{"id":2473,"date":"2026-06-18T20:38:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T20:38:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2473"},"modified":"2026-06-18T20:38:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T20:38:31","slug":"should-adding-kesselring-affect-what-the-sharks-do-with-the-no-2-pick","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2473","title":{"rendered":"Should adding Kesselring affect what the Sharks do with the No. 2 pick?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SAN JOSE \u2013 Defenseman Michael Kesselring should again get the opportunity to be in the lineup every night now that he\u2019s on a San Jose Sharks team that still has several holes to fill on its blueline.<\/p>\n

Read more Man dies from injuries in Segway scooter crash in San Jose<\/a><\/p>\n

But does Kesselring\u2019s addition affect what general manager Mike Grier and the Sharks do with the second overall selection during the first round of the NHL draft next Friday?<\/p>\n

If the Sharks are true to their word, then chances are it won\u2019t.<\/p>\n

The Sharks have reasons to be excited about Kesselring, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound right-shot defenseman capable of providing offense and playing a bigger role than he did with the Buffalo Sabres this past season, when he averaged 13:24 minutes per game.<\/p>\n

In 82 regular-season games with Utah in 2024-25, Kesselring had 29 points and averaged close to 18 minutes per night. Among all NHL defensemen, the South Carolina native, per NHL Edge stats, ranked in the 75th percentile in max skating speed (22.29 mph) and in the 97th percentile with 112 speed bursts between 20-22 mph. He also ranked in the 80th percentile in average shot speed (71.26 mph).<\/p>\n

Kesselring also played well for the United States under Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky at the 2025 IIHF World Championship, helping the Americans capture their first gold medal in 92 years. There\u2019s some familiarity there, both from his and the Sharks\u2019 perspective.<\/p>\n

Still, given that he rarely cracked the Sabres\u2019 lineup late in the regular season and during the playoffs, Kesselring appears to have a ceiling, and it might be too much to expect him to become the kind of top-pair guy the Sharks desperately need.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, the Sharks, even after the trade, likely haven\u2019t closed off the idea of drafting a defenseman at No. 2.<\/p>\n

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Although nothing is for certain, indications are the Toronto Maple Leafs will draft winger Gavin McKenna at No. 1. If that happens, and the Sharks legitimately feel that defenseman Chase Reid, Keaton Verhoeff, or Carson Carels projects to be a better NHL player than winger Ivar Stenberg, then they\u2019ll likely go in that direction.<\/p>\n

If Stenberg is head and shoulders the top player on their list when it\u2019s time for the second pick, then, per the Sharks\u2019 philosophy, he\u2019ll be in San Jose. Drafting Stenberg might then give the Sharks the flexibility to move another forward for defensive help.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ve been pretty consistent on this. We are best player available,\u201d Sharks president Jonathan Becher said to ABC7 Bay Area earlier this month. \u201cBest player available \u2014 everyone has their opinion on it, so we\u2019ll hear different opinions as well. Is it also possible that we may end up doing a draft-day trade?<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, (Grier\u2019s) been clear. His telephone number is (known) by all the other GMs. If somebody knocks our socks off, then we\u2019ve got to pay attention and listen, but otherwise we\u2019ll do best player.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Former bishop, charged with child molestation in Livermore Mormon church, released on $920K bail<\/a><\/p>\n

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The Sharks likely gained some insight into Reid, Verhoeff, and Carels at the draft combine in Buffalo earlier this month, enough to help them sort out their draft list.<\/p>\n

Given what the Sharks already knew about the three defensemen and what they learned in Buffalo, is there a clear distinction between them? Would the Sharks feel comfortable exchanging first-round picks with the Chicago Blackhawks, who own the No. 4 selection, or the New York Rangers, who have the No. 5 pick, while adding an asset for the trouble?<\/p>\n

Does the defenseman that\u2019s available at the fourth or fifth spot project to be just as good as the one that\u2019s available at No. 2?<\/p>\n

Chances are, the Sharks will have a good idea of how things will play out.<\/p>\n

Two years ago, the Sharks traded the 14th and 42nd overall selections in the 2024 draft to the Sabres for the 11th overall pick. The Sharks figured they had to be inside the top 12 to get one of the defensemen they wanted, and after four blueliners were already snapped up, they drafted Dickinson at No. 11. Zeev Buium, the last of the top six, went 12th overall to the Minnesota Wild.<\/p>\n

Whatever happens this month or in early July, the Sharks need to improve defensively, and changes are coming with Mario Ferraro, Vincent Desharnais, Nick Leddy, and John Klingberg set to become unrestricted free agents.<\/p>\n

The Sharks might be able to add a legit top-pairing defenseman via trade or free agency.<\/p>\n

Both the Tampa Bay Lightning\u2019s Darren Raddysh, who just completed a 70-point season, and the Vegas Golden Knights\u2019 Rasmus Andersson, who had 47 points, are pending UFAs and could be available on July 1. So could other defensemen such as Anaheim\u2019s Jacob Trouba or Colorado\u2019s Brett Kulak.<\/p>\n

Plus, trade talks that began earlier this year can be revisited.<\/p>\n

Asked after the trade deadline in March about his interest in the Rangers\u2019 Braden Schneider or the New Jersey Devils\u2019 Simon Nemec, Grier said, \u201cWe were in on some stuff. We weren\u2019t able to get some of the guys we were interested in and made some offers on, but that\u2019s often the case this time of year. Prices are high.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike I\u2019ve always said, it\u2019s an eye on the future as well as balancing that out between the future and the here and now. So I had to decide how far you\u2019re willing to go and what type of assets you\u2019re willing to give up, and if it makes sense. At the moment, it just didn\u2019t work out with some of the teams when we went back and forth and exchanged some ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more East Bay hotel topples into loan default as lodging sector woes linger<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

San Jose Sharks, Mike Grier have decisions to make before next week’s NHL draft<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2472,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nShould adding Kesselring affect what the Sharks do with the No. 2 pick? - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2473\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Should adding Kesselring affect what the Sharks do with the No. 2 pick? - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"San Jose Sharks, Mike Grier have decisions to make before next week's NHL draft\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2473\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-18T20:38:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Should adding Kesselring affect what the Sharks do with the No. 2 pick?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-18T20:38:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473\"},\"wordCount\":984,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/47db7c602c14803cdff2b4e6bee75e5c.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2473\",\"name\":\"Should adding Kesselring affect what the Sharks do with the No. 2 pick? 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