Sharks at 2026 NCAA Tournament

With the NCAA regular season officially over, we are now ready for one of the best tournaments, and the San Jose Sharks will be represented this season by seven players.

Michael Fisher
Defenseman - Cornell
2022 3rd Round Pick
6'2" 194 lbs
32 games 1 goal 7 assists 15:27 TOI

Michael Fisher has had an interesting path: USHL -> NCAA -> BCHL -> NCAA. He isn't playing a ton with Cornell this season and faces a daunting task against Denver, one of the favorites to win the entire tournament.

The Sharks don't have to make a decision on Fisher until the summer of 2028, and at this point it's looking like a longshot for him to earn his ELC.

David Klee
Forward - North Dakota
2023 7th Round Pick
6'2" 180 lbs
21 games 3 goals 3 assists 10:17 TOI

After spending an extra season in the USHL, where David Klee was the captain of the Muskegon Lumberjacks, Klee went to North Dakota this season, where he is playing a fourth-line role. Klee missed some time this season with an upper-body injury.

North Dakota is facing a red-hot goalie at Merrimack in the first round, but currently have the 2nd best odds to win the whole tournament.

The Sharks don't have to make a decision on Klee until the summer of 2029. Look for him to take on a bigger role with North Dakota next season.

Reese Laubach
Forward - Penn State
2022 7th Round Pick
6'0" 185 lbs
36 games 12 goals 16 assists 16:29 TOI

Reese Laubach didn't see his production take a big leap this season, but was able to replicate it despite playing a minute less per game than in 2024-25. With Penn State heavily recruiting from the CHL and adding players like Gavin McKenna, there are more mouths to feed, and Laubach has settled into a role that he is more likely to play professionally.

Penn State has a tough first-round matchup against Minnesota-Duluth, and it will be an interesting clash of styles.

Reese Laubach is on ELC watch. While he still has another season of eligibility, Laubach could look to make the jump and join the Barracuda now. While Penn State will be losing McKenna, they have a ton of young players who will be sticking around, and Laubach could look to go back and try to win a National Championship.

Cole McKinney
Forward - Michigan
2025 2nd Round Pick
6'0" 201 lbs
37 games 8 goals 11 assists 15:00 TOI

The freshman jumped into the best team in the NCAA and contributed right away. McKinney played his third-line center role to a T and is one of the reasons that Michigan is the number one team in the tournament.

Michigan is loaded with talent and has the best potential free agent since Collin Graf in TJ Hughes. If this team isn't in the final four, it will be a massive disagreement.

McKinney will be back next season at Michigan, where he should see his role increase. If McKinney has a monster sophomore season, he could be a candidate to sign his ELC this time next year.

Joey Muldowney
Forward - Connecticut
2022 6th Round Pick
5'9" 160 lbs
33 games 17 goals 11 assists 19:30 TOI

After scoring 29 goals last season, it was not realistic for Muldowney to put up the same numbers. This year, Muldowney and UConn were a more balanced team with 12 players scoring at least five goals, compared to 9 last year. So Muldowney didn't have the eye-popping numbers, but he still played first-line minutes and played in all situations for UConn.

They have a tough matchup against Michigan State, and this could be a very short tournament for UConn.

Joey Muldowney is also on ELC watch and looks to be a great candidate to sign his ELC to start in the 2026-27 season and an ATO to join the San Jose Barracuda right now. He would help play the Ethan Cardwell role as a bottom-six scoring threat and should help an improving Barracuda penalty kill.

Eric Pohlkamp
Defenseman - Denver
2023 5th Round Pick
5'11" 205 lbs
39 games 17 goals 20 assists 23:54 TOI

Eric Pohlkamp had big shoes to fill in Denver once Zeev Buium signed his ELC, and he did. He leads the NCAA in goals and points for a defenseman and won the NCHC offensive defenseman of the year. Pohlkamp isn't afraid to shoot the puck, and in the time you finish reading this sentence, he has already put another shot on goal.

Denver is a two-seed and should take care of Cornell in the first round, but a potential showdown vs Western Michigan could be one of the games of the tournament. Denver currently has the fourth-best odds to win it all.

The moment Pohlkamp's season ends, Mike Grier should be standing there with a suitcase full of cash and Pohlkamp's ELC ready to go. The Sharks need him now.

Zack Sharp
Defenseman - Western Michigan
2025 4th Round Pick
6'2" 190 lbs
35 games 5 goals 14 assists 19:25 TOI

Zack Sharp was a double overager this season when the Sharks drafted him, and he already had a season of NCAA hockey under his belt, during which he won a National Championship. This season, Sharp took on a bigger role with WMU and had solid production on the blue line.

Western Michigan looks to defend its title as they kick off the tournament against Minnesota State, with a potential massive game against Denver looming.

Sharp could be a potential ELC candidate, but most likely another season back at Western Michigan would make the most sense, as he should become their top defenseman.