The San Jose Sharks assigned four players to their AHL affiliate on Monday, clearing the way for center Michael Misa and defenseman Sam Dickinson to start the season on the NHL roster.
On the day teams needed to submit a salary cap-compliant roster of no more than 23 players to the NHL, the Sharks assigned forwards Ethan Cardwell and Zack Ostapchuk and defensemen Luca Cagnoni to the San Jose Barracuda, joining winger Pavol Regenda, who cleared waivers earlier in the day and was returned to the AHL.
With Misa, 18, and Dickinson, 19, on the team’s season-opening roster, it marks the second straight year that two of San Jose’s top teenage prospects will begin their professional careers in the NHL.
Had Misa, the second overall pick in June’s NHL Draft, and Dickinson, selected 11th overall last year, not made the Sharks roster this year, both would have had to return to their respective teams in the Ontario Hockey League. However, with both players still in San Jose, the Sharks, when they resume practice on Tuesday, will have four players at 20 years old or younger, including Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith, who are now 19 and 20, respectively.
Celebrini, who went No. 1 overall to the Sharks in 2024, and Smith, drafted fourth overall in 2023, combined for 108 points in 144 games last season and finished third and sixth, respectively, in voting for the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie.
The Sharks would love to see Misa and Dickinson make a similar impact in their rookie years, but first, they must remain in the NHL for the entire season, as one or both can still be sent back to the OHL. If either player dresses for a 10th NHL game, the first year of their entry-level contracts would begin, bringing them a year closer to restricted free agency.
The Sharks open the season Thursday at home against the Golden Knights and play their 10th game of the season on Oct. 28 in Utah against the Mammoth. That, though, does not necessarily mean that either Misa or Dickinson would play in every game this month before then. The Sharks can afford to bring them along slowly, especially Dickinson, considering the team is right now carrying eight defensemen.
Other Sharks defensemen on the roster include Dmitry Orlov, Nick Leddy, John Klingberg, Mario Ferraro, Timothy Liljegren, Vincent Desharnais, and Shakir Mukhamadullin.
San Jose also has some versatility up front, with Philipp Kurashev able to slide from wing to center if Misa isn’t in the lineup. In the first half of Smith’s rookie season, the Sharks had Smith on a development plan in which he didn’t play on back-to-back nights, and a similar approach might be in store for Misa.
Kurashev played left wing on a line with Smith and Celebrini in the Sharks’ 6-4 loss to the Mammoth on Saturday in the final preseason game for both teams. Kurashev also played center early on in training camp and at times throughout his five-year tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks from 2021 to 2025.
Regardless, it appears the Sharks plan to be patient with Misa as he adjusts to professional hockey after a stellar junior career. Misa won the Memorial Cup with the Saginaw Spirit in 2024 and led the Canadian Hockey League last season with 134 points in 65 regular-season games.
“It’s going to come down to pace,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said after Misa went 1-of-7 on faceoffs and didn’t have a point in Friday’s game against the Golden Knights. “He’s picked some things up, and he needs to continue to develop in some areas. But it’s been a hard training camp. It’s been a grind (between) practices, travel, and games, and it’s his first time going through something like this.
“We’re going to be there to help him and support him and develop him and continue to work with him.”
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