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Sharks Defense Notes: Thrun, Desharnais, Vlasic

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If being on the cusp of losing 100 games over the last two seasons wasn’t bad enough, the San Jose Sharks are playing with a battered defensive core. Thankfully, they should get one of those defensemen back fairly shortly.

In an update from head coach Ryan Warsofsky, shared by Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now, defenseman Henry Thrun has been upgraded to a day-to-day recovery timeline. Peng adds that Thrun “probably” won’t play this weekend, but his return is nevertheless on the horizon.

Thrun suffered an upper-body injury earlier in March against the New York Islanders, and he’ll have missed eight games by the end of the weekend. He wasn’t having a stellar season by any stretch of the imagination before going down with the injury. Still, he has logged the fifth-highest average ice time for any Sharks’ blue liner who’s amassed more than 20 games played and is still on the roster. Should Thrun return by the beginning of next week, he should break his single season career-high in points (11), which he set last campaign.

Other notes from the Bay Area:

  • In another update on the Sharks’ blue line, Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News reported that Vincent Desharnais is questionable for San Jose’s contests this weekend. According to Pashelka’s report, Desharnais, one of the newest Sharks’ defensive core members, is dealing with a “fairly significant upper-body injury.” Since moving to San Jose after a trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins, Desharnais hasn’t registered a point as a Shark in seven games, despite averaging 17:49 of ice time per game.
  • In a separate report from Peng, the oldest defenseman on the Sharks’ blue line, Marc-Édouard Vlasic, is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury but could play this weekend. Vlasic is no stranger to missing time with injury, as he’s only featured in 17 of San Jose’s 71 games this season. Still, despite averaging his lowest ATOI since the 2021-22 campaign, the 19-year veteran has already blocked 29 shots in those 17 contests.

Sharks Sign Noah Beck

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The Sharks announced today that they’ve signed defenseman Noah Beck to a one-year, entry-level contract starting for the 2025-26 season. Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal said yesterday the signing was likely to happen. Per PuckPedia, Beck’s deal carries a $975K cap hit and breaks down to a $877.5K NHL salary, a $97.5K signing bonus, and an $85K minors salary. He’ll join AHL San Jose on an amateur tryout for the remainder of this season.

Beck, 24, spent four years with Clarkson before transferring to Arizona State last summer for his fifth and final collegiate seasons. The decision paid dividends, as Beck posted a career-high 33 points (5 G, 28 A) on the upstart Sun Devils to lead their blue line in scoring. That was enough to get him selected to the All-NCHC Second Team as Arizona State narrowly missed out on a berth in the national tournament.

The 6’3″ lefty was quite inconsistent over the bulk of his collegiate career with Clarkson. While he combined for just 4-7–11 in 50 games during his freshman and senior seasons, he led their rearguards in scoring in his sophomore and junior campaigns with showings of 22 and 23 points, respectively. He was named to the ECAC’s All-Academic Team in those two strong showings. He ends his NCAA career with 20-69–89 in 161 games with a +10 rating.

That inconsistency at Clarkson was enough to scare off the Blues, who selected Beck in the seventh round of the 2020 draft, from giving him an ELC. His exclusive signing rights expired on Aug. 15 last year, making him an unrestricted free agent and free for any team to sign.

On the older end of the prospect scale, Beck doesn’t have a clear pathway to NHL minutes in arguably the league’s deepest pool. With emerging lefties like Luca Cagnoni, Sam Dickinson, and Leo Sahlin Wallenius ahead of him on the Sharks’ depth chart, he’s likely destined for a full-time AHL role and doesn’t project as much more than a replacement-level defender at his peak.

Beck will be a restricted free agent in 2026. The Sharks now have 28 contracts signed for next season.

Sharks Notes: Eklund, Vlasic, Thrun, Lund, Wennberg

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Sharks forward William Eklund has had discussions about playing for Sweden in the upcoming World Championship in his native Sweden, notes Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News.  The 22-year-old is having the best season of his young career with 15 goals and 35 assists through 64 games, good for a share for first in team scoring with Macklin Celebrini.  That should have him in line to play a prominent role for his country with several of Sweden’s top players expected to be unavailable due to the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Elsewhere in San Jose:

  • Defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic is expected to get more imaging done soon on the upper-body injury that is plaguing him once again, Pashelka relays in the same column. The veteran is dealing with a recurrence of the injury that kept him out in the first half of the campaign.  Vlasic has played in just 17 games this season where he has two assists and 29 blocks in 15:28 of ice time per game, which is the second-lowest average of his career.  Head coach David Warsofsky indicated that it’s too early to know if this injury will be a season-ender for the 37-year-old.
  • Pashelka also mentions that blueliner Henry Thrun is expected to return to practice on Monday. He was initially listed as week-to-week after suffering an upper-body injury on March 8th.  Through 52 games this season, the 24-year-old has a goal and nine assists in just under 17 minutes of playing time.
  • While recently signed forward Cameron Lund is burning the first year of his entry-level contract this season, he’s not expected to report to the team for a few more days, Pashelka reports (Twitter link).  Lund had 40 points in 37 games at Northeastern this season and should get into at least a few games down the stretch.
  • Center Alexander Wennberg should suit up tonight against Boston, reports Max Miller of The Hockey News (Twitter link). He has been dealing with a lingering lower-body issue lately although it hasn’t caused him to miss any time recently.  Wennberg has eight goals and 23 assists through 64 appearances in his first season with the Sharks while logging over 18 minutes a night of action.

Wennberg Questionable To Play

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  • San Jose Sharks’ veteran forward Alexander Wennberg is a game-time decision for tomorrow’s game, per Bay Area News Group’s Curtis Pashelka. Pashelka goes on to note that there is optimism he will be able to suit up. In 64 games this season, the 30-year-old Wennberg has put up 31 points. Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky added that the injury is something Wennberg has been dealing with for some time. Wennberg had been serving in a bottom-six role until the trade of Mikael Granlund to the Stars in February. Wennberg has since been serving as the team’s second-line center. He has one year remaining on his two year, $10MM AAV contract he signed last July.
  • On Monday, the Los Angeles Kings honored former president and GM Dean Lombardi, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. After his first stint as a general manager fizzled out with the Sharks, Lombardi oversaw tremendous success in his time in LA, which resulted in two Stanley Cup winning teams. Lombardi saw success in developing draft picks (perhaps most notably with Drew Doughty) but also made aggressive trades for veterans like Mike Richards and Jeff Carter. Since being let go by the team in 2017, Lombardi has served as an executive with the Flyers. During Monday’s celebration, as Friedman notes, Lombardi took time to state that he believes the game is getting too expensive for some children to play. He called it a “grassroots problem” that excludes some athletes from being able to pick up the game.

Sharks Sign Cameron Lund To Entry-Level Contract

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The Sharks announced today they’ve signed forward Cameron Lund to a three-year entry-level contract. Financial terms were not disclosed. The deal begins immediately and will see him report to San Jose to finish the season, Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News reports.

Lund, who checks in at 6’2″ and 195 lbs, was picked up by San Jose early in the second round (No. 34 overall) of the 2022 draft. The 20-year-old pivot, whose junior season with Northeastern University ended last night, led the school with 18 goals and finished second on the Huskies in assists (22) and points (40) in 37 appearances. All were career highs.

A two-time nominee for the Hobey Baker Award for the top collegiate player (2024, 2025), Lund was also named to the Hockey East conference’s All-Rookie team in his freshman campaign in 2022-23. He ends his tenure at Northeastern with 36-57–93 in 107 games, tied for 26th in NCAA scoring over the last three years.

The sharp-shooting Massachusetts native would likely stand as a top-five prospect on more than a few teams, but he’s the No. 11 prospect in the league’s deepest system, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic opined in February. However, he is the No. 2 ranked center in the Sharks’ pool who’s not currently on the NHL roster (Will Smith was ranked No. 1, while Macklin Celebrini wasn’t included as he’s played the entire year in a top-six role). Most of San Jose’s “next wave” is coming on the wings, defense, and in goal.

His ceiling likely isn’t much higher than that of a middle-six scoring forward – likely a third-liner, Wheeler opines – but he enters the Sharks’ ranks with a pro-ready game that should see him get an audition down the stretch. San Jose still has 13 games left on their regular season schedule, so it could be a longer run than usual for Lund compared to other late-season additions out of college.

Since Lund’s deal goes into effect immediately, it runs through the 2026-27 season – after which he’ll be an RFA. San Jose now has 47 contracts on their books, three short of the maximum.

Sharks Recall Lucas Carlsson

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The Sharks have recalled defenseman Lucas Carlsson from AHL San Jose, according to the team’s media relations department. Jimmy Schuldt was returned to the Barracuda in a corresponding move.

Carlsson, 27, joined the Sharks on a two-year, two-way deal last summer. He finished last season in the Panthers organization on the injured list after ACL surgery and subsequently began the 2024-25 campaign on the non-roster list. San Jose’s medical staff cleared his return in early November, after which he cleared waivers and headed down to the minors. Since returning, the offensive-minded lefty has 10-13–23 in 44 games with 26 PIMs and a minus-one rating for the Barracuda.

The 6’0″ Swede has 60 NHL games to his name with the Blackhawks and Panthers, although he hasn’t appeared in a contest since November 2022. A fourth-round pick by Chicago back in 2016, he’s posted 3-8–11 with a plus-six rating while averaging just 12:50 per game.

Usually a capable minor-league presence, Carlsson is two years removed from leading the AHL in goals by defensemen with 20 in 61 games with Florida’s AHL affiliate in Charlotte. He’ll now get the chance to slot into the San Jose lineup, likely on a pairing with Timothy Liljegren, as Jan Rutta (lower body, indefinite), Henry Thrun (upper body, week-to-week), and Marc-Édouard Vlasic (back, day-to-day) remain injured. Because they need Carlsson to ice six healthy defenders against Boston this weekend, he qualifies as an emergency recall.

Heading back down in Schuldt, who’s frequented the transaction wire this month. First recalled before the trade deadline on March 3, he was returned to the AHL on deadline day to maintain his eligibility for the Calder Cup Playoffs. He’s now been recalled and reassigned twice since then. The 29-year-old lefty has no points and a minus-one rating in five showings this year, averaging 14:28 per game while controlling 44.4% of shot attempts at even strength.

Askarov Could Return To Practice Next Week

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  • Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov is hoping to be cleared to skate with the AHL’s Barracuda next week as he works his way back from a lower-body injury, relays Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link). The 22-year-old has a 3.10 GAA and a .896 SV% in 13 games with the Sharks this season and is likely to be recalled at some point down the stretch to get a few more games in with the big club.

San Jose Sharks Recall Jimmy Schuldt

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According to a team announcement, the San Jose Sharks have recalled defenseman Jimmy Schuldt from their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. Without any corresponding roster move, Schuldt’s recall brings the Sharks to eight defensemen on the active roster and 25 players total.

The transaction ends a one-day stint in the AHL for Schdult. Since March 3rd, Schuldt has only spent four days off the Sharks’ active roster. His relatively frequent stay with San Jose of late allowed Schuldt to play in his first NHL game since the 2018-19 season. Throughout March, Schuldt has appeared in four games for the Sharks, posting a -1 rating while averaging 14:36 of ice time per game.

With that, Schuldt has been far more active in the AHL over the last few seasons. Schuldt has never been a high-scoring defenseman throughout his professional career, but he’s maintained a certain level of consistency.

Since debuting with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2019 after finishing his collegiate career at St. Cloud State University, Schuldt has scored 35 goals and 126 points in 345 AHL contests split between the Chicago Wolves, Henderson Silver Knights, Coachella Valley Firebirds, and Barracuda. That output brings his career point-per-game rate to 0.37, just above his 0.33 pace this year.

Sharks Recall Luca Cagnoni For NHL Debut

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The Sharks announced they’ve recalled defenseman Luca Cagnoni from AHL San Jose. The 20-year-old will make his NHL debut when San Jose faces the Hurricanes on Thursday since the team reassigned Jimmy Schuldt to the minors in a corresponding move.

It’s a quick ascension for Cagnoni, whom the Sharks nabbed in the fourth round of the 2023 draft. The pick was almost universally lauded as a steal – while some were concerned about how projectable the lefty’s 5’9″, 181-lb frame was to the professional level, his offensive dominance with the Western Hockey League’s Portland Winterhawks had some public scouting outfits tout him as high as an early second-round talent.

Cagnoni returned to the Winterhawks for his post-draft season but signed his entry-level deal last May, paving the way for the December-born defender to jump to the pros with the Barracuda for 2024-25. The British Columbia native has dominated out of the gate, posting 13-34–47 in 56 games to rank second in scoring among AHL defensemen behind veteran Derrick Pouliot. While by no means defensively dominant – his minus-six rating is tied for fifth-worst on the club – he’s been a major part of the Barracuda’s resurgence as San Jose’s farm team looks to finish above .500 for the first time since 2018-19.

He’ll presumably take Schuldt’s third-pairing spot in his debut later this week, meaning hulking 6’7″ righty Vincent Desharnais should serve as quite the insular partner for Cagnoni’s first taste of top-level hockey. Schuldt, 29, has no points and a minus-one rating in four games for the Sharks this year in his first taste of NHL hockey since debuting with the Golden Knights in 2019.

In the interim, the Sharks hope Cagnoni can replace some of the puck-moving ability they lost when second-year defenseman Henry Thrun exited the lineup earlier this month with an upper-body injury. Cagnoni, whose recall amounts to the third of San Jose’s four allotted post-deadline recalls, is under contract through the 2026-27 season at a cap hit of $895K.

Cagnoni checked in as the No. 5 prospect in the Sharks’ league-leading system in this year’s midseason rankings by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Could Sharks Walk Away From Kovalenko This Summer?

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  • Following the recent acknowledgment that contract talks for Sharks winger Nikolai Kovalenko won’t start until after the season, Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News wonders if the 25-year-old will be in San Jose’s plans moving forward. Since returning from a lower-body injury earlier this month, he’s only logging 11 minutes a game and was healthy scratched on Saturday.  With San Jose getting a look at some other players, it’s possible that they could determine that he’s not the right fit moving forward while his arbitration eligibility could also be a dissuading factor.  Kovalenko will be owed a qualifying offer of just under $814K and has 17 points in 49 games this season.

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