When NHL free agency opens Wednesday, the San Jose Sharks’ shopping list is already pretty clear: help on the blue line first, everything else second.
General manager Mike Grier can certainly look for a hard-nosed, two-way forward to support a top nine that is young and skilled. But the bigger issue is defense, where the Sharks have too many openings to ignore.
They allowed 3.54 goals per game in 2025-26, the third-highest mark in the NHL, and surrendered the fourth-most high-danger chances in the league, according to Natural Stat Trick. That’s not solely on the defensemen, but it is the area that most needs fixing if San Jose wants to push toward the playoffs next season.
The Sharks already have Dmitry Orlov, Michael Kesserling and Sam Dickinson under contract, and a new deal for restricted free agent Shakir Mukhamadullin should not be a major obstacle. There’s also a path for Nolan Allan, Luca Cagnoni and Hobey Baker Award finalist Eric Pohlkamp to compete for NHL jobs after spending most of last season with the Barracuda.
Even with those options, the Sharks are thin where it matters most. They have no proven top-four defenseman beyond Orlov, and their top two penalty-killing and shot-blocking blueliners from last season, Mario Ferraro and Vincent Desharnais, appear set to reach free agency.
“We have some holes that we need to fill and want to address,” Grier said Friday when asked about free agency after the first round of the NHL draft.
San Jose does have money to work with. Per PuckPedia, the Sharks have just under $40 million in cap space under the $104 million upper limit.
But that doesn’t mean they’ll spend freely. Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith are both in line for major raises for 2027-28 and beyond, and the Sharks still need to add roughly $12 million just to get to the $76.9 million cap floor.
That makes the biggest-name defensemen difficult targets. Rasmus Andersson reportedly has a deal in place to remain with the Vegas Golden Knights, a contract that could be announced Wednesday. John Carlson, meanwhile, was acquired by the Anaheim Ducks at the trade deadline and then traded to the Carolina Hurricanes, and he is looking to get back to the East Coast after spending the first 16-plus years of his career with the Washington Capitals.
That leaves a more modest tier of options. Jamie Oleksiak, Jacob Trouba, Ryan Shea, Jeremy Lauzon, Logan Stanley and Andrew Peeke are among the possible fits.
Shea and Trouba would bring the most offense from that group. Oleksiak and Stanley offer size and experience.
Peeke logged more than 19 minutes per game for the Boston Bruins last season and blocked 135 shots. Lauzon is a heavy hitter.
The Sharks also explored a bigger swing before last week’s draft, showing serious interest in Bowen Byram. The 25-year-old left-shot defenseman put up 42 points in 82 regular-season games with the Buffalo Sabres, but he was quickly dealt to the Chicago Blackhawks for a significant return.
A trade still looks like a real path for Grier if the right defenseman becomes available.
There has been buzz around Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Alexander Nikishin, a pending restricted free agent coming off a 33-point season who is seeking a major extension on his next deal. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said Tuesday that the New York Rangers offered a first-round pick for Nikishin, but Carolina wanted a player instead.
The Sharks have the assets and the cap room to be part of that conversation if they choose. Nikishin is listed at 6-foot-3 and 218 pounds, and he turns 25 in October, which lines up with San Jose’s roster timeline. Orlov also knows him, which could help Grier and his staff get a better read on the player.
Another name that would not be a surprise is Zach Werenski. The Norris Trophy winner posted 81 points in 75 games this past season and could be on the move after 10 years with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
But Werenski has only two years left on his contract, and the price to get him would likely be steep. That raises the obvious question: does that kind of move fit a team that has been careful not to trade long-term flexibility for a short-term boost?
Asked before the draft whether he needed to land an offensive-minded defenseman this offseason, Grier said, “That’s an ideal world thing. It’s not just this week, but we’ve got a couple of months to make our team better, and I will continue to look to do that.
“We’ve been pretty clear about wanting to improve the back end.”
Ferraro is not the only pending free agent on the blue line. Nick Leddy and John Klingberg are also headed toward the market.
Both had uneven seasons in San Jose. Leddy averaged 17:52 of ice time over 32 games, while Klingberg had 27 points in 56 games and averaged 20:28.
Up front, the list is shorter. Ryan Reaves and Pavol Regenda are the likely Sharks forwards to reach free agency.
Reaves and the team could still work out another deal, especially with Reaves chasing 1,000 NHL games. He has played 962 over a 16-year career and has 140 points along with 1,137 penalty minutes.
Regenda, though, appears headed elsewhere.
The Sharks already have 11 forwards under contract for next season, and two more should follow soon. Collin Graf, a pending restricted free agent, is expected to get a new deal, and winger Ivar Stenberg, selected No. 2 overall in the NHL draft, is also expected to be on the roster this fall.
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