We are just 30 days away from the San Jose Sharks opening their season at the SAP Center against the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 9 at 10 p.m.
With that, let's look at the history of the jersey number 30. Much like number 32, all the players to wear the number were goalies. There have been 10 goalies to wear it, with the first appearance coming back in 1991-92 during the Sharks’ debut season. Let’s take a look back at the players who have worn #30 in franchise history.
The first goalie to wear number 30 was Jeff Hackett, who wore it during their debut season. He played 15 seasons in the league, two of them with the Sharks. During that time, he played in 78 games and had a record of 13-57-2 with a .875 SV% and a 4.51 GAA. Hackett also played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, Philadelphia Flyers, and Boston Bruins.
Next up, Chris Terreri spent 14 years in the NHL, 12 of them with the New Jersey Devils. He suited up for the Sharks for two partial seasons, playing in 68 games with a record of 19-39-4, a .888 SV% and a 3.39 GAA. Along with the Sharks and Devils, he also played for the Blackhawks and Islanders.
Next is a forgotten Shark, Ed Belfour, who only played for the organization for 13 games during the 1996-97 season. After spending eight seasons with the Blackhawks, Belfour was traded to the Sharks after an issue with Hackett during their time in Chicago. During his time with San Jose, he played in 13 games and had a 3-9-0 record with a .884 SV% and a 3.41 GAA. At the end of the season, he became a free agent and signed with the Dallas Stars, where he spent five seasons. He also played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers.
Jason Muzzatti also wore number 30, but only for one game. After bouncing around the NHL and playing for four teams in five seasons, Muzzatti joined the Sharks during the 1997-98 season. In that one game for the club, he did not get the win or loss, giving up two goals on 13 shots in his appearance.
Sam Gauthier’s NHL career was extremely short. Much like Muzzatti, he played in one game but did not record a win or loss. During the 1998-99 season, he came in relief and stopped the two shots he faced. Those two shots were the only ones he faced at the NHL level.
Dimitri Patzold had a similar career to Gauthier. He played in three games with the Sharks, never recording a win or loss, and gave up four goals on 20 shots. He ended his time in the NHL with a .800 SV% and a 5.51 GAA.
Former Sharks Forward Signs PTO With Nashville
Former San Jose Sharks forward Dylan Gambrell has signed a professional tryout with the Nashville Predators, per <a href="https://x.com/ADiMarco25/status/1965140273694126416">Anthony Di Marco</a> of Daily Faceoff.
Antero Niittymäki wore the number next during the 2010-11 season. While he had a good NHL career, his time with the Sharks was short, playing in just 24 games. He started 22 of those games and had a record of 12-7-3 with a .896 SV% and a 2.71 GAA. In the six years before, he spent five years with the Flyers and one year with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Next, newly retired Aaron Dell wore number 30 for parts of five seasons with the Sharks. He started his career with San Jose in 2016-17 until 2019-20 before leaving and later returning for the 2022-23 season. In those five seasons, he played in 111 games with a record of 48-37-12, a .909 SV% and a 2.75 GAA. Dell spent the majority of his career with the organization as a backup.
Magnus Chrona wore number 30 during the 2023-24 season, playing in nine games and posting a 1-6-1 record with a .859 SV% and a 4.71 GAA. That was the only time he spent in the NHL, which makes sense based on those numbers. The Czech native has since spent time in the ECHL with the Wichita Thunder and Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.
The latest player to wear number 30 is current Shark Yaroslav Askarov. When he was drafted by the Nashville Predators, he was thought to be the next top goalie in the NHL. Unfortunately, the Predators have Juuse Saros, who has been the starter for the last several years and will be for years to come. This led to Askarov being traded to San Jose, where the hope is that he can take over the crease and become the goalie many expected when he was drafted. So far, he has played 13 games with the Sharks and has a 4-6-2 record with a .896 SV% and a 3.10 GAA. As we head into the 2025-26 NHL season, this will be the real test to see just how good he can be and what fans can expect moving forward.
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