Jacob Middleton will be making his NHL debut tonight for the San Jose Sharks, likely slotting in on the top pairing with Brent Burns. The 23-year-old, who sports 12 points and a +15 rating in 26 AHL games this season, has played very well with the Barracuda on their top pairing and serving as the linchpin of the best defense in the AHL.
The call-up comes at a time when San Jose’s defensive corps are reeling from injuries. Already dented by the loss of Radim Simek, the blue line was further decimated against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday, with Justin Braun and Marc-Edouard Vlasic sustaining knee and wrist injuries, respectively.