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An in-depth look at the San Jose Sharks in 2026-27: Canucks Pacific Previews

Photo credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images

By Lachlan Irvine

Aug 21, 2026, 16:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 21, 2026, 13:34 EDT

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The Pacific Division in 2026-27 is a top-heavy division made up of two groups: the Haves and the Have-Nots. The gap between the best and worst has never been larger, and the Vancouver Canucks sit firmly at the bottom. Seven teams stand in their way on the path back to contention, and we’re going to look at all of them over the next two weeks in our Pacific Previews series.

Today we’re looking at the San Jose Sharks.

There’s no team in the Pacific better equipped for the long run than the San Jose Sharks. But their short game is a big mystery.

It’s no secret that the Sharks have one of the deepest prospect pools in hockey. Will Smith, Michael Misa, and Sam Dickinson highlight the incredible work San Jose has done rebuilding over the past half-decade, including a massive 34-point swing from their previous season. When they traded budding talent William Eklund to the Ottawa Senators before the NHL Draft, the Sharks simply “replaced” him with second overall pick Ivar Stenberg later that week (that feeling you’re experiencing right now is jealousy).

As you’ve probably noticed, there’s a crucial name missing from that list: their most valuable player and the clearest reason for their massive jump forward.

In 2025-26, Macklin Celebrini had one of the absolute best seasons hockey has ever seen. 115 points with the Sharks, another 24 internationally with Team Canada – including ten at the Olympics in Milano-Cortina – earning the IIHF Men’s Player of the Year award AND a massive five-year extension worth $18 million per year that kicks in after 2026-27. Not a bad year for North Vancouver’s very own.

Needless to say, with Celebrini entering the final year of his much cheaper entry-level contract, the Sharks should be going pedal to the metal to make this season a success. And general manager Mike Grier has made some bold moves in that direction. The Sharks opened free agency by signing winger Mason Marchment and defender Jacob Trouba to add a veteran presence to the lineup behind their young guns, and traded for Michael Kesselring from the Buffalo Sabres.

Grier’s biggest gamble of the offseason? A stunning July 1 trade for Darnell Nurse from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for prospects Shakir Mukhamadullin and Zack Sharp. Taking on a defenceman making $9.25 million per year with a lot of red flags in his game is a risk, but it’s the kind of risk the Sharks need to be taking at this point.

The Sharks are dramatically improving, and their play against the Canucks is a prime example. After Vancouver swept the season series in Celebrini’s rookie year, the Sharks flipped the script in 2025-26, winning three of four thanks to contributions from former Canucks Tyler Toffoli and Adam Gaudette.

Canucks/Sharks fun fact: The Sharks added another Canuck to their roster in January: Kiefer Sherwood, who signed a five-year extension with San Jose in March. Despite playing the final 28 games of his season with the Sharks, Sherwood’s 17 goals in 44 Canucks games were still good enough for third in team scoring and tying him with Drew O’Connor, who played in all 82.

The Sharks have one goal for this upcoming season: making the playoffs. Their state rivals, the Anaheim Ducks, made the jump last season, and with the Los Angeles Kings and Oilers on the tail ends of their current contention windows, the opportunity is ripe for the Sharks to strike.

The roster still has some holes to fill. The Sharks gave up the third most goals in the league last season, thanks to a shaky defensive group and a goaltending tandem in Yaroslav Askarov and Alex Nedeljkovic that really struggled to keep pucks out of the net. The additions of Trouba and Nurse might help a little, but Sharks’ coach Ryan Warsofsky needs the entire back end of his roster to take a big step forward and cut those goal totals down.

If the Sharks are able to buy in defensively without sacrificing their lethal offensive attack, this should be a playoff roster. Last season they got very close, even despite their flaws. In 2026-27, with Celebrini and Co. another year older and better, the Sharks are at the very least going to be must-watch hockey.

Bold Prediction

The Sharks are finally going to crash the postseason party, and they’re going to leapfrog one of the Pacific’s top three to get there.

Season Series

October 29 @ SAP Center

December 14 @ SAP Center

December 19 @ Rogers Arena

April 3, 2026 @ Rogers Arena

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