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The San Jose Sharks were the worst team in the NHL last year. General manager Mike Grier is expecting improvement this year. With a young core of players already in place, led by Macklin Celebrini, William Eklund, and Will Smith, the team was aggressive in this 2025 NHL free-agency period. They brought in plenty of veteran players who should help this team improve.
The Sharks' offseason started with moving on from one of their veteran players, buying out Marc-Edouard Vlasic. They also took care of a major part of their young core, signing Eklund to a three-year extension that begins next year. The team then improved its goaltending situation by acquiring Alex Nedeljkovic from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Sharks would also add Ryan Reaves via a trade and claim Nick Leddy off of waivers from the Blues. They did lose Thomas Bordeleau, Walker Duehr, Scott Sabourin, and Jimmy Schuldt in free agency. The combination of those four players played in just 17 games last year, though.
The Sharks made 12 signings so far this offseason, with many of them expected to be impactful plus a few extra depth pieces.
Sharks add two former Oilers
San Jose took advantage of the Edmonton Oilers' difficult cap situation, signing two of their former players. The first was defender John Klingberg. He was a draft pick for the Dallas Stars in 2010 and joined the NHL roster in the 2014-15 season.
There, he would grow into a major player for the team, consistently scoring more than 40 points per year. Still, he would leave for the Anaheim Ducks in free agency in the summer of 2022 before being dealt to the Minnesota Wild. He then signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the summer of 2023.
He struggled early in that season before it was revealed Klingberg had a hip injury that required surgery. The blue liner missed the rest of the season and didn't sign until January 2025 with the Oilers. After dealing with immigration documentation, he played 11 games with the Oilers, then 19 playoff games.
His offensive ability has declined in the last two seasons, coinciding with his hip injury. Regardless, the Swede brings major playoff experience to the Sharks. He has played in 82 playoff games in the NHL with nine goals and 34 assists. On a one-year deal worth $4 million, this was a solid deal for the Sharks.
San Jose also added former Oiler Jeff Skinner to the mix. He was brought in on a one-year $3 million deal. The former seventh overall pick of the Carolina Hurricanes has been a consistent scoring threat in the NHL. He had just 29 points last year with Edmonton but scored 60 or more points three different times playing for bad Buffalo Sabres teams.
Including playoff points, he has registered 30 or more points in 12 of his 15 NHL seasons. Using a baseline rule of $100,000 per point of production being an efficient contract, if the Canadian winger puts up 30 points, as is a regular for him in his career, this will be a great signing.
John Klingberg contract grade: B
Jeff Skinner contract grade: A-
Dmitry Orlov joins the Sharks
The Sharks also added to the blue line with the signing of Orlov. He is joining the team on a two-year deal worth $6.5 million per year. He was the 55th overall pick of the Washington Capitals in 2009. The Russian would move over from the KHL and join the Hershey Bears, the Caps' AHL affiliate.
He broke into the NHL in the 2011-12 season and become a steady force for the Capitals. He became a regular 20-point scorer and also won the Stanley Cup in 2018. Orlov was traded during the 2022-23 season to the Boston Bruins and then signed with the Hurricanes the next offseason.
Orlov has scored 20 or more points in 10 straight seasons while also being a force on both the power play and penalty kill. He has also been a reliable player, playing in all 82 games in a season five times in his career.
Orlov will most likely join the second defensive rotation with Klingberg. Like the two signings from the Oilers, the Russian blue liner brings plenty of playoff experience that can help this young team in the future.
Dmitry Orlov contract grade: A-
Sharks add Philipp Kurashev on a one-year deal
Kurashev was the 120th overall pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2018 NHL Draft. He broke into the NHL with the Blackhawks in the 2020-21 season. He went on to play 317 games with the Hawks, scoring 48 goals with 82 assists in his career. The forward is coming off a career low in games played, goals scored, assists, and points. This led to his release from the team.
Kurashev is coming in on a one-year $1.2 million contract. He is expecting to join the third or fourth line of the Sharks this year, and at the cost, is a valuable contract.
If the Swiss forward can rebound to his form from 2022-23, when he scored nine goals with 16 assists, this contract will have value. If he plays like he did in 2023-24, where he scored 18 goals with 36 assists, this will be a steal for the Sharks.
Philipp Kurashev contract grade: B+
Adam Gaudette gets a two-year contract from the Sharks
The Sharks also added another forward with Gaudette joining the franchise on a two-year, $4 million deal. The American forward broke into the NHL in the 2017-18 season with the Vancouver Canucks. He had one of his best seasons in the NHL with the Canucks, playing in 59 games, scoring 12 goals and adding 21 assists in the COVID-shortened 2019-20 season.
From Vancouver, he made stops with the Blackhawks, Ottawa Senators, and St. Louis Blues. Last year, he had a major rebound season with the Senators.
He scored 19 times while adding seven assists with the team. Furthermore, he added a goal and two assists in the playoffs. He has surpassed the 20-point threshold just twice in his NHL career, so there is some risk to this contract, but if he plays like last year, the Sharks will be pleased with this signing.
Adam Gaudette contract grade: B-
Sharks bring back Jack Thompson
San Jose continued to address the blue line by bringing back Thompson on a one-year deal. He was the 93rd overall pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and would make it to the NHL in 2024.
He played just one game for the Lightning before being sent to the Sharks. That first season, he appeared in just two games with the team, but after playing 27 AHL games this past year, he played 31 games at the NHL level.
He is just 23 years old and adds to a solid young core of players. The Canadian blue liner also showed some of his two-way ability this past year. He scored four goals and added 10 assists in 31 games with the team last year.
He is a strong skater who has continued to progress in his time in the minors. At a cost of just $800,000 for someone who will most likely be the seventh defender, this was another solid deal.
Jack Thompson contract grade: B+
Remaining Sharks signatures
The Sharks also signed six other players to contracts this offseason. All of them were signed to one-year deals and are expected to primarily play for the AHL affiliate. Colin White and Pavol Regenda were both re-signed to the organization, while the other four are newcomers.
The most interesting one is Jakub Sarek. He has been a solid goaltender at the AHL level and also played two games at the NHL level with the Islanders this past year.
While the two games did not go great, with a .872 save percentage, he has shown promise in his career. Many teams will have the need for a third goaltender throughout the year, and the Sharks will be no different. If Nedeljkovic or Yaroslav Askarov are injured at any point, Sarek will be a solid call-up option to serve as the backup on the roster.
AHL signings contract grade: A
Final grade on Sharks' 2025 signings
The Sharks are determined to get out of the basement of the NHL. They did take some small risks. There is an injury concern with Klingberg, and Kurashev had a massive drop-off last year. Still, they got lower-level contracts, and if either of them rebounds, it will be a major win for the team. The team was also the worst defense in the NHL last year, and 28th on the penalty kill.
That has been addressed with a complete overhaul of the blue line. They added solid depth with the forwards and many of them on great deals. The cherry on top is that next summer they do not need to worry about extending Eklund, a major cornerstone of the future. While the Sharks have not been winning a lot on the ice, they had a winning offseason.
Overall grade for the Sharks' 2025 free-agency class: A-
