Macklin Celebrini, key additions give the Sharks hopes of ending their 7-year playoff drought

San Jose Sharks

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Last season: 39-35-8, missed playoffs.

COACH: Ryan Warsofsky (59-85-20 in two seasons).

SEASON OPENER: Oct. 1 vs. Florida.

DEPARTURES: F William Eklund, D Vincent Desharnais, D Mario Ferraro, D Shakir Mukhamadullin, D John Klingberg, F Ryan Reeves.

ADDITIONS: D Darnell Nurse, D Jacob Trouba, D Michael Kesserling, F Mason Marchment, F Ivar Stenberg.

GOALIES: Yaroslav Askarov (21-20-4, 3.63 goals-against average, .883 save percentage), Alex Nedeljkovic (18-14-4, 2.87, .896).

What to expect

After improving by 34 points to get into playoff contention last season, the Sharks are looking to end a seven-year playoff drought. San Jose overcame a slow start to the season to come within four points of the postseason behind a dominant season from young superstar Macklin Celebrini.

GM Mike Grier gave Warsofsky a contract extension and fortified the roster with some veteran additions with hopes that Nurse, Trouba and Kesserling can improve the blue line. Marchment adds depth up front and the Sharks are hoping for more development from young core pieces like Will Smith, Michael Misa and Igor Chernyshov will give the team more scoring options to support Celebrini.

Strengths and weaknesses

The good: It all starts with Celebrini, who had 45 goals and 70 assists to finish fourth in the league in scoring last season as a 19-year-old. He is already one of the top players in the league and should only get better in his 20s. The other young players also performed as San Jose’s 214 points and 83 goals from players age 20 or younger were the most for any team since 2006-07.

The not-so-good: The Sharks allowed the third-most goals in the league last season thanks to inconsistent goaltending, suspect play from the defense and too many giveaways from the forwards. The hope is the latter two issues are solved by the offseason additions and more experience for the young forwards. But the team also needs better goaltending and hopes Askarov can take a big step forward after struggling in his first full season in the NHL with the third-worst goals against average.

Players to watch

While Celebrini is clearly the best player, the key players who could help determine San Jose’s fate are Smith and the new defensemen. Smith had 24 goals and 35 assists last season in his second year in the NHL but the team is hoping for more consistency and better two-way play. The best seasons for Nurse and Trouba might be in the past with both players in their 30s but the hope is that a new city can provide a spark that helps them get back to their old form.

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