Looking back can sometimes be fun because it gives you a chance to see a team’s history. In this case, the 2018 Top 25 Under 25 list is reflective of a key point in the San Jose Sharks history: the time that then-General Manager Doug Wilson traded for Erik Karlsson. You’ll see that after the first couple of players on the list, a few of the players in the top ten were shipped out to make the Karlsson deal happen.
It was the Karlsson move that truly depleted the Sharks’ depth pool and led to the rebuild that is currently occurring. The lack of strength in the 2018’s 25 Under 25, coupled with the Karlsson deal, was the precursor to everything that is currently happening and has happened in the past few years.
So, before we jump back into 2024’s Too 25 Under 25, here’s a look at what was happening in 2018.
1. Tomas Hertl
In 2018, the number one player on our list was just coming into his own. Hertl was 24, entering the season, and starting to find his stride in the NHL. His game, while not flashy, still had the underlying numbers to shine a light on the fact that “under the hood” as Erik Fowle wrote in 2018, there was a lot more to Hertl than just goals and assists.
“Hertl has a strong positive impact on his team’s shots, and a weaker, but still positive impact on his team’s expected goals. What makes him a rare breed is his positive impact on defense,” wrote Fowle. “Despite shuttling between center and wing and the smorgasbord of teammates that entails, Hertl not only tilts the ice in the Sharks favor, but he keeps it that way by limiting opponents’ chances whether he’s riding shotgun on Brent Burns and Joe Thornton’s line or mushing the likes of Tommy Wingels up and down the ice.”
While Hertl is no longer with the Sharks, it’s nice to remember the good old days when he was our Teenage Mutant Ninja Hertl.
2. Timo Meier
Timo Meier was 21 in 2018 and coming off his first full season with the Sharks. His rookie season of 36 points (21 G, 15 A) gave fans hope that there was a lot more to come from the burgeoning power forward.
“His totals and chart paint a picture of a confident player who knows how to get open, who goes to the tough areas, with good hands, who is comfortable with the puck on his stick and who can score in a wide variety of ways from many locations on the ice,” wrote G Dub in 2018.
G Dub also predicted Meier would turn into a 25- to 30-goal scorer, so credit to him for properly sussing out the potential of one of the NHL’s top power forwards.
3. Chris Tierney
Chris Tierney ranked third on our list in 2018, but sadly, it was the last time Cobra would appear on our list. That’s because a few days before we rolled out our Tierney profile, he was traded to the Ottawa Senators along with some other players on this list in exchange for Karlsson.
Tierney was a good third-line center for the Sharks. He was reliable, which is what ranked him so high on our list. However, he was, at his peak at the third liner and Karlsson, well, he offered so much more to the Sharks.
4. Kevin Labanc
In 2018, Kevin Labanc’s game was still on the upswing. As he entered the 2018-19 season, the forward was one of top-50 in the league, you read that right, top-50 in Corsi For % (CF%). Labanc was 49th in CF% for all players who played 41 games or more. It allowed the coaching staff to occasionally move Labanc up to the top six for a different look and a potential extra scoring punch.
It was his consistent performance at the NHL level along with his 40 points in the 2017-18 season that placed him at fourth on Fear the Fin’s list.
5. Ryan Merkley
Remember that time when we were super stoked to have Ryan Merkley ready to don a teal jersey? We do. During our 2018 rankings, Merkley was an exciting defensive prospect with an incredible offensive upside. We considered him to be “game-breaking.”
The concerns were there. Merkley was thought to have a “bad attitude,” but the Sharks were pretty sure the lockerroom was strong enough to handle perceived “behavior issues.”
It was a high-risk, high-reward play in the 2018 draft that ultimately didn’t end up panning out. But back then, it was a great dream.
6. Dylan Gambrell
The Karlsson trade cleared up some space at forward for Dylan Gambrell. Gambrell was just coming off of three solid seasons of college hockey at the University of Denver and was ready to make the jump to professional play. He played three games with the Sharks at the close of the 2017-18 campaign and was hoping to make the team out of training camp.
In his prospect profile for the season, Fear the Fin recognized that with the departure of Tierney, Gambrell had the opportunity to claim that 4C spot in the lineup. The hope was that his speed and hockey IQ would make him a reliable bottom-six forward for a team looking to continue its playoff success.
7. Rudolfs Balcers
Another casualty of the Karlsson trade, Balcers was traded just as we were putting the finishing touches on our 2018 prospect list. Coming in at number seven on the list, writer Lachlan Irvine was pretty sure that Balcers was going to lead the Barracuda in the 2018-19 season until the trade occurred.
An undersized player at 5-foot-10, Balcers worked hard for every step he took in development. He was fast and skilled with the puck, but not at the elite level that you often need from smaller players if they want a long professional career. As a result, Balcers looked to be another bottom-six option for the Sharks even at his peak.
8. Antti Suomela
Every season there are a few undrafted players that come over from Europe to play professional hockey. The good ones are sought after by more than a dozen NHL teams hoping to get a potential NHL player for nothing. As was the case of Antti Suomela, who was one of the top players moving over from Europe in 2018.
The Sharks beat out more than a dozen teams to sign Suomela, who brought with him “good passing skills” and a strong wrist shot on the net. At 24 years old, he looked like he could be an effective third-line player for the Sharks who could immediately slot into the lineup.
9. Joshua Norris
Of all the players sent to the Senators in the Karlsson trade, this one had to hurt the most. Norris was the Sharks’ first-round pick in the 2017 draft, and while he was only 19, he showed promise as a future NHL player.
After his first season with the Michigan Wolverines, Norris didn’t score at a torrid pace, but he did drive scoring plays.
“Norris had an out-sized impact on the team’s scoring network that belies his modest counting stats. Our boy is third on the team in this metric of driving offensive play at even strength, and second with the man advantage,” wrote Erik Johnsgard in 2018.
He was also relied upon by the Michigan coaching staff to take key faceoffs, something the team leaned heavily on as it made its way to the Frozen Four.
He was possibly the best prospect the Sharks had at the time outside of Hertl and Meier.
10. Jeremy Roy
Jeremy Roy was a promising young offensive defenseman in the Sharks system but he could not stay healthy. Several severe injuries prevented him from finding his footing in key development years. As he entered the 2018-19 season, Roy was hoping to finally be able to string together healthy games and get back on track while playing for the Barracuda.
While undersized by defenseman standards, his ability to move the puck was a big asset.
The rest of the top 25
11. Alexander “Sasha” Chmelevski
12. Mario Ferraro
13. Ivan Chekhovich
14. Linus Karlsson
15. Jayden Halbgewachs
16. Noah Gregor
17. Maxim Letunov
18. Antoine Bibeau
19. Rourke Chartier
20. Alexander True
21. Joachim Blichfeld
22. Jacob Middleton
23. Filip Sandberg
24. Nick DeSimone
25. Scott Reedy
Honorable Mentions: Vladislav Kotkov, Kyle Wood, Vincent Praplan, Josef Korenar, Jake McGrew
