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Mukhamadullin Talks Unhappy Last Season With Sharks
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- Mukhamadullin Talks Unhappy Last Season With Sharks
Mukhamadullin Talks Unhappy Last Season With Sharks
Former San Jose Sharks defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin was not happy in his last year with the team.
In an interview with Alexey Shevchenko of Sport-Express , translated by X user @Uggg_uggg , Mukhamadullin shared that there "were some disagreements" between him and the coaching staff.
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"In the games I did play, I thought I played well," Mukhamadullin said. "There was some misunderstanding with the coaching staff. I won't spell it out clearly, but there were some disagreements."
The ex-top prospect, a 2020 New Jersey Devils first-round pick who was once the centerpiece of the blockbuster Timo Meier trade, dressed for 50 games last season, notching five goals and 12 points. The 24-year-old, however, was a frequent healthy scratch and also dealt with a variety of nagging injuries.
"Add injuries to that," Mukhamadullin said. "There was also one thing nobody knows about, a situation involving the injured list. I don't really want to talk about it now either, but it wasn't a great look."
Around then, the Russian blueliner says that he started thinking about life outside of San Jose.
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"Those thoughts probably started during the season, around that injured list situation," he said. "I was already getting fed up. I even gave a pretty candid interview around that time, saying I wasn't happy with my ice-time and the overall situation."
In late February, Mukhamadullin told Bay Area News Group 's Curtis Pashelka, "Honestly, I'm not happy with how my season is going; not playing that many games. Also have, like, small ice time. When I play, every time, it's 13, 14 minutes."
When Mukhamadullin was in the line-up, the 6-foot-4 left-hander averaged just 17:09 a night, second-least among regular San Jose Sharks blueliners, just ahead of only 19-year-old rookie Sam Dickinson.
While it's not clear what injured list situation that Mukhamadullin is referring to, from Jan. 19 to Feb. 17, the Sharks placed defensemen Nick Leddy and Vincent Iorio, and winger Jeff Skinner on waivers, just to clear room on an overloaded 23-man roster. Pure speculation, but leaving Mukhamadullin on the injured list might have allowed the Sharks to navigate some roster gymnastics?
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Perhaps the biggest kick during the season was on Mar. 17, when the Sharks healthy scratched Mukhamadullin in favor of unclaimed Leddy for a pivotal showdown with playoff implications against the Edmonton Oilers.
"Everything piled up," Mukhamadullin said, "and that's how the season turned out."
Ultimately, the young Russian defenseman showed flashes of talent, but never truly established himself as an everyday NHL defenseman with the rebuilding San Jose Sharks.
"I think I see the game a little differently now," he told Sport-Express. "Over there [in the NHL], everyone has a very clear role. In my case, there wasn't as much freedom to improvise. I just did what I was told, robot mode, doing everything for the team. They put a huge emphasis on defense … So, I think the player who left Russia and the player I am now are two completely different hockey players."
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The RFA says that the Sharks did make two offers to keep him during the off-season, which he declined. San Jose traded him, along with prospect Zack Sharp, to the Oilers for veteran blueliner Darnell Nurse on Jul. 1.
Mukhamadullin quickly inked a two-year, $3.5 million contract with his new team.
"A trade can happen any day, any moment," Mukhamadullin said. "So, I was mentally prepared for it. I was told a couple of days in advance that it was a possibility."
On a personal note, Mukhamadullin and his wife welcomed their first child last season. So San Jose will always have a special place in his heart.
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"The city truly became my second home," Mukhamadullin reflected. "I was already driving without a GPS, everything felt familiar, comfortable, like home. My wife made friends, I had good relationships with the guys."
Mukhamadullin will have a "second home" coming soon: The Oilers visit SAP Center for the first time in the new season on Oct. 10.
The post Mukhamadullin Talks Unhappy Last Season With Sharks appeared first on San Jose Hockey Now .
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