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SAN JOSE – There is one thing the San Jose Sharks have this season that other recent iterations of the team didn’t need to deal with: expectations.
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After a complete roster makeover in recent years – only one player, winger Collin Graf, remains from the last-place 2023-24 team – the Sharks feel they’re capable of taking a step forward, which unofficially means making the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
The Sharks now know what their path toward a postseason appearance looks like, as the NHL on Thursday released the 84-game schedule for all 32 teams.
The Sharks nearly made the playoffs last season, but, for a variety of reasons, faltered down the stretch and finished four points behind the Los Angeles Kings for the Western Conference’s second and final wild card spot.
Now behind a revamped and more costly defense that includes newcomers Jacob Trouba, Darnell Nurse, and Michael Kesselring, and a deeper forward group led by Macklin Celebrini, the Sharks look ready to break through after years of rebuilding.
“Last year, you saw the evolution of the game management and doing the right things at the right time,” said Nurse, the longtime Edmonton Oiler who witnessed the Sharks make improvements last season after years of rebuilding.
“As a player, being in the league for almost 12 years now, you see teams continue to evolve, grow, and get better and better at the little nuances of the game.”
Six things to note about Sharks’ 2026-27 regular season schedule:
IMPORTANT OCTOBER: After their home opener against the Florida Panthers on Oct. 1 and a game against the Los Angeles Kings two days later, the Sharks head out on the road for the first time to play the Dallas Stars on Oct. 5 and the St. Louis Blues on Oct. 8. Their first extended road trip will be Oct. 15-24, a six-game swing that starts in Nashville and finishes in Boston.
The Sharks play seven of their 15 games in October at home, capped by a three-game homestand against the Buffalo Sabres, the Vancouver Canucks and a Halloween day game against the Ottawa Senators.
Eight of San Jose’s first 15 games are against teams that were in the playoffs last season, including home-and-away matchups against the Senators and Bruins.
To help make the playoffs, the Sharks desperately need to get off to a better start this season than in previous years.
San Jose went winless in its first six games last season (0-4-2) and while they later recovered and were in a playoff spot as late as April 2, they couldn’t build a big enough cushion to withstand a late-season slump.
After losing four of five games in early April, the Sharks were officially eliminated from playoff contention on April 11 with five days left in the regular season.
The Sharks’ record in October over the last four years was a combined 9-29-5.
EMOTIONAL HOMECOMINGS: Two of the longest-tenured Sharks players, defenseman Mario Ferraro and forward William Eklund, will be visitors at SAP Center for the first time in their NHL careers this season.
Ferraro and the Winnipeg Jets come to San Jose for the first time on February 15, and Eklund’s Ottawa Senators make their one appearance at the Tank on Oct. 31.
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Ferraro, who was drafted by the Sharks in 2017 and played seven seasons with the team, was allowed to leave as a free agent and signed a three-year deal with the Jets on July 1. Eklund, who was drafted by San Jose in 2021 and played three full years with the Sharks, was traded to the Senators last month.
Nurse, too, figures to be the center of attention when the Sharks visit Edmonton for the first time on Oct. 10. Nurse was with the Oilers for 12 seasons but had a less-than-optimal departure, requesting a trade after enduring years of criticism, often warranted, from fans and media alike.
DOUBLE TROUBLE?:
San Jose doesn’t play it’s first back-to-back games until Oct. 19-20 at Toronto and then Montreal, and has 13 in all. The Sharks have three back-to-backs in January, but two of those are at home.
The Sharks played on back-to-back days 16 times last season and had a 6-8-2 record in the second half of those situations.
This year’s schedule has 84 games instead of 82 but without a three-week Olympic break, isn’t as compressed, allowing teams that travel extensively like the Sharks a bit more downtime between games.
MATINEE IDOLS:
Last season, the Sharks, based on feedback from elevated season ticket holders and other fans, moved the start of most night games from 7:30 to 7 p.m. The Sharks also had eight home dates starting at 1 p.m., including six on Saturdays.
The Sharks were 6-2-0 in those 1 p.m. home games.
San Jose has eight 1 p.m. home starts this season, five of them on Saturday. They also have a 4 p.m. start scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 2 against Toronto, a 4:30 President’s Day start on Monday, Feb. 15 against the Jets and a 6 p.m. start scheduled for Sunday, November 15 against Nashville.
By adding more afternoon dates, the Sharks hoped to make games “more accessible for a variety of audiences.” During the 2024-25 season, the Sharks only had four games that began at 2 p.m. or earlier.
OVECHKIN’S LAST GAME IN S.J.?: Alex Ovechkin, the NHL’s all-time leader with 929 goals, recently signed a one-year contract with the Washington Capitals to come back for a 22nd season. It seems likely, now, that his last regular-season game in San Jose will be on Jan. 8.
Ovechkin, who turns 41 in September, has 1,687 points in 1,573 regular-season games. He has 19 goals and 33 points in 31 career games against the Sharks, his favorite team as a child.
THE LONGEST ROAD:
The Sharks have two season-long road trips of six games; Oct. 15-24, and Mar. 9-18, facing a mix of Western and Eastern Conference teams.
The Sharks won just 18 of 41 road games last season, finishing with a 39-35-8 record. Their two longest road trips of the year both lasted five games; they went 1-3-1 on the first from late January to early February, and 2-3-0 on the second in mid-March.
Their longest homestand will be be seven games, split across the NHL’s break for the All-Star Weekend, which takes place on Feb. 5-6. The homestand will start on Jan. 18, and stretch until Feb. 15 to finish off with the Winnipeg Jets, spanning nearly an entire calendar month.
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This story was originally published July 16, 2026 at 10:44 AM.