While the San Jose Sharks are in the midst of a rebuild that has left them with a widely-praised prospect pool, their process still has one major shortcoming: their group of young forwards is far ahead of their defensive prospects regarding development and NHL readiness. This differential leads to an awkward circumstance in which the Sharks are gradually climbing up the league’s rankings in goals scored, but also lead in goals allowed for the second-straight season. As a result, they have managed just seven points in their last 20 games and slipped to last place in the NHL. They see the impacts on every part of the ice, and they’ll need to remedy the problem to turn their fortunes around.
Sharks’ Defense Lags Far Behind Forwards
To understand the Sharks’ current predicament, we can look at the lineup they put out on any given night. Their forward lines include several exciting, must-see young players, highlighted by 2024 first-overall pick Macklin Celebrini. Conversely, the blue line consists largely of a random assortment of veterans, many of whom feel like placeholders filling up time until San Jose’s defense prospects are ready for the NHL. Henry Thrun is the only defenseman younger than 25 who regularly receives NHL playing time; his advanced numbers are among the worst in the league. Some of his stats can be explained by the poor quality of the defensive group as a whole, but that once again highlights the unit’s low quality.

The Sharks’ most-promising young defensemen are the ones who haven’t made the NHL yet or have done so only briefly. Sam Dickinson, Luca Cagnoni and Shakir Mukhamadullin have all played well at lower levels, and Mukhamadullin has had quick looks at the big leagues. Still, none are quite ready to become core blueliners in San Jose.
Until those players come along and make meaningful contributions, the Sharks are likely stuck with a defense not up to NHL standards. The results on the ice aren’t pretty, and the team has adopted a frustrating trend in which the offense builds up a lead and the defense can’t hold it. They already have eight regulation losses this season where they led in the third period. The NHL record is nine, and the Sharks still have 30 games remaining. If they break this mark or lose in other disappointing ways, the differential in forward and defense talent will be a primary culprit.
Sharks’ Defensive Issues Bleed Into Other Positions
In team sports, athletes and position groups do not exist in a vacuum. The work they put in impacts every other member of the organization, and we see that with San Jose defensively.
Related: Sharks Need to Establish Consistency to Reach Respectability
The Sharks’ blue line may be a central reason for their inability to win, but constant losing weighs on every player. It makes Celebrini’s rookie season more difficult. It can cause the forwards to be frustrated if their scoring goes to waste or if they need to do more defensively to make up for the defensemen’s struggles. Yaroslav Askarov is a great goaltending prospect, but even he has faltered while trying to backstop this defense at various times. He’s not exactly in an ideal situation for a goalie getting his first extended NHL run, and his .852 save percentage in his last four games hurts his development and confidence.
As the Sharks try to build up their defense to reach the level of their other position groups, those units will feel the effects every bit as much as the defensemen themselves. The team’s current slide suggests there’s only so much they can do about it.
Sharks Losses Weigh on Players Heavily
The Sharks are dealing with a lot of frustration right now. A lot of statistics suggest they’ve improved from last season, but that isn’t translating to more wins. Losing streaks weight heavily on any team, but particularly one that consists heavily of young players. Many of their losses have come in infuriatingly-close fashion, which is a positive sign for the team’s direction, but also an indication they could be even better with just a slightly-improved defense. A rebuild was inevitable for this team, and the current stretch will likely be one of the most difficult parts. For now, the only question is if a more balanced approach between building up the forwards and building up the blue line could have made for a slightly-less-painful experience.
