While the San Jose Sharks don’t have a deep pool of young talent, one player to keep an eye on in the coming years will be forward John Leonard.
Leonard scored three goals and 13 points in 44 games with the Sharks this past season, a pace of 24 points per 82 games. While it was solid production for a 22-year-old rookie fresh out of the NCAA, Leonard’s numbers could’ve been higher if a few things went differently, and there’s certainly the possibility that he could be successful in an increased role.
First off, Leonard averaged only 11:15 per game this season, which was less than any other player on the Sharks who played at least 15 games with the team this season. The majority of that time was also spent at even strength, with him averaging under a minute per game on the power play.
So while his overall point totals were nothing spectacular, his 5-on-5 points per 60 actually ranked sixth out of all Sharks’ skaters (min. 15 games played). This could’ve been even higher too, had it not been for Leonard’s ridiculously low 5-on-5 shooting percentage of just 3.8 per cent, which was also lower than any other player on the team (min. 15 games played). His expected goals for percentage also ranked third of any regular member of the roster, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
It’s likely that we see Leonard’s role increased next year, with Ryan Donato not returning and the situation involving Evander Kane leaving some uncertainty for the lineup. The Sharks don’t have a ton of young talent and as a result, Leonard should get every opportunity to grow his role with the team. If the roster stays as it is now, his ice time should be increased and it wouldn’t be shocking to see Leonard starting on the third line. Assuming that’s the case – and his shooting percentage does increase – we could see him score around 35-40 points with the Sharks next season.
While it’s unlikely that Leonard will climb to the top of the Sharks’ forward group, it’s certainly possible that he could transition into a solid middle-six forward within the next year or two.
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How many points do you expect John Leonard to score next season?
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