Sharks place Adam Gaudette on IR, activate Shakir Mukhamadullin

Earlier Thursday, Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News reported that the San Jose Sharks have placed forward Adam Gaudette on the injured reserve. A few minutes later, Pashelka shared that defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin would be activated from the injured reserve and return to the lineup.

It was a likely outcome for Gaudette considering his expected recovery timeline. After suffering an upper-body injury against the Minnesota Wild, multiple reports indicated that although he is considered day-to-day, the Sharks expect him to miss at least a week. Assuming that the IR placement will be made retroactive to Oct. 26, it’s likely that Gaudette will return next Wednesday against the Seattle Kraken.

The eight-year veteran is in the first year of a two-year, $4M contract signed with the Sharks last summer. He earned himself a notable payday after an impressive 2024-25 campaign, scoring 19 goals in 81 games for the Ottawa Senators. Gaudette quickly became a prime candidate for San Jose to scoop up on the free agent market to add quality goal-scoring potential in its middle-six.

Meanwhile, Mukhamadullin returns after missing the last three weeks with an upper-body injury, only participating in one contest this season. Still, he made a notable difference in that one appearance against the Vegas Golden Knights, tallying two assists while skating in 12:45 of action.

According to line rushes this morning, Mukhamadullin is expected to skate on a defensive pairing with fellow youngster Sam Dickinson. The two are both high-end defensive prospects in San Jose’s system and could offer a glimpse into the team’s future.