With opening night tonight at 7 pm PT, the Sharks' opening lineup appears to be set. The lineup is as follows.
Kurashev - Celebrini - Smith
Eklund - Wennberg - Toffoli
Skinner - Dellandrea - Graf
Goodrow - Gaudette - Reaves
Leddy - Klingberg
Ferraro - Liljegren
Orlov - Muhkhamadullin
Extra: Misa, Desharnais, Dickinson
The opening night lineup might not be what Sharks fans were hoping to see, especially with rookies Misa and Dickinson in the press box. However, from a development standpoint, it makes sense to debut both players against Anaheim on Saturday, rather than one of the best teams in the league, the Vegas Golden Knights. Sharks are no strangers to this type of thinking; they deployed a similar strategy with Will Smith throughout the first half of last season, and that worked rather well for him.
Ty Dellandrea stands out in this lineup. After a rough season last year, he comes out of camp with the 3rd line center job. In all fairness, he had an excellent camp, and the 25-year-old is a former 13th overall pick. Perhaps he has finally figured it out at the NHL level, but he will still likely have a short leash to prove himself as a lineup regular.
This is just the first lineup of the season and far from where it will likely end up by season's end. The Sharks have made a habit of having bad starts in October, starting the last 2 seasons with 11 and 9 straight losses to start the year. While they shouldn't be expected to beat Vegas tonight. Setting the tone and culture right from the start will be key for a young Sharks team at the very least.
As for Vegas, their lineup can be seen here. This will be a back-to-back for Vegas. So backup Akira Schmid is getting the call. Vegas lost in a shootout, so they may not be as fresh as San Jose should be at the start of the game. A quick start will be key for the Sharks.