It's a no-brainer that the Sharks will select consensus top prospect Macklin Celebrini No. 1 overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, but that isn't San Jose's only selection in the first round.
The Sharks also own the No. 14 overall pick, part of the return they received from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson
Here's who the experts project San Jose will select with the No. 14 pick.
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Bryan Murphy, Sporting News
Adam Jiricek, D, Plzeň
Jiricek is the younger brother of St. Louis Blues prospect David Jiricek, and appeared in 19 games for Plzeň of the Czech Extraliga. The 17-year-old suffered a major knee injury during the 2023 World Juniors tournament, which is something to monitor as it potentially affects his draft stock
"There is certainly some concern with taking the defenseman given the injury history, but the Sharks can take a bit of a gamble after landing Celebrini, and San Jose is in desperate need of more defensive prospects," Murphy wrote.
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Chris Peters, FloHockeyTV
Cole Eiserman, RW, U.S. National Team Development Program
Eiserman set a U.S. National Team Development Team record with 127 goals over two seasons, and offers promising offensive upside that could be appealing to the Sharks at this range of the draft. Once viewed as one of the top prospects in this class, San Jose could pull off a heist selecting the electric talent near the end of the lottery.
Eiserman also was high school teammates with Celebrini at Shattuck-St. Mary's in Faribault, Minn. and the opportunity to reunite the 17-year-old with his former linemate could be too much for the Sharks to pass up.
"Celebrini and Eiserman are close friends and former teammates from Shattuck-St. Mary's," Peters wrote. "I don't think this reunion would be ill placed and I think this is good value for Eiserman, whose draft stock has slipped."
Corey Pronman, The Athletic
Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa Generals
Sennecke scored 27 goals and logged 41 assists for Oshawa during the 2023-24 OHL season. The 18-year-old is viewed as one of the best offensive prospects in this class, and can add even more firepower to the stockpile of talent San Jose has amassed in recent seasons.
"While it might make some sense to go with a defenseman after grabbing Celebrini, the Sharks could continue to flesh out their forward prospect pool by going with a skilled right wing in Sennecke," Pronman wrote.
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