So I went to the Sharks' prospects scrimmage,
at the Barracuda's new arena on Thursday, hoping to see Will Smith, the fourth
overall pick of the draft last week, light the lamp, which he did, scoring a
nice goal and getting off several shots. And, despite some industry reports
that he lacked elite skating ability, he looked pretty quick to me. But the guy
who really impressed was the Sharks' other first-round pick, Quentin Musty, who
stole the show on what was his 18th birthday.
Musty scored twice and
then scored in the shootout, with "Team White" overtaking "Team Teal" for the
Bryan Marchment Trophy, named for the late Sharks scout and former player who
passed away suddenly last year. At 6'2", Musty is noticeable on the ice.
Snagged with the 26th overall pick despite being ranked the 17th-best player in
The Hockey News draft rankings, Musty could be the steal of the draft.
He tallied 78 points in 53 junior hockey games this past season for the Sudbury
Wolves. How was he still on the board at the tail end of the first round? Oh,
well. It looks like this is going to work out for the Sharks. (The Sharks
obtained the pick in the Timo Meier trade with the New Jersey Devils.)
Of course, this is all a bit early and we're making an assessment based on an
abbreviated intra-squad scrimmage. But Musty could serve as both a great
teammate and healthy competition for Smith, who will have to keep his game at
top level since there will inevitably be comparisons of these two first-round
picks. Having both on the same team could be the kind of lineup Sharks fans
have dreamed about.
Elsewhere in the scrimmage, the Sharks' previous
first round picks, Filip Bystedt (2022) and Ozzie Weisblatt (2020) both looked
good. Weisblatt perhaps is in a more precarious position, having more to prove
since he still hasn't shown he's ready to make the jump to the NHL, with just
15 points in 45 games for the Barracuda this past season.
Other
players on the ice included Danny Weight, son of Stanley Cup winner Doug Weight
(Carolina, 2006) and 2023 second round pick Kasper Halttunen. Patrick Marleau
was a coach for Team White.
Most of the players in the game probably
will never skate in an actual NHL game. The odds of making it to the NHL are
too great for many. But Sharks fans saw a glimpse of a bright future, anchored
by Smith and Musty and hopefully some of the other players on ice that night.
