Yaroslav Askarov is one of the newest members of the San Jose Sharks. His acquisition landed in the laps of Mike Grier and the Sharks front office after he demanded a trade out of Nashville, and the team from the Bay Area was able to win the race for the coveted young netminder. Hopefully, the answer to the future of the Sharks netminding issues is that Askarov will be coming into training camp, eyeing up a spot with the big team.
Askarov is starting training camp with an injury, but he is already behind Mackenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanacek in the Sharks' crease pecking order. Displacing those two contracts more than anything will be difficult for a goaltender with no training camp, so we'll probably see Askarov start the season with the San Jose Barracuda of the American Hockey League. Development has to be Askarov's main plan.
Askarov is one of the most highly touted goaltending prospects in the league, up there with the likes of Jesper Wallstedt of the Minnesota Wild. If he lives up to the expectations put upon him, he is seen as a future Vezina contender. While he is not the finished article yet, there is an undeniable amount of pure talent in this player that the Sharks know they can turn into another franchise backstop if developed correctly.
Askarov gives the bright future if the team in teal the netminder it has needed since Evgeny Nabokov left. Martin Jones was a fine stopgap to compete, but Askarov is a candidate to take the mantle of the best goaltender in the NHL. Placing such lofty expectations on someone so young is risky, but he deserves all the hype he is getting as we approach the new season. Hopefully, we'll get to see him play games with the Sharks at some point.