Last year, I looked at five San Jose Sharks prospects who had surprisingly good campaigns up to the midway point of the 2021-22 season. Of the five, Daniil Gushchin and Brandon Coe have made the jump to the American Hockey League (AHL) with the San Jose Barracuda, Ethan Cardwell continues to tear it up in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), Gannon Laroque has yet to play due to an injury, and Mike Robinson is no longer with the organization.
Related: Five Sharks Prospects off to Surprisingly Good Starts
While most of these five prospects have been playing well this season, the limelight is fleeting. As the midway point of 2022-23 approaches, it is time to shift focus to a new batch of prospects who are showing off thus far.
Thomas Bordeleau
Choosing who to focus on between Thomas Bordeleau, William Eklund, and Ryan Merkley of the Barracuda is difficult. All three have been great, and while each has merit, Bordeleau has one stat that makes him stand out from the pack.
Bordeleau has 16 points in 22 games this season, including 11 goals. He has been a threat in front of the net this season. This is nothing new for him, either. In the past three seasons, only in 2020-21 were his points generated primarily from assists. It seems this goal-scoring threat has transitioned well to the pro leagues.
Related: Sharks Saving their Prospects from a Disasterous Season
At this rate, it would not be surprising to see Bordeleau in the NHL full-time relatively soon. General manager Mike Grier has made it clear that he wishes to keep the young players away from the Sharks’ roster, likely to protect them from a rather dull season. As a result, 2023-24 might be the best bet to watch Bordeleau do his thing with the Sharks. For now, though, watching him tear through the AHL has been a treat.
Jake Furlong
Jake Furlong was selected in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft for his size and ability to use physicality to his advantage. However, 27 games into his second season with the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), Furlong is showing why he was chosen for even more reasons.
Furlong has 19 points in 27 games this season. While he is projected to barely pass his 42-point career-high at this pace, what really stands out is his plus-minus rating, a plus-23 with the Mooseheads. His defensive game has continued to grow in the junior leagues, which is exactly what the Sharks need.
Having another defenseman who can put up points and still play a defensive game is something the Sharks have struggled to find in recent years. Furlong will likely take a few more years to make the NHL, but if his game can translate to the pros, he could be an extremely valuable player for the organization.
Cam Lund
Cam Lund is the most recent draft selection on this list. After being drafted 34th overall in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, he left the Green Bay Gamblers in the United States Hockey League (USHL) to begin his collegiate career with Northeastern University, and just 17 games into the season, he seems to have already transitioned well to the next step of his career.
Lund has scored 13 points, including five goals. For his first year in college, those numbers are no small feat. He hasn’t been unstoppable, but he has been decent. If he can continue growing at this rate, he could make it to the NHL sooner than many might have thought.
The Sharks have a lot of fantastic prospects in their pipeline. While I only focused on these three, that doesn’t mean the talent runs dry there. If the Sharks continue to grow their prospect pool, they could find themselves in a very favorable position in a short time.