Ty Emberson was a surprise addition to the San Jose Sharks roster as training camp neared its end and a good one at that. Taking advantage of a stacked New York Rangers team, the Sharks stole Emberson off of the waiver wires at the end of September. The move instantly upgraded the competition for the limited number of spots on the blueline.
Emberson’s 2023-24 production
Emberson played 30 games for the Sharks this season.
Games Played | G | A | Pts | +/- | TOI/G |
30 | 1 | 9 | 10 | -4 | 18:32 |
Emberson made his first NHL start on Oct. 21. While the then 22-year-old did not register a point, his game was consistent enough that the coaching staff continued to include him among the Sharks six defensemen. On Nov. 25, he scored his first NHL goal against the Vancouver Canucks. He was just starting to get the offensive side of his game going when he was sidelined by an injury less than a week later.
And that was the true issue for Emberson this season … injuries. He was placed on injured reserve in early December with a lower-body injury. It took him three weeks to recover, but he was back in the lineup before the new year. Just a few weeks into January, he was hit with more injury trouble and he missed several games with an upper-body injury. He came back, played a few games, but then went right back on the injury list to start February.
The All-Star break and time off for the Sharks allowed Emberson to heal. He was back in mid-February and ready to play, but then a laceration to the tendons in his foot ended his season.
Emberson warranted ice time with Sharks
For Emberson, this season was not about whether he was good enough to play for the Sharks but if he was healthy enough. Given his numbers at the end of the season, San Jose would have been very happy to have him in the lineup more.

And looking at Emberson’s regularized adjusted plus-minus (RAPM) stats this season, you can see why. When Emberson was on the ice, he had a positive influence on the Sharks defensively. His expected goals against per 60 minutes stat (xGA/60) is much higher than league average. On a team with a minus-146 goal differential, that’s saying something.
And that’s why it should come as no surprise that Emberson was one of the more reliable defensemen on the Sharks last season.

Looking at Evolving-Hockey’s chart of defensemen, you can see that while Emberson contributed very little to the offensive attack of the Sharks, his defense more than made up for it.
Emberson’s future with the Sharks
Given the limited number of games Emberson played in teal this season, it’s hard to see the full effect of what the Sharks may have found in the young defenseman. For Emberson, this upcoming season will be about whether he can be healthy enough to play longer stretches of the season.
Emberson is a restricted free agent (RFA). That means that while he is under team control, he still needs a new contract. Last offseason, he signed a one-year deal with the New York Rangers worth $775,000, which is what the Sharks got him for when they picked him up off of waivers.
Emberson is arbitration-eligible, which should not be a big deal for the Sharks, given the contract the defenseman signed with the Rangers. While Emberson is likely looking for something with more money and a longer term, the injuries certainly won’t help his case. At 23, there’s a lot of untapped upside to his game, and the Sharks are certainly in a good position to buy low on a quality defenseman.
It should be one of General Manager Mike Grier’s first moves as we near free agency.
Editor’s Note: Over the next few weeks, we will be rolling out the player reviews for the San Jose Sharks. We realize there were a lot of guys rotating into and out of the lineup and some of the key depth players were traded. As a result, Fear the Fin plans to focus on the players who are 1) still with the Sharks and 2) played 20 or more games for San Jose this season.