The Sharks dipped eight spots in The Athletic’s annual ranking of NHL organizations, falling from No. 20 on the 2019 list to No. 28 on the 2020 edition.
San Jose put together a frustrating season in 2019-20, finishing last in the Pacific Division and firing head coach Peter DeBoer midway through the campaign.
Corey Pronman’s annual rankings take into account the organizational farm systems and the NHL talent on hand, as any player 22 years old or younger as of Sept. 15, 2020 was eligible.
“The Sharks extended their contending window as long as they did on the backs of consistently getting incredible value from players who didn’t cost a lot,” Pronman writes in his explanation for the ranking.