need continued development from their prospects and better results from their drafting and roster decisions. Their rebuild has promise, but turning that promise into a playoff-caliber team will require more time and effort.

 

[Erep]

Celebrini is exactly the type of talent you want to build your team around. He does it all, wont have any glaring weaknesses in his game. They will not be like an Ottawa/Buffalo/Montreal.

I think they push for the playoffs next year, or the very least the year after that.

Only thing they are kinda lacking is on the back end but Dickinson should develop nicely and teams have gotten by/made playoffs without straight up legit #1 Ds.

More than just being the exact type of player, he is the exact type of leader. He works so hard and pushes so hard to win, that he forces everyone around him to do the same.

He doesn't quite have the same... edge, that a Crosby or Michael Jordan do, but he has the same type of contagious drive that will prevent the eternal rebuild situation.

We all know struggling teams bring in vets to prevent that mentality, and the Sharks have done that, too, but it has a much stronger effect on the young players when it comes from their peers.

 

[Prior]

Between them and Chicago who have been competing to try to be the worst teams in the league over a multiple year stretch, they are the ones who have certainly compiled the much more attractive pieces to this point.

Unfortunately there is a long road between accumulating attractive pieces and putting a winner on the ice which several teams who are still trying to come out of that stage can attest to.

 

[MyNameIsTaken]

More than just being the exact type of player, he is the exact type of leader. He works so hard and pushes so hard to win, that he forces everyone around him to do the same.

He doesn't quite have the same... edge, that a Crosby or Michael Jordan do, but he has the same type of contagious drive that will prevent the eternal rebuild situation.

We all know struggling teams bring in vets to prevent that mentality, and the Sharks have done that, too, but it has a much stronger effect on the young players when it comes from their peers.

Man, I love watching Celebrini and am as caught up in the hype as anyone, but these are very confident statements, about very abstract things, 15 games into a players career!

 

[Sasso09]

Sharks should be a top 5 team in hockey by 2029

Celebrini will be a legit 1C
Smith will be a top line winger (don't see him sticking at C)
Dickinson, who i've been scouting since 15, WILL win a Norris, 1D
They'll pick up one of Hagens,Martone, Schaefer, Misa
Askarov has as much potential as any goalie
Eklund is already a top 6 winger, probably top line
Zetterlund should still be top 6/mid 6 winger
Musty looks like a surefire top 6er


I'm jealous AF TBH

More than just being the exact type of player, he is the exact type of leader. He works so hard and pushes so hard to win, that he forces everyone around him to do the same.

He doesn't quite have the same... edge, that a Crosby or Michael Jordan do, but he has the same type of contagious drive that will prevent the eternal rebuild situation.

We all know struggling teams bring in vets to prevent that mentality, and the Sharks have done that, too, but it has a much stronger effect on the young players when it comes from their peers.

My guy..... stop

he's 18 and has played 15 games, he's far from a leader at this point and to say this about him is extremely premature

 

[Sasso09]

Between them and Chicago who have been competing to try to be the worst teams in the league over a multiple year stretch, they are the ones who have certainly compiled the much more attractive pieces to this point.

Unfortunately there is a long road between accumulating attractive pieces and putting a winner on the ice which several teams who are still trying to come out of that stage can attest to.

unfortunately i agree... I prefer Dickinson over Levshunov and i did so at the time of the draft as well.

 

[wintersej]

They need to not follow the Buffalo/Ottawa method and bring in some quality vets who have been on good teams this offseason. Not just a bunch of 4th liners and bottom pairing D, but some guys who play real roles in the lineup.

 

[Gecklund]

Think it’s too early to say they’ll be a juggernaut. Their forwards look very very promising and should be good with Celebrini, Smith, Eklund, Chernyshov, Musty, Bystedt, etc. Askarov looks like the real deal which is great so they should have their starter unless something goes wrong. It’s defense that they need to fix. I think they might have a top 4 D or two in the system with Dickinson, Mukhammadulin or Liljegren but I’m not sure any of those guys are top pairing D and one of those hasn’t played an NHL game so too early to say much.

They need to not follow the Buffalo/Ottawa method and bring in some quality vets who have been on good teams this offseason. Not just a bunch of 4th liners and bottom pairing D, but some guys who play real roles in the lineup.

So like Toffoli, Wennberg, Ceci, Walman?

 

[Sasso09]

1G - Askarov
1C - Celebrini
2C - Smith
1D - Dickinson(?)

They already seem to have most of the difficult pieces to acquire; just need a few more quality defensemen and for their top wing prospects to pan out. Matthew Schaefer would be an ideal get for them at the draft.

Schafer if you think Smith is a true Center, i don't

Hagens would secure SJ as the best team up the middle, both have great rep defensively and 100 point potential

 

[Gecklund]

Schafer if you think Smith is a true Center, i don't

Hagens would secure SJ as the best team up the middle, both have great rep defensively and 100 point potential

Smith is absolutely a pure C

 

[Mrfenn92]

They are doing good. Not sure why the shade at Chicago or montreal

 

[Oneiro]

Super happy for Sharks fans. Great fanbase who supported probably the only great team never to get it done in the 2010s.

Grier has had a few hiccups but mostly done a great job.

 

[The411]

From a fans perspective you have to look at what the team looks like with its top prospects right now and that has to be exciting not to mention the chemistry looks good. I think going with Warsofsky as their new coach was also an excellent move in lieu of picking a retread.

From a sports management perspective they’ve made the right moves and it’s clear what they are building and still need to do to continue forward. They of course lucked out in getting Celebrini who is having a ridiculous impact.

I know some of the fans will be upset to see some of the fun players traded before the break, but they will allow the sharks to continue to build the core with much more depth.

 

[StreetHawk]

Integrating Young Dmen is hard. Ceci, Ruuta, Ferarro, Walman, the veterans the sharks have are due up either in 2025 or 2026. Have to make sure they have the right ones to help the young dmen coming up. Ducks, Habs have been adding young Dmen and it's had ups and downs for them.

That's the biggest challenge.

Sharks still have a long ways to go.

 

[OverTheLine]

Schafer if you think Smith is a true Center, i don't

Hagens would secure SJ as the best team up the middle, both have great rep defensively and 100 point potential

Hard to say if Smith is a winger or a center at this stage. He's smaller and worse defensively than Celebrini, so we won't really see if he sticks at center until next season at the earliest I'd guess. Could go either way but I'm leaning on agreeing with you that he seems better suited to wing ala someone like Marner.

I like Hagens but I doubt we pick first and I'd be worried about the size of forward core; none of him, Celebrini, or Smith are particularly large.

 

[frontsfan67]

IMO if they somehow manage to screw this up with their loaded team of prospects then that is embarrassing.

Celebrini, smith, eklund, askarov, Dickinson, musty, bystedt, haltunnen, cagnoni and the rest are an embarrassment of riches. For starters guys like Celebrini smith eklund all have 1st line potential, askarov could be an elite goalie in this league, Dickinson is a very safe top 4 d man could maybe be a top 2 d man, haltunnen, bystedt, musty should all be locks in the top 9, cagnoni is looking like he may get a roster spot in the bottom 4.

Lots of young talented pieces to build around and another high one this year. If I’m the sharks picking first overall today gotta think Matthew Schaefer is that guy.

They’re very top heavy and have their future goalie, defensively they’re good but another great d guy like Schaefer should put them over the top.

 

[one2gamble]

They need a lot on the defensive side still, even with dick. Hopefully they have another big draft and everyone keeps developing like they should.

Also, Macklin is 100% already leading this team. I don't have an issue stating that with confidence.

 

[surixon]

I like what they are doing with their forwards and Askarov could be a goalie that can backstop a team.

Don't really know enough about their dcore but they look on the right track.