Team: 2020-21 San Jose Sharks

Initial Creation Date: Oct. 9, 2020

Published: Oct. 9, 2020

Salary Cap Mode: Basic

We finally have depth in the organization.

In my Opinion

1) Ryan Merkley Still DeFacto number 1. Has improved everywhere possible and looks primed to potentially see NHL ice next year on a call-up basis. Power Play specialist, insanely skilled and has really improved his defensive game and attitude issues.

2) John Leonard - Excellent shot, Good playmaking ability, middle six winger could make the team out of camp like former teammate at UMass Ferraro with his work ethic. He could have easily won the Hobey Baker last year and is super fun to watch. Very underrated and overlooked, I think he has Pavelski-esque potential.

3) Ozzy Wiesblatt - High Energy two-way player. Plays bigger than his size. I think he will be a key member of the Sharks top six in a few years time. I think of him as a more physical Labanc type. Superb work ethic.

4) Alex Chmelevski - High skill and high potential, could easily become a top six threat on the Sharks in the next couple years. I am super high on Sasha and still think he will make the Sharks top six very soon. Rough start of the year with the Cuda but finished very strong.

5) Daniil Gushchin - Extremely skilled and very good at protecting the puck for his size. Maybe the most skilled of all SJ prospects outside of Merkley. Won't be surprised if he is a top line playmaker in the near future.

6) Brinson Pasichnuk - Excellent skater and power play specialist, strong both ways likely see him next season as a call-up, likely 3rd pairing dman.

7) Thomas Bordeleau - Excellent shot and great hands, needs a few years to develop with Michigan but could be a top six mainstay for years.

8) Tristen Robins - feisty two-way forward. Could be one of the steals of the draft.

9) Joachim Blichfeld - likely a 3rd/4th liner but still has top six potential, Great season with the Cuda last year though, I am not high on him.

10) Ivan Chekhovich - Rough freshman season with the Cuda. Still has top six potential if he can figure out the pro game. This season will be huge for him in the AHL. I love watching Ivan play, he is a potential gamebreaker with the right development.

11) Artemi Knyazev - Error prone puck moving dman. The org is really high on him but I am dubious. We'll see.

Goalies:

1) Alexei Melnichuk - Starting Goalie potential, Sharks are super high on him. Potential backup in 2021-22 season, maybe more. Nabokov is a huge fan of him. SJ is basically planning all their goalie movement around him so they clearly think he is headed for top 15 NHL starter potential in the near future.

2) Josef Korenar - Still has starting potential in the NHL despite a rough season. Mrazek-esque.

3) Zachary Emond - Probable long term project goalie, most likely back up if he ever makes it to NHL

Notes - Dahlen is not here due to not knowing if he will sign his QO. He still has high potential but he really seems to like playing in Sweden and has a bit of an entitlement complex imo as he will only play in NA if it's on an NHL team, refusing the AHL development method that most teams prefer...

I don't consider Handemark a prospect as he is 26 years old.

Hamaliuk isn't very good. Why did they waste a 2nd on him.