Shakir Mukhamadullin

Last Season

Five goals and twelve points in 50 games for San Jose, seventeen minutes a night, minus-three on a team that spent most of the year being outplayed. That last part matters when reading the number.

The Finesse Game

The reach is the first thing you notice. At 6-4 with a long stick he takes away passing lanes without moving, and he defends the rush by simply being in the way of two options at once.

He skates well for the size — smooth rather than fast, comfortable turning and retrieving, and willing to carry the puck through the neutral zone rather than chip it. The first pass is competent and getting better; he no longer looks rushed when a forechecker arrives, which was the main knock on him coming out of the minors.

Offensively he is a work in progress. The shot from the point is fine, the instincts for when to activate are not yet reliable, and the twelve points reflect a player still learning where he is allowed to go.

The Physical Game

Two hundred pounds on a 6-4 frame, so there is filling out still to do. He uses his length more than his body and can be out-muscled in front of the net by heavier forwards.

The Intangibles

He was the twentieth pick in 2020 and went to San Jose in the Timo Meier trade, and his development ran slower than most first-rounders because of the route he took through Russia and the AHL. Last season was the first that looked like a real NHL player rather than a prospect.

Twenty-four this season, on a team that needs left-side depth. This is the year that tells you what he is.