NHL: San Jose Sharks – 2025/2026 Review
San Jose missed the playoffs for a seventh straight year, but 86 points was its best haul since 2018-19, and the club stayed in the hunt right up to the final days of the schedule. The defence was still a glaring weak spot, finishing among the league’s worst for goals against, but the offence finally woke up thanks to a huge leap from one special talent.
Key numbers
2025-2026 record: 39-35-8 (251 goals for, 292 against)
2025-2026 NHL ranking: 5th in the Pacific Division
2025-2026 top goal scorer: Macklin Celebrini (45)
2025-2026 top assist man: Macklin Celebrini (70)
2025-2026 top point scorer: Macklin Celebrini (115)
Average age of roster (2026-2027): 27.2 years
Cap space available (2026-2027): $3.34M
Recent moves (off-season)
Arrivals:
- Michael Kesselring (D)
- Jacob Trouba (D)
- Mason Marchment (F)
- Eric Comrie (G)
- Darnell Nurse (D)
Departures:
- William Eklund (F)
- Vincent Desharnais (D)
- Mario Ferraro (D)
- Shakir Mukhamadullin (D)
Franchise outlook
San Jose Sharks – Future contracts and draft picks
This summer, everything in San Jose revolves around Celebrini. After a 115-point season, he landed the richest deal in league history, $18.8M a year over five years before Makar’s recent extension, even if the contract does not really kick in until 2027-28.
Around him, Grier has rebuilt the blue line from the ground up: Trouba, Nurse and Kesselring arrive to patch up a defence that allowed the third-most goals in the league. Marchment is also there to take some of the load off Celebrini and Smith, who were carrying the attack almost by themselves.
There is no shortage of draft capital either, with a first-round pick every year through to 2029, and new arrival Ivar Stenberg, this year’s second overall pick, could even start on the top line. The message is clear: San Jose does not just want to develop talent anymore, it wants to win with it.
Celebrini is no longer alone
A year ago, San Jose was almost entirely on the shoulders of its young centre. This time, Grier has tried to change that. Celebrini is still the main man, with 115 points, a Hart Trophy runner-up finish and an Olympic silver medal, but he will not have to carry the club on his own. Will Smith is still improving beside him, and Marchment brings a real second scoring option, something this team badly lacked last season.
On the back end, the additions of Trouba and Nurse completely change the look of a group that simply did not have enough bodies to stop the bleeding defensively. Between the pipes, Yaroslav Askarov remains the No. 1 goalie, with the hope that a better structure in front of him finally lightens the load.
The young forward core, Smith, Stenberg, Misa, Chernyshov, keeps maturing too, giving this team a level of offensive depth San Jose has not seen in years. The question now is whether the veteran additions can turn a talented group into a real playoff team, rather than just another flashy outfit that flatters to deceive.
Player to watch: Ivar Stenberg (F)
Taken second overall in the most recent draft, Stenberg arrives in San Jose with an international resume that belies his age. After helping Sweden to gold at the World Junior Championship in January, he followed it up with a standout showing at the senior World Championship in May, posting eight points in eight games against grown men, including a heavy hit on none other than Darnell Nurse, who is now his teammate after the defender’s move this summer.
His blend of pace, hockey sense and power-play passing makes him a strong candidate to open on the top line alongside Celebrini. At just 18, the expectations are huge, but San Jose has never been shy about throwing its best young players into the fire early. The only real question is whether Stenberg can follow the same rapid rise Celebrini managed two years earlier.
2026-2027 target
Projected San Jose Sharks lines 2026-2027
San Jose has one clear target this season, stated bluntly by the organisation itself: make the playoffs. The window is real, with Anaheim having taken a step last year and Los Angeles and Edmonton nearing the end of their current cycles in a Pacific Division that leaves the door open.
In practical terms, that means Trouba and Nurse have to cut down a defensive differential that buried the team last season, while Celebrini keeps driving the attack with growing help from Smith and Marchment.
Several observers, including The Hockey News, already have San Jose finishing fourth in the Pacific, which would mean a direct playoff berth. Hitting that mark would confirm the rebuild is over for good. Missing out for an eighth straight year, despite all this spending, would raise serious questions about how quickly this organisation can really go from shiny project to fully formed contender.
My call
Playoffs for San Jose. At last. The changes are genuinely interesting, and I do think they can click. Stenberg could make an impact straight away, and the defensive additions are especially important. What they still need is an elite goalie and full development from the young core if they want to go deep. But this could happen fast.
Photo credit: wallpapersafari.com | richardcollier
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