Three members of the San Jose Barracuda that should get an NHL call up this season
By Conor Power
Ozzy Wiestblastt
Ozzy Weisblatt is where we will start. Currently playing with the Norfolk Admirals instead of the San Jose Barracuda, Weisblatt was drafted in the first round of the 2020 NHL draft, 31st overall. He was drafted with the pick the organization got from the San Jose Sharks in the Barclay Goodrow trade. He's had some struggles in his development, but the Canadian winger is still someone the organization has high hopes for if he can string all his raw tools together.
While he is only on a 17-point pace this season in the American Hockey League, Weisblatt is struggling. He's only on pace to play 50 games, but the struggles at the second-highest tier of North American hockey are too hard to ignore. He's trying to keep his head above the water. But there is a lot to like about what he could bring to the Sharks organization if given the chance for the remainder of the season.
Knowing that he will be decisive with his decisions and that he can move the puck through the neutral zone and turn defense into offense with that lightning speed, he could be a player who slots into the second line and allows the Sharks to replace the quickness they lost when Anthony Duclair was dealt to the Tampa Bay Lightning back at the deadline. He's not a Duclair replica, but he could help the Sharks.
He'd also get some valuable experience at the most demanding level in North American hockey. Exposing him to it and giving him a taste of what he's playing for in the AHL could reinvigorate a prospect who many have labeled a lost cause after this downseason in the AHL. However, the sporting world is loved because of its ability to produce fairytales, so you cannot definitively write someone off.