Ryan Warsofsky wants to be the coach who returns the San Jose Sharks to the Stanley Cup playoffs. Falling short in 2025-26, when a surprising push petered out at the very end of the regular season, only intensified his mission to end what is now a seven-year drought.“I can see how badly people want it,” Warsofsky told reporters then. “To hopefully deliver that would be a dream come true for myself.”This could be a pivotal season for Warsofsky, who is entering the final year of his contract after being hired in June 2024 during the team’s rebuild. While it’s possible that he and Sharks general manager Mike Grier come together on an extension, the 38-year-old coach could also start the 2026-27 schedule without one in place. Either way, there will be expectations for him to improve on last season’s 39-35-8 record now that Grier has built the deepest lineup of Warsofsky’s tenure.The Sharks added nearly $110 million in salary commitments to four players — Darnell Nurse, Jacob Trouba, Mason Marchment and Michael Kesselring — over multiple seasons to help “push this thing forward,” as Grier said while lauding the support and financial backing of team owner Hasso Plattner.Winners and losers from the 2026 NHL DraftScott Wheeler“Hasso’s great,” Grier said. “Very fortunate to have him as our owner. He’s very passionate about the Sharks and he’s given me everything I’ve needed to make any moves we felt necessary to try and improve the hockey team.”While the GM tried to pour cold water on the suggestion that another playoff miss would be a disappointment, there isn’t much doubt about which direction Grier wants to take the Sharks.“I mean, we’re just trying to get better,” Grier said. “You guys are the ones who are always trying to put the finish line and the goals on things. It’s to get the team better and improve. I think we’re a better team now than we were last year. So, if that gets us in the playoffs, great, but you never know how the season’s going to go.“But it’s a step in the right direction where we were able to address some of the things we wanted to address.”With the NHL’s opening-night matchups scheduled to be released Wednesday and the full 84-game slate to drop Thursday, we’ll know when the Sharks’ most anticipated season in years will begin. What could the San Jose lineup look like as Warsofsky heads into a season that could determine his future behind the bench?ForwardsLeft wingCenterRight wingIgor ChernyshovMacklin CelebriniWill SmithIvar StenbergMichael MisaTyler ToffoliMason MarchmentAlexander WennbergKiefer SherwoodBarclay GoodrowZack OstapchukCollin GrafExtras: Adam Gaudette, Ty DellandreaThe Sharks have a compelling forward group, and the addition of Stenberg as the No. 2 pick in this year’s NHL Draft only adds to what may be possible from a production standpoint — provided there is enough ice time to go around and the right combinations are found and click consistently as the season goes on. They ranked 17th in the league in goals per game last season, with 3.04. It would be a disappointment if they didn’t do better in 2026-27.Chernyshov showed he could play with Celebrini on San Jose’s top line, with an impressive 19 points in 28 games for the Sharks in a season split between the NHL and the American Hockey League’s San Jose Barracuda. But the 20-year-old doesn’t have a lock on that spot. The additions of Stenberg and Marchment give the Sharks multiple options, and either could be a candidate for top-line duty out of the gate, or if Chernyshov struggles.The top three left wings could be interchangeable. As tempting as it could be to have Stenberg start with Celebrini and Smith, a bigger body might be a better fit with supremely skilled talents who are on the smaller side. Chernyshov’s previous chemistry with Misa in junior hockey could also play a role in his placement.The other intriguing aspect of this lineup is where to put the 23-year-old Graf. Entering his fourth season with the Sharks and second as a full-time NHL player, Graf broke out last season, establishing himself as a quality two-way player and one of the team’s more defensively sound forwards. His placement in this exercise isn’t a reflection of him; this is a deep forward group. With 21 goals and 46 points last season, Graf can play in the top six and pop up on left wing. Could he unseat Toffoli or Sherwood and bump either one down? Sure.The Sharks still must sign Graf to a new contract, but he isn’t eligible to receive an offer sheet as a 10.2(c) restricted free agent. Once he is under contract, they’ll have a group up front that should foster a healthy amount of internal competition. A lot of mixing and matching could be in the works, with no one outside of Celebrini guaranteed to spend all season on the top two lines. And that isn’t necessarily a bad thing if players are effectively mixed.DefensemenLEFT DEFENSERIGHT DEFENSEDarnell Nurse Jacob TroubaSam Dickinson Michael KesselringLuca Cagnoni Dmitry OrlovExtra: Eric Pohlkamp or Nolan AllanHow much did the Sharks lean on Celebrini last season? It was he who led the team in ice time, not a defenseman. Orlov averaged 21:12 in 2025-26, and that’s one reason last season’s blue line will never be confused for being stingy — even if Natural Stat Trick had the Sharks much closer to the middle of the pack league-wide than near the bottom in scoring chances and high-danger chances allowed.The arrival of Nurse and Trouba should push Orlov down in the pairings and reduce the reliance on the 34-year-old at this stage of his career. It isn’t as if Nurse or Trouba are true top-pairing defenders, but both are bigger and more likely to better handle tougher matchups. Whether they’ll be paired up or split up will be up to Warsofsky and assistant coach Doug Houda.“I think we’re a better team defensively for sure,” Grier said. “We’ll be harder around our net. I think we’ll be able to kill more plays.”The trade for Kesselring figures to give him an opportunity after a rough lone season with Buffalo during which he got injured and didn’t fit well on the Sabres’ blue line. Warsofsky coached Kesselring in the United States’ gold medal win at the 2025 World Championships, so there is a history between the two.Dickinson, meanwhile, topped 20 minutes on nine occasions over the last month and could push Orlov for a spot in the second pairing. Trouba could be an option as a partner for Dickinson given his support for Jackson LaCombe last season in Anaheim.Orlov can also play on the right side. Cagnoni and Pohlkamp will compete for the last opening remaining if the Sharks don’t make another outside move for a rearguard. Allan and Mattias Havelid could also push to be on the opening-night roster.Are the Sharks why the Blackhawks traded for Bowen Byram?Corey Pronman, Scott Wheeler and moreGoaltendersStarterBackupYaroslav AskarovAlex NedeljkovicWhile a trade to bring three-time Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck to the Bay Area might make sense on paper, Askarov and Nedeljkovic should enter the season as the returning goalie tandem (barring a Hellebuyck move becoming reality). Nedeljkovic outplayed Askarov last season, though the Sharks have invested a lot in Askarov and want to see more consistency from the talented 24-year-old.The Sharks also signed veteran Eric Comrie to a two-year contract worth $1.15 million annually on July 1. Comrie, 31, served as Hellebuyck’s backup in Winnipeg for the last two seasons and has a long history with the Jets organization as well as stops with the Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings and New Jersey Devils over the years. Because of the stress and injury factor in today’s NHL, Comrie is necessary insurance as a No. 3 goalie with 102 games under his belt.