There are expected to be a couple of NHL debuts for the San Jose Sharks tonight. In the net, Georgi Romanov is expected to get his first NHL start. Romanov has played in NHL games before. He has 99:15 minutes in his career and a very respectable 1.81 goals against average and .927 save percentage. That said, this will be his first career start.
Also debuting tonight is Luca Cagnoni, the dynamic young defenseman drafted by the Sharks in 2023. Cagnoni has had an impressive season with the team’s AHL affiliate. He’s the second-leading scorer among defensemen in the AHL this season. He has 47 points (13 G, 34 A) in 56 games. Still, moving from the AHL to the NHL is a huge leap, but the extra few days since he was called up have helped him get his skates under him.
“Pretty good. It’s been nice to have a couple of practices, calm my nerves, get used to the guys again. It’s been a while since training camp,” Cagnoni told our Annie Moore after this morning’s practice.
Cagnoni is expected to be paired with Vincent Desharnais, a 6-foot-7 defenseman who more than makes up for Cagnoni’s 5-foot-9 stature. He’s also getting some advice from Desharnais, who has played in this league for a few seasons now.
“Couple things from the D. Vinnie, my partner, just telling me to communicate because it’s obviously tough just jumping in and just playing with the new guys and stuff, so just trying to talk that out,” said Cagnoni. “A lot of people saying just have fun with it, just play my game.”
Cagnoni told Moore his parents, sister and some family friends will be in the stands tonight. San Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng reports that Cagnoni’s roommates, Jake Furlong and Braden Hache, are also expected to be there as well as some other Barracuda players.
Cagnoni's parents and sister are here in San Jose for his NHL debut. He's got other friends and family here too, a little less than a dozen.
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) March 20, 2025
His roommates Jake Furlong and Braden Hache will be there too, and I bet a few more Barracuda teammates
While the young Cagnoni is just starting out his career, Carolina’s Brent Burns seems as though he is forever young. The 40-year-old (as of March 9) returns to SAP Center tonight and continues his climb in the record book. Burns will play in his 911th consecutive game tonight, putting him in sole possession of fifth place on the league’s all-time list. The game will move him past Patrick Marleau on the list. Next up is Gary Unger, who played 914 consecutive games.
While Burnsie has been healthy, other Hurricanes are not. It sounds like Andrei Svechnikov played in a yellow, no-contact sweater at practice yesterday. Dmitry Orlov is questionable and dealing with an upper-body injury. William Carrier hasn’t played for the team since Jan. 4 and still out.
The last time these two teams played was Dec. 10 in Carolina when the Hurricanes won 3-2. Carolina is currently second in the Metropolitan Division and is closing in on a guaranteed spot in the playoffs. It’s looking like Carolina will face the New Jersey Devils in the opening round, though there is still a bit of jockeying for position. Sebastian Aho leads the team with 64 points and Seth Jarvis leads with 26 goals.
San Jose Sharks lines tonight vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Here is what NHL.com reports the Sharks lines will look like tonight. Notice that Collin Graf is getting bumped up to the top line with Macklin Celebrini and Tyler Toffoli. Noah Gregor and Klim Kostin are expected to sit this game out. There will also be a lot of youth on the back end. Marc-Edouard Vlasic is sitting out with a nagging injury.
Forwards
Collin Graf — Macklin Celebrini — Tyler Toffoli
William Eklund — Alexander Wennberg — Will Smith
Ty Dellandrea — Patrick Giles — Nikolai Kovalenko
Carl Grundstrom — Zack Ostapchuk — Barclay Goodrow
Defense
Mario Ferraro — Shakir Mukhamadullin
Jimmy Schuldt — Timothy Liljegren
Luca Cagnoni — Vincent Desharnais
Goaltenders
Georgi Romanov
Alexandar Georgiev
Hurricanes projected lineup vs. the Sharks
This is what the Hurricane’s website shows at the lineup for tonight. Goaltender Frederik Andersen is expected to be in the net. If Orlov is healthy, he’s expected to play on the third pairing with Sean Walker.
Forwards
Seth Jarvis — Sebastian Aho — Jackson Blake
Taylor Hall — Jesperi Kotkaniemi — Jack Roslovic
Jordan Martinook — Jordan Staal — Logan Stankoven
Eric Robinson — Mark Jankowski — Tyson Jost
Defense
Jaccob Slavin — Brent Burns
Shayne Gostisbehere — Jalen Chatfield
Sean Walker — Dmitry Orlov/Scott Morrow
Goaltenders
Frederik Andersen
Pyotr Kochetkov
How to watch Carolina Hurricanes at San Jose Sharks March 20, 2025
Sharks fans can watch the game on NBC California or listen on the Sharks Audio Network.
Hurricanes fans can see the game on FanDuel Sports Network South or through the FanDuel Sports Network App. They can listen on 99.9 The Fan.
The puck drops at 7:30 p.m. PT/10:30 p.m. ET at SAP Center.
