Both the San Jose Sharks and Barracuda played their final home games of the year tonight.
As part of the Fan Appreciation festivities, both teams announced their 2023-24 awards.
San Jose Hockey Now voted on three of the four San Jose Sharks awards and one Barracuda award.
Only current Sharks and Barracuda players are eligible to win.
So how did I vote?
San Jose Sharks
Player of the Year: Mikael Granlund
My vote: I went, in this order, Granlund, Mackenzie Blackwood, and Mario Ferraro. The first two are pretty clear-cut, while I opted for Ferraro because of how much responsibility that he shoulders in a tough situation. He’s the San Jose Sharks’ No. 1 defenseman, taking on the opposition’s best players every night.
Rookie of the Year: Henry Thrun
My vote: I actually went Ty Emberson, then Thrun. While Emberson only suited up for 30 games, I thought overall, he played a more consistent defensive game than Thrun, who might top out at 51 games. It was close, all said, I thought Thrun had a solid season.
Worth noting, only Emberson, Thrun, Shakir Mukhamadullin, Danil Gushchin, and Magnus Chrona were eligible to win.
Media Good Guy: Mario Ferraro
My vote: In order, Ferraro, Nico Sturm, and Kyle Burroughs.
The Sharks Media Good Guy Award is, per the team, “presented annually to the player who handles his media responsibilities with cooperation, honesty and thoughtfulness, and answers the bell no matter the outcome or situation.”
Prospect of the Year: Will Smith
San Jose Barracuda
Prospect of the Year: Shakir Mukhamadullin
My vote: I went with Danil Gushchin. For this award, we were asked to only vote for Barracuda players still on their ELC. Both Gushchin and Mukhamadullin ended up at about the same number of games played, and both had terrific seasons, but I thought Gushchin was more consistently dominating in his minutes.
Player of the Year: Shakir Mukhamadullin
Rookie of the Year: Ethan Cardwell
Most Inspirational Player: Scott Sabourin
Hard Hat Award: Anthony Vincent
Man of the Year: Ethan Cardwell
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