We’re only 44 days away from the San Jose Sharks hosting the Vegas Golden Knights at the SAP Center to kick off the 2025-26 season on October 9.
In honor of this, let’s take a look at the number 44, a number which has been on the ice starting in the Sharks’ inaugural season.
In the Sharks’ debut season, 5-foot-9 winger Kevin Evans became the first player in franchise history to wear the number 44. Evans made his NHL debut with the Minnesota North Stars during the 1990-91 season before joining the NHL’s next expansion franchise the following season. Evans played five games at the Cow Palace, recording his first and only career point as a member of the Sharks. He also recorded 25 penalty minutes in that short frame of time. After his stint with the Sharks, Evans was a regular in the International Hockey League and ECHL before retiring near the turn of the millennium.
It wouldn’t take long for the number 44 to take the ice for the Sharks again, as the following season Beauport, Quebec native Michel Picard would wear it for a short stint of his own. Picard played 25 games for the team in teal, scoring four goals in the process, before departing the organization. He’d have a lengthy career as a fringe player, never earning a full-time role in the NHL, but regularly playing a few games throughout the season. He’d make his final NHL appearance as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers during the 2000-01 season. Today, Picard works as a scout for the St. Louis Blues organization.
Once again, the number 44 didn’t remain vacant for long. Physical defenseman Shawn Cronin would wear it for two seasons, starting with the 1993-94 season. In that span, he played 63 games for the Sharks, recording four points and 137 penalty minutes. Cronin would call it a career after the 1996-97 season, when he played with the Fort Wayne Comets of the IHL.
Defenseman Vlastimil Kroupa debuted with the Sharks at the age of 18 wearing the number 26 during the 1993-94 season. Once Cronin left the organization though, Kroupa quickly changed to the number 44 and wore it through the 1996-97 season. During his time with the Sharks, Kroupa played 103 games and totaled 22 points over four seasons. He played his final two NHL games for the New Jersey Devils during the 1997-98 season. At the turn of the millennium he’d return to Europe to finish out his career, ultimately he’d retire from hockey following the 2010-11 season.
The number 44 would be off of the ice for a few seasons, until Matt Bradley wore it during his rookie season, 2000-01. After 21 games in the number 44, he’d change to the number 28 and spent two more seasons with the Sharks before moving to the Pittsburgh Penguins. His NHL career would come to an end following a single season with the Florida Panthers in 2011-12. He played a single game in Finland the following season before fully hanging up his skates. Today, Bradley is a scout in the Washington Capitals organization.
Defenseman Christian Ehrhoff would be the next to wear the number 44, starting in his rookie season, the 2003-04 season. He wore it for two seasons, before changing to the number 10 for the 2006-07 season. Over the course of five seasons, Ehrhoff played 341 games with the Sharks and recorded 132 points in the process. He retired from the NHL after a short stint with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2015-16 season, returning to Germany for the next two seasons. After multiple years on the sidelines, at the age of 41 Ehrhoff signed with the Krefeld Pinguine in the German second division for the 2023-24 season, before retiring once again.
Once Ehrhoff changed to the number 10, it allowed the player synonymous with the number 44 in San Jose to take over the reins. Marc-Edouard Vlasic is undoubtedly the most well-known player to wear the number 44, spending 19 seasons with the team in teal while wearing it.
Regarded as one of the top stay-at-home defensemen of his time, Vlasic was a key part of the blue line during the Sharks’ “golden years.” He played the second-most games in franchise history, making it into the lineup 1,323 times. While he wasn’t known for his offensive ability, he also tallied a total of 379 points during his time with the Sharks.
At the end of his run in the Bay Area, age quickly caught up with Vlasic which made it difficult for him to perform at the level we were accustomed to seeing from him. He was out of the lineup regularly, and unfortunately he exited the organization under less than desirable circumstances this summer.
Currently an unrestricted free agent, what’s next for Vlasic remains a mystery.
