3 burning Sharks questions entering 2026-27 NHL season

Celebrini is one of the best players in the NHL at this time. He announced his arrival in 2025-26, scoring a franchise-record 115 points for the Sharks in 2025-26. It’s hard to imagine a better way for Celebrini’s sophomore NHL season to go.

The Sharks star produced as much as he did almost out of necessity. He nearly doubled the production of San Jose’s next-most-productive player. It is not an exaggeration to say he carried that San Jose team offensively.

Expectations were already high for the young star before this point. His incredible campaign has only raised those expectations, though. Many are going to look to him to repeat this performance moving forward.

Can Celebrini take another step forward? Is there another ceiling for him to reach? San Jose certainly won’t mind it if this is his norm. But if he can push to another level, the Sharks are going to be a nightmare to deal with.

Who will step up to help Celebrini offensively?

Speaking of Celebrini’s teammates, the Sharks need more scoring depth. Will Smith, another promising player, had a bit of a breakout of his own. He scored 24 goals and 59 points this past season. Only Celebrini had more points than Smith for San Jose last year.

A step forward from Smith would certainly be welcome. But the Sharks need more from the rest of the team. Players such as Tyler Toffoli and Colin Graf will need to step up and contribute offensively.

The Sharks did add Mason Marchment this summer, which could certainly help. It remains to be seen which player takes the mantle of 1B to Celebrini’s undisputed 1A.

Are Sharks’ defensive moves enough?

The Sharks had to add more to their defensive group this summer. A good amount of their defensemen were free agents at the end of the 2025-26 season. In fact, only two defensemen on this roster — Dmitry Orlov and Sam Dickinson — played more than three games for the Sharks last season.

As mentioned, San Jose added Darnell Nurse and Jacob Trouba to the roster this summer. Additionally, they swung a trade with the Buffalo Sabres for Michael Kesselring. This is a new look blueline for the Sharks in 2026-27.

Did Mike Grier do enough here? There is potential with this group. Dickinson could take a step forward. Trouba is a solid add. Kesselring is primed to bounce back. But it is still fair to wonder if these moves were enough to bring the Sharks into playoff contention.