Injured Sharks players improving, but questions about availability remain

SAN JOSE – Injured San Jose Sharks defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Shakir Mukhamadullin and goalie Yaroslav Askarov could all begin to skate again soon although questions remain whether any of the three will be ready for the start of the regular season.

Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said Sunday that Vlasic (upper body), Mukhamadullin (lower body), and Askarov (lower body) are all getting closer to skating on their own but will not be practicing with the team right away.

Vlasic, Mukhamadullin and Askarov have been out since the start of training camp on Sept. 19 as the Sharks have tried to remain patient with each player’s recovery.

Still, starting Monday, the Sharks will have just three practices and three games left before Oct. 7, when teams must submit cap-compliant rosters of no more than 23 players to the NHL.

The Sharks’ season-opener is Oct. 10 at home against the St. Louis Blues.

Mukhamadullin and Askarov, both waivers-exempt, could be assigned to the Barracuda once they are healthy. Askarov’s injury would seemingly ensure that the Sharks would start the season with two goalies, Mackenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek.

But if Vlasic has to start the season on injured reserve, that would open up a roster spot for another defenseman.

The Sharks’ top six defensemen are Matt Benning, Cody Ceci, Mario-Ferraro, Jan Rutta, Henry Thrun, and Jake Walman. Jack Thompson, followed by Jimmy Schuldt, Jake Furlong, and Luca Cagnoni, lead the seventh spot competition.

Vlasic is entering his 19th NHL season, all with the Sharks. He was a healthy scratch for several games during the first half of last season but played every game for the team in March and April, scoring five points in 24 games and averaging 16:31 in average ice time.

“He understands what it takes to win in this league,” Warsofsky said of Vlasic, who has played in 1,296 NHL games. “He understands how to win at this league, and the little habits that you have to play with, and those winning habits that we’re trying to integrate with our team, and I think he understands that.”

Warsofsky said Forward Thomas Bordeleau, out for the past week with his own lower-body ailment, remains more week to week. Bordeleau is also waivers-exempt and can be reassigned to the AHL.