Overview
- The Sharks announced a four-year contract for Zack Ostapchuk that carries a $2.35 million average annual value and a $500,000 signing bonus in year one.
- PuckPedia’s breakdown reported the deal totals $9.4 million with a lower year-three cap hit of $2.0 million, details that modestly change the team’s short-term cap math.
- Ostapchuk consolidated a bottom-six center role in 2025–26, finishing with career highs in goals, assists and points while posting 140 hits, a 51.6 percent faceoff rate, four fights and 45 penalty minutes in 59 games.
- With this signing closed, the Sharks still need to settle contracts for several restricted free agents on offense and defense and must balance spending to meet the NHL cap floor.
- A second-round pick in 2021 who was acquired from Ottawa in March 2025, Ostapchuk has limited NHL scoring but stronger AHL production, and the deal secures a young physical center for San Jose’s depth chart through 2029–30.