The San Jose Sharks retained forward Ethan Cardwell on a one-year, two-way contract, keeping the 23-year-old in their organization as he recovered from an upper-body injury that cut short his 2025-26 season.
Ethan Cardwell didn’t finish his 2025-26 season the way he wanted. An upper-body injury led to surgery in February, ending his run early with the San Jose Barracuda. But by Thursday, the Sharks made it clear they’re not done investing in the forward.
San Jose announced the team has retained Cardwell. signing the 23-year-old to a one-year. two-way contract ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft. The financial terms were not disclosed. For Cardwell. it’s another chance to keep building inside the organization after a season that produced enough momentum to justify another look.
Most of his 2025-26 time came with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda. where he put up 15 points—seven goals and eight assists—in 24 games during his third year with the club. Before the injury sidelined him, he was tied for 10th in scoring among Barracuda players. During a strong stretch from Jan. 10-17, Cardwell collected three goals and two assists over three games, and two of those appearances included multi-point performances.
Cardwell also knows what it feels like to step into the NHL when his game is ready. Last season, he appeared in seven NHL games with the Sharks, receiving his first recall of the year on Nov. 2 against the Detroit Red Wings. His lone NHL goal of the season came on Nov. 5 against the Seattle Kraken.
He’s scored against Seattle before as well—both of Cardwell’s career NHL goals have come against the Kraken. Across two NHL seasons, he has played 13 games with the Sharks and scored two goals. In the AHL. his production has been steadier: he has accumulated 106 points with the Barracuda. including 41 goals and 65 assists. across 158 career games.
The Sharks’ patience with Cardwell traces back to how they originally drafted him. San Jose selected the 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward in the fourth round, 121st overall, of the 2021 NHL Draft. At the time. he was playing on loan with Surahammars IF in Sweden’s HockeyEttan. scoring nine goals and totaling 27 points in 18 games while finishing with a plus-10 rating.
After that, Cardwell returned to the OHL and finished his junior career with the Barrie Colts, with time also spent with the Saginaw Spirit. In his final two OHL seasons with Barrie, he compiled 66 goals and 148 points in 111 games, along with a plus-43 rating.
Since turning professional, Cardwell’s goal-scoring profile has shown consistent growth with the Barracuda. He recorded 43 points in 71 games during his rookie AHL season and then improved to 48 points in 63 contests the following year. The new contract keeps that development track moving forward—especially now that his 2025-26 campaign was cut short by injury.
There’s a clear message in the Sharks’ decision: even with the February surgery and the shortened run, Cardwell remains part of their near-term plans. Another year, another opportunity—this time with the Draft approaching and his recovery already behind him.
San Jose Sharks Ethan Cardwell NHL Draft 2026 two-way contract San Jose Barracuda AHL upper-body injury Detroit Red Wings Seattle Kraken Barrie Colts
Two-way contract? so he’s basically never in the NHL lol.
I don’t get why they keep signing him if he got injured and didn’t finish. Like what’s the plan, just hope he’s magically better?
Wait, his injury cut his 2025-26 season short but they re-sign him anyway… that seems risky? Also Detroit and Seattle in here like those are the real story. Did he even play enough to matter?
Sharks re-signing him sounds nice but I swear they’ve been doing this forever with “recovery” guys. 15 points in 24 games in the AHL is decent, but upper-body surgery in February doesn’t just go away. Also he scored twice against Seattle… so maybe Seattle cursed him or something? Anyway I’m glad they’re keeping him around.