Potential Comparables For An Eklund Extension
- In his latest piece for NBC Sports Bay Area, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now examines what a William Eklund extension could look like. The winger is eligible for a new deal as of July 1st and after a solid 58-point effort this season, the Sharks will likely want to see if an early agreement can be reached. In terms of recent comparable long-term deals, he suggests Calgary’s Matthew Coronato (seven years, $6.5MM per season) and Utah’s Dylan Guenther (eight years, $7.14MM per year) could stand as a reasonable starting point in discussions.
Sharks Sign Barracuda Coach McCarthy To Extension
- The Sharks have signed AHL head coach John McCarthy to a contract extension, reports David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period (Twitter link). The 38-year-old has been a fixture with the Sharks going back to his playing days which started back in 2009 and ended in 2018 when he retired from playing to become an assistant with the Barracuda. McCarthy has been in charge of the Barracuda for the past three seasons with the team making the playoffs for the first time in that stretch this year.
Prospect Notes: Sharks, Reschny, Verhoeff
The San Jose Sharks are retaining their exclusive negotiating rights on three players from the 2024 NHL Draft. The Sharks announced they’ve issued bona fide offers to defensemen Nate Misskey and Colton Roberts, and forward Carson Wetsch.
Wetsch was the highest-drafted of the trio, being selected with the 82nd overall pick, while Misskey and Roberts were drafted in the fifth round, respectively. Wetsch had a nearly identical statistical campaign to his draft year, scoring 33 goals and 19 assists in 68 games, with another five goals and one assist in 11 postseason contests.
Still, Misskey may have shown that he has the highest upside this season. He scored 10 goals and 47 points in 63 games for the Victoria Royals, finishing as the team’s second-highest scoring defenseman. He’s already committed to the University of Massachusetts-Lowell for the 2025-26 NCAA season.
Other prospect notes:
- The University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks got a major commitment earlier today. According to Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald, projected 2025 first-round pick Cole Reschny will play for the Hawks next year. Reschny’s offensive talents are evident, and he should help a storied program that has only won one Division Championship in the last decade. The Macklin, Saskatchewan native scored 26 goals and 92 points in 62 games as a 17-year-old for the WHL’s Victoria Royals this past season.
- Reschny wasn’t the only top commit that the University of North Dakota received today. Frank Seravalli of the Daily Faceoff reported that defenseman Keaton Verhoeff, projected to be a top-three selection in the 2026 NHL Draft, has also committed to the Fighting Hawks program. Verhoeff was Reschny’s teammate on the Royals this past year, scoring 21 goals and 45 points in 63 games as a 16-year-old, including one goal and 10 points in 11 postseason contests.
Sharks, Andrew Poturalski To Mutually Terminate Contract
The Sharks and center Andrew Poturalski are headed for a mutual contract termination, the club announced Friday (via Curtis Pashelka of the Bay Area News Group). He’s presumably been placed on unconditional waivers today, and the termination can proceed if no one claims him in the next 24 hours.
Poturalski has an opportunity lined up outside North America, the Sharks said, presumably in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League. He told Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now after the season ended that he was frustrated with the lack of NHL opportunities he received in San Jose this year, despite leading the AHL in points, something he’s done three times in the past five seasons. He’ll walk away from the second season of a two-year contract that would have paid him an $800K salary in the NHL and a $500K salary in the minors.
The 31-year-old center has always been a high-end contributor at the AHL level, but after going undrafted, he barely ever got an NHL look. His three games played with the Sharks this season were actually a career high. He’d logged six NHL games entering 2024-25, two each in the 2016-17, 2021-22, and 2023-24 campaigns with the Hurricanes and Kraken.
The 5’10”, 187-lb pivot will thus head overseas, potentially for the remainder of his career, without an NHL goal to his name. He recorded three assists and a minus-six rating in his nine games of NHL action.
In the minors, though, Poturalski has been one of the most dominant players of the last decade. He made his debut with the Charlotte Checkers, then affiliated with Carolina, in the 2015-16 season and has since won two Calder Cups, twice been named a First Team All-Star, and scored the Calder Cup-clinching goal for Charlotte in their 2019 championship win, along with being named playoff MVP. He’s posted a 161-332–493 scoring line in 527 career AHL contests over the last 10 years, including a career-high 30 goals with the San Jose Barracuda this year.
With no NHL future ahead of him this late in his career, he’ll head across the Atlantic in hopes of playing a starring role on championship teams there. He’s likely to land with Avangard Omsk on a two-year deal, Russia’s Match TV reported back in April.
Sharks Re-Sign Shakir Mukhamadullin
The Sharks announced they’ve re-signed defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin to a one-year, $1MM contract. He was set to become a restricted free agent this summer.
Mukhamadullin, 23, just wrapped up his second full season in the Sharks organization. He was a first-round pick (No. 20 overall) by the Devils in 2020 but was traded to San Jose in the 2023 Timo Meier deal before he could make his NHL debut. He’s split the following two years between the NHL and AHL as he climbs up the organizational depth chart.
He has 33 games of NHL experience, 30 of which came this past season. The lefty has always carried intrigue based on his high-end skating ability coupled with his 6’4″, 200-lb frame, and he’s flashed his upside as a potential long-term top-four piece in San Jose. He averaged over 21 minutes of ice time across a three-game stint to open his NHL career in January 2024 amid a strong debut season in the North American minors with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, whom he led in scoring among defensemen in 2023-24 with 27 assists and 34 points in 55 games.
His 2024-25 campaign started on the non-roster list due to a lower-body injury, and he was returned to the minors when cleared to play in late October. He’d get his first NHL recall of the season in early December, and he stuck with the big club for the majority of the balance of the campaign. Mukhamadullin put up a 2-7–9 scoring line with a minus-seven rating while averaging 18:04 per game, also contributing 51 blocks and 25 hits. He graded out quite well defensively, sitting near the high end of the Sharks’ Corsi leaderboard at a 48.0 CF% at even strength. San Jose also allowed 2.7 goals against per 60 minutes with Mukhamadullin on the ice at even strength, the best figure among Sharks defensemen with at least 10 games played. It’s worth noting that Mukhamadullin also averaged north of a minute per game on the penalty kill.
The Sharks still have Mario Ferraro, Henry Thrun, and Marc-Édouard Vlasic penciled in as their three left-shot defenders for 2025-26, but there’s still upward mobility there for Mukhamadullin. Ferraro could end up as a trade candidate, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see the 38-year-old Vlasic, who played just 27 games in 2024-25, relegated to the press box more consistently. There’s also the possibility that fellow lefty Sam Dickinson, whom San Jose drafted 11th overall in 2024, lands an opening-night role next fall after being named the OHL’s Most Outstanding defenseman in 2024-25.
A seven-figure commitment certainly indicates the Sharks plan on Mukhamadullin making the opening night roster and playing more of a regular NHL role as he continues on what’s been a promising development path thus far. He’ll start requiring waivers next year if San Jose wants to send him to the minors anyway, something they won’t be willing to expose him to.
Sharks Sign Egor Afanasyev
May 19: Afanasyev is headed to the Sharks for next season. He’s signed a one-year deal worth $800K, the team announced.
May 15: After being traded to San Jose last summer, Egor Afanasyev surprised some people by inking a deal with CSKA Moscow of the KHL instead of joining the Sharks. However, things could be changing on that front as the two sides reached an agreement on a mutual termination, per the KHL, paving the way for the winger to potentially join San Jose for next season.
The 24-year-old was a second-round pick by Nashville back in 2019, going 45th overall after a solid season with USHL Muskegon. He went to the OHL the following year with Windsor before returning home for the 2020-21 campaign, spending time in three different levels in Russia.
Afanasyev spent three years in Nashville’s system, getting into 19 games with the Predators but didn’t have much success offensively, recording just a single goal. He was, however, a steady performer in the minors and put up 27 goals and 27 assists in 56 games in 2023-24 with AHL Milwaukee which was enough for San Jose to part with Ozzy Wiesblatt to secure his rights.
Unfortunately for Afanasyev, he wasn’t able to match that level of success back home this season. In 53 games, he notched just seven goals and 14 assists although he was a little better in the playoffs with four points in six outings.
Afanasyev is waiver-eligible moving forward so if he does wind up joining the Sharks, his time with them could be short-lived if he fails to crack the roster. Alternatively, he could be looking to try his hand at a different league altogether but with some recent NHL experience under his belt, a return to North America would seemingly make the most sense. Sport-Express’ Artur Khairullin suggests (Telegram link) that Afanasyev is expected to sign with San Jose so it looks as if he’ll give it another go to try to make the top level.
Sharks To Stay In SAP Center Through 2050
- The Sharks have called the SAP Center home since their third year of existence in 1993-94, and that won’t change anytime soon. They’re close to finalizing a 25-year lease extension with the City of San Jose that will keep them at the downtown arena through 2050, per Curtis Pashelka and Devan Patel of The Mercury News. Local government will be putting funds toward renovating the arena, the fifth-oldest in the league, as part of the contract.
Sharks Notes: Eklund, Bordeleau, Gushchin, Poturalski
Sharks winger William Eklund is eligible to sign a contract extension as of July 1st and it appears that the team would like to get something done quickly. GM Mike Grier told Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News that he recently met with Eklund’s agent to get an early sense of what the asking price might be on a new agreement. Speculatively, that would be a long-term agreement as early extensions are rarely short-term bridge pacts although Grier said all options are on the table this early in the process. The 22-year-old set career highs in goals (17), assists (41), and points (58) this season while finishing second in team scoring to Calder Trophy finalist Macklin Celebrini. With the salary cap set to spike, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a long-term extension surpass the $8MM mark per season.
More from San Jose:
- Center Thomas Bordeleau told reporters including Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now (Twitter link) that he has been dealing with a concussion and wasn’t particularly close to returning had the AHL’s Barracuda been able to go on a long playoff run. The 23-year-old played in 59 games in the minors this season, notching 14 goals and 24 assists as he heads to restricted free agency for the first time this summer.
- Bordeleau also spoke about his status in the organization, voicing some frustration to reporters including Pashelka (Twitter link) about how the last couple of years have gone, saying that the message changed. It wasn’t long ago that it looked like he was on the verge of being a full-timer with the Sharks but instead, he played in just one game with the big club this season after getting into 27 in 2023-24.
- Winger Daniil Gushchin is also set to be a restricted free agent this summer. Despite a strong year with the Barracuda that saw him pot 27 goals and 21 assists in 54 games, he only saw a dozen games with the Sharks, leading to some frustration earlier in the year as well. Although there has been some speculation that he’d like to return to Russia, Peng relays that the 23-year-old’s intention is to remain in North America. A three-time 20-goal scorer in the minors, it feels like Gushchin will be in tough to crack a full-time spot with the Sharks, especially if Grier goes out and adds some pieces this summer.
- In that same column, another player who voiced some frustration about his usage this season was Andrew Poturalski. The 31-year-old led the AHL in scoring this season with 73 points, earning his first career MVP award but that only got him three games with the Sharks, a decision he said he doesn’t agree with. Signed for one more year, there has been speculation that Poturalski could look to go to the KHL next season over remaining in the minors but the two sides would need to reach a mutual contract termination first before that could happen.
Sharks Sign Mattias Havelid To Entry-Level Deal
The Sharks announced they’ve signed defense prospect Mattias Havelid to his entry-level deal. It’s a three-year pact beginning next season, keeping the 21-year-old under contract through 2027-28. PuckPedia reports that the contract will have a $905K cap hit and a $950K AAV including potential bonuses.
San Jose selected Havelid midway through the second round (No. 45 overall) in 2022. The 5’10” righty is the son of longtime NHL defender Niclas Havelid and, nearly three years on from draft day, still brings an intriguing offensive skillset to the Sharks’ backend.
He’s had somewhat of a rocky development path, not getting as much playing time in the top-flight Swedish Hockey League as the Sharks would have liked. His SHL club, Linköping HC, opted instead to loan him to Djurgårdens IF of the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan for a good chunk of 2024-25. That was a great decision – Havelid finished the year with 14 points and a plus-seven rating in 18 games and helped them earn promotion back to the SHL for 2025-26.
Havelid suited up for the Swedes at last year’s World Juniors, posting six points in seven games en route to a silver medal. He’ll presumably slide in with the Sharks’ AHL affiliate next season after recording 19 points in 110 career SHL games, unless San Jose reaches an agreement with a Swedish club to loan him back overseas until he’s NHL-ready. He’s not under contract with Linköping past this year.
The agile skater did not check in among the Sharks’ top 15 prospects when Scott Wheeler of The Athletic put together his prospect pool rankings midseason, but that comes with the territory of being an intriguing yet flawed prospect in the league’s deepest system. San Jose was still a year away from losing his signing rights, so the organization is obviously still invested in his development.
Poll: Who Will Win The 2025 Calder Memorial Trophy?
Unlike many years where there is a clear-cut favorite for the Calder Memorial Trophy, the 2024-25 season had different ideas. A reasonable case could be made for any of this year’s finalists: Lane Hutson of the Montreal Canadiens, Dustin Wolf of the Calgary Flames, and Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks.
Hutson likely has the strongest case of the trio. The former 62nd overall selection scored six goals and 60 assists in 82 games for the Canadiens this season, tying Hall-of-Famer Larry Murphy for the most assists recorded by a rookie defenseman. The 20-year-old blue liner ranked second on Montreal in ATOI (22:44) and was a large part of their run to the postseason for the first time since the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs. Additionally, Hutson led the Canadiens in postseason scoring with five assists in five games.
Meanwhile, Wolf looks to become the first netminder to win the award since Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2008-09. He finished with a slightly worse year than Mason, comparatively, managing a 29-16-8 record in 53 games with a .910 SV% and 2.64 GAA. Still, although Mason backstopped the Blue Jackets to their first postseason appearance in 2009, Wolf was a major reason the Flames remained competitive until the last week of the regular season.
Lastly, last summer’s first overall pick will also be up for the award. Celebrini was one of the few bright spots on a rebuilding Sharks team, leading the team in scoring with 25 goals and 63 points in 70 games. His offensive output tied with fellow-rookie Matvei Michkov of the Philadelphia Flyers (in 10 fewer games), and bested last year’s Calder recipient, the Chicago Blackhawks’ Connor Bedard, by two points in two additional contests. Celebrini’s 25 goals accounted for 12% of all San Jose goals this season.
Although the members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) will have the final say in who ultimately wins the award, it’s time to cast your vote. Who do you think will win this year’s Calder Memorial Trophy? Vote below!
Who Will Win The 2025 Calder Memorial Trophy?
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Lane Hutson (Montreal Canadiens) 69% (2,304)
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Macklin Celebrini (San Jose Sharks) 16% (521)
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Dustin Wolf (Calgary Flames) 15% (495)
Total votes: 3,320
If the poll doesn’t show up for you, click here to vote.