Sharks Recall Mukhamadullin

The San Jose Sharks have called Shakir Mukhamadullin up.

The Sharks, down Mario Ferraro, Ty Emberson, Jacob MacDonald, and possibly more defensemen, look like they’re giving their top defensive prospect his first NHL shot.

The San Jose Sharks host the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon.

The 2020 first-round pick, acquired from the New Jersey Devils last January in the Timo Meier trade, has been impressive in his first full AHL season, posting five goals and 21 assists in 39 games. Those 26 points are 10th among AHL defensemen in scoring.

But along with Mukhamadullin’s instant offensive success, his game has been improving with the Cuda too.

“I think his breakout skills have improved,” San Jose Barracuda head coach John McCarthy said. “He’s using his net. Scanning before collecting retrievals. He’s been able to beat forecheckers, which is something that we’ve been working on with him and starting to show up in his game.”

Mukhamadullin told San Jose Hockey Now’s Nikita Sokolov, “My focus right now is on improving such defensive components as corner and net-front play.”

The 6-foot-4 defenseman, 22, does have a wealth of pro experience, suiting up for 167 games over parts of four seasons with the KHL’s Salavat Yulaev Ufa.

All this experience might also be making him pro-ready in the mental game, which San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn alluded to recently.

We’ll see this Saturday!