San Jose Sharks ahead prospect Quentin Musty took a move from fellow 2023 first-round draft alternative Will Smith contained in the offensive zone, streaked in on the Anaheim Geese web with the puck, and fired a shot previous goalie Vyacheslav Buteyets.
The third-period snipe accomplished a hat-trick and a four-point night time on Sunday for Musty, as he and the Sharks earned a 7-2 victory over the Geese of their second recreation of the Rookie Faceoff occasion in El Segundo.
Nolan Burke, Jeremie Bucheler, Kasper Halttunen, and Colton Roberts additionally scored, and Collin Graf and Luca Cagnoni added two and three assists, respectively. The Sharks, even with out Macklin Celebrini’s companies Sunday, improved to 2-0 on the occasion, with the finale on Monday at 11:30 a.m. in opposition to the Colorado Avalanche. Celebrini might return for that final recreation.
However in opposition to the Geese, Musty took middle stage. He began on the highest line with Smith and Halttunen and contributed to 4 straight Sharks objectives.
Now it’s a matter of what the 19-year-old from Western New York can carry as soon as the Sharks’ primary coaching camp begins in San Jose on Thursday and whether or not he will be one of many 13 or 14 forwards on the 23-man NHL roster to begin the common season.
Regardless of Musty being one of many Sharks’ prime prospects, the numbers should not in his favor this 12 months.
The Sharks already determine to maintain Celebrini, 18, and Smith, 19, with Tyler Toffoli, Mikael Granlund, Alexander Wennberg, Barclay Goodrow, Luke Kunin, Nico Sturm, Ty Dellandrea, Carl Grundstrom, Fabian Zetterlund and William Eklund thought-about locks or near it.
That would depart Musty, Klim Kostin, Collin Graf, Thomas Bordeleau, Justin Bailey, and Givani Smith battling for one or two spots.
That record doesn’t even embrace Logan Couture, who can even be on the Sharks roster if he’s wholesome. If he’s not, that opens up a roster spot for the beginning of the common season.
Nonetheless, to get an NHL job proper now, Musty should compete like loopy in preseason video games and day by day in observe. He’ll have to indicate he’s able to be a professional together with his habits on and off the ice, and that the Sharks teaching employees can belief him, particularly when he doesn’t have the puck on his stick.
“I need to see (the younger guys) competing in each drill, within the health club, on the ping pong desk,” coach Ryan Warsofsky advised Sharks Audio Community on Sunday. “How aggressive are they as human beings? I do know Macklin is. I do know Will is. Is another person going to leap out to us the place (we are saying), ‘Man, we’ve acquired to see him in one other exhibition recreation,’ or ‘he’s shut,’ or, ‘It is a man that we would like in our lineup on opening night time.’
“There’s jobs to be gained.”
What works in Musty’s favor is his dimension. At a listed 6-foot-2 and 205 kilos, Musty, who was chosen twenty sixth total on the NHL Draft final 12 months in Nashville, can play within the center six or a fourth-line position if want be.
In his first full season as a professional in 2016-17, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound Timo Meier performed simply over 12 minutes a recreation and steadily earned extra ice time as he gained extra NHL expertise.
However Meier was going professional that 12 months it doesn’t matter what, as he turned 20 in October of that season. Musty gained’t be 20 till subsequent July, and the Sharks doubtless is not going to need to rush him into the NHL in the event that they don’t should.
Musty labored on his greatest weak point, his skating, this summer season. He “leaned out,” decreasing his physique fats proportion, however he stays stout and is about 15 kilos heavier now than throughout his draft 12 months.
One other 12 months with the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves — with an opportunity to play for the U.S. on the upcoming World Junior Championships after he was left off the roster final 12 months – would doubtless be simply superb for Musty’s improvement. Then, if Sudbury’s season ends earlier than the Barracuda’s, Musty might come to the AHL and get extra professional expertise.
However a terrific camp in San Jose may alter these plans a bit.
Regardless, Musty will undoubtedly be one of many extra intriguing gamers to look at at their observe facility, beginning on Thursday. If he shines from day one, there’s an opportunity, nonetheless distant, that he might begin the season within the NHL and get a nine-game audition earlier than the primary 12 months of his entry-level contract kicks in.
If not, there’s at all times subsequent 12 months; if Sunday is any indication, Musty’s time is coming quickly.
DICKINSON’S GAME: The Sharks teaching employees and entrance workplace most likely appreciated what they noticed from a number of prospects Sunday night time, together with defenseman Sam Dickinson.
The 6-3 Dickinson, who was chosen eleventh total by the Sharks in June, confirmed off his skating capacity however was additionally a bodily presence in what ended up as a chippy recreation with a number of after-the-whistle scrums, one combat and 28 minutes in penalties.
Within the second interval, Dickinson, on a Geese 2-on-1 and with the assistance of a robust backcheck, nullified the puck provider and took away the scoring likelihood. He additionally assisted Colton Roberts’ aim within the third interval simply as time expired.
SIZE DIFFERENCE: The Sharks have at all times had large our bodies at these occasions, however they’ve largely been depth gamers. The distinction now could be that San Jose’s expert gamers are additionally large.
In addition to Musty and Dickinson, Kasper Halttunen and Filip Bystedt are each 6-3, and 5 of the six defensemen who performed Sunday had been additionally at the least 6-3. That doesn’t embrace the 6-4 Shakir Mukhamadullin, one other prime prospect who’s on the rookie roster however is being held out for precautionary well being causes.
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