Alexander Karmanov’s brief stay with the Sharks is coming to a close, but not before the 18-year-old defenseman made a noticeable mark in San Jose.
Karmanov said Sunday that he is heading back to Southern Ontario on Monday to rejoin the OHL’s North Bay Battalion, leaving the Sharks’ camp as the club continues to trim its roster ahead of Tuesday’s preseason game against the Vegas Golden Knights. More cuts could follow before then.
For Karmanov, the weekend even included a run-in with a Sharks fan while he was walking downtown with teammates. A stranger stopped him for a photo, a moment that seemed to capture the attention he drew during camp.
“I was with the boys and the boys told me we needed to get off the street,” Karmanov said Sunday. “It’s great. Everyone, the fans were great, and it’s really nice to have met them.”
That kind of reception followed him throughout his time in San Jose. The Sharks selected him in the seventh round, 201st overall, in June, making him the tallest player ever drafted into the NHL at 7-foot-1 and 275 pounds. He played in both Rookie Faceoff games at Tech CU Arena earlier this month, and his fight with Los Angeles Kings forward Liam Lefebvre, who is 6-foot-3, became a viral moment that drew the loudest cheer of the night.
Karmanov’s camp was not spotless. He made mistakes, as young players do. But he also showed enough to leave an impression, flashing his unusual reach and wingspan while earning respect from teammates and coaches.
On Sunday’s practice ice, that reach showed up again when he poked the puck off Will Smith’s stick on a couple of rushes. Michael Misa also beat him cleanly on one sequence after weaving around him. The snapshots fit the bigger picture: raw, still developing, but clearly intriguing.
“Just keep working,” he said, describing the message the Sharks’ coaching staff gave him. “I have, like, some details from the coaches, from the development coaches, and just keep doing what they tell me to do.”
Sharks assistant coach Brian Wiseman said Karmanov’s personality stood out just as much as his size.
“Extremely likable,” Wiseman said of Karmanov. “Speaking to him and when (fellow assistant Doug Houda) is coaching him, or when he was at the rookie camp, that’s all we’ve heard about is how attentive he is, how likable he is, how coachable he is.
“Those are great attributes to have, and coming into first NHL camp, always smiling. He’s got a smile on his face, up and down the hallways, in the locker room, on the ice.”
Karmanov also connected with new Sharks defenseman Darnell Nurse, who trained with him and several other NHL players this offseason at Gary Roberts’s facility in Toronto. Nurse said he could see how much Karmanov had grown since the summer began.
“You can just see the growth from the beginning of the summer to the end,” Nurse said. “You see the size, but he’s got skill.
He’s got a little nastiness to him, too. He’s going to be fun to watch as he continues to grow, and that’s just pretty cool.”
Karmanov said he picked up plenty from Nurse as well.
“Very big guy, too,” Karmanov said. “I like how he plays defensively, very aggressively, and has a very good stick and first pass.
I think it’s what I have to have. Just a great player.”
Now he returns to the OHL for another season, where he will at times work with Todd Marchant, the Sharks’ director of player development, and San Jose development coach Luca Sbisa, who played 13 NHL seasons.
Karmanov is currently committed to Penn State for the 2027-28 season, though that plan could still change.
“It should be a good year for me, for the team,” Karmanov said. “I’ll have more opportunity, we’ll keep working, and we’ll see how it goes.”
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