Sharks’ Mukhamadullin returns to practice, but questions remain

SAN JOSE – Defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin practiced with the San Jose Sharks on Saturday morning, marking the first time he’s been on the ice with his teammates during training camp and raising questions about when he might be ready to participate in a game again.

Mukhamadullin sustained a lower-body injury during practice just before the Rookie Faceoff event in El Segundo, causing him to miss that four-day event in mid-September and the first two weeks of training camp.

“I’ve been preparing a long time for the season, and it happens,” Mukhamadullin said of the injury. “As hockey players, we all know it happens sometimes. You need to stay positive and just keep working.”

Mukhamadullin, considered one of the Sharks’ top defensive prospects, began skating with some other injured players on Monday and progressed throughout the week without any setbacks. Now, it’s a matter of when he can get up to speed and be game-ready.

“Obviously, he’s behind with the pace, and now going up against NHL players, these one-on-ones, this is his first day doing that type of stuff,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “So it’s going to be some day-to-day lumps and ups and downs, but overall, I thought he looked pretty good.”

Certainly, the Sharks have some options with Mukhamadullin, who will not play in Saturday night’s preseason game against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena.

With NHL teams needing to finalize their 23-man rosters by Monday at 2 p.m. (PT), the Sharks could keep Mukhamadullin as their seventh defenseman to start the season. This would allow him to practice with the team and improve his timing at an NHL pace.

But since the 22-year-old Mukhamadullin remains waivers-exempt, the Sharks could also assign him to the Barracuda and keep one of two other young defensemen — Jack Thompson or Luca Cagnoni — as their seventh blueliner to start the year. Thompson, 22, and Cagnoni, 19, have been healthy all camp and were expected to play Saturday night in the Sharks’ sixth and final preseason game.

If the Sharks keep Mukhamadullin on their roster, they would likely assign Thompson and Cagnoni to the AHL. Their six other defensemen are Matt Benning, Cody Ceci, Mario Ferraro, Jan Rutta, Henry Thrun and Jake Walman.

The Sharks start the season at home on Thursday against the St. Louis Blues. The Barracuda, after one more exhibition game on Sunday at home against Bakersfield, start its regular season in Ontario on Oct. 12.

Regardless of what happens, Mukhamadullin said he’s excited to have the injury behind him.

“It feels great to be back here, awaiting the season,” Mukhamadullin said. “It’s been a long summer for us. Four months, five months, we all want to play.”

Mukhamadullin spent most of last season with the Barracuda of the AHL and had 34 points in 55 games. He was part of the AHL’s All-Star Classic in San Jose, replacing injured Barracuda teammate Danil Gushchin.

The Sharks acquired Mukhamadullin in Feb. 2023 as part of the massive trade that sent Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils.

Mukhamadullin was taken 20th overall by the Devils at the 2020 NHL Draft, and with his range, fluid skating, and offensive upside, was considered a key part of that deal, which also brought forward Fabian Zetterlund and a 2023 first-round draft pick that was used to select winger Quentin Musty.

Mukhamadullin now weighs around 205 pounds, about 15 pounds heavier than when the Sharks acquired him.

Mukhamadullin said he feels a difference on the ice, but not in a bad way, with the weight he added being mostly muscle.

“When I was skating in Russia for the first time, in the first week, first two weeks, it’s hard for you,” he said. “This is a different weight, but it’s not like the weight goes up. I think it’s muscles going up. That’s why it’s not feeling so bad. Just needed one week, and after one week, I was feeling good.”

The Sharks are now only without defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic (upper body) and forwards Thomas Bordeleau (lower body) and Logan Couture (osteitis pubis). While Bordeleau is considered week-to-week and Couture is out indefinitely, Vlasic, who also started skating early this week, is still considered day-to-day.

Once Vlasic is healthy, and assuming no other injuries occur to the defense corps, Mukhamadullin might need to be returned to the AHL if he isn’t there already. Still, the Sharks are excited about where Mukhamadullin’s game can go from here.

“Everyone’s excited,” Warsofsky said. “He’s probably one of our closest prospects to really impacting the NHL club. He’s put in a lot of work this summer and has a high ceiling. I think he can be a really good defenseman in this league. I don’t know (when that will be), we’ll let him tell us that, but he’s got all the tools to be a really good defenseman.”

CELEBRINI NON-UPDATE: Macklin Celebrini skated Saturday morning away from the group, Warosfsky said, but it remained unclear whether he would rejoin practice next week. Celebrini aggravated a lower-body injury in the second period of Tuesday’s home preseason game against Utah.