The 2025 NHL Draft is a chance for teams across the league to secure a spot for themselves in the playoffs, finally. And the San Jose Sharks were no different. They hadn’t made the playoffs since reaching the Western Conference in the 2018-19 season.
But this year, with them securing two first-round picks, including the second overall, many expected the San Jose outfit to make a move towards their rebuild finally. On June 27, the Sharks were successful in securing Michael Misa, who has been touted as the best forward among the prospects this year.
But even beyond Misa, the Sharks have made some good picks in round 2 of the draft as well. And in one of these picks, they made history with the first pick of the second round.
The San Jose Sharks Made History by Drafting the Highest-Drafted Chinese-born Player
While the Sharks had already secured Misa and goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen ahead of the second round. But they also had the first pick of the second round, having secured the #33 pick. And by picking Simon Haoxi Wang, they made history.
Wang, born and raised in Beijing, China, started training in figure skating due to the influence of his mother. However, after age 12, there were no competitive levels in China, so he took a chance and relocated to Toronto to continue playing hockey.
From then on, the 6’6″ and 223-pound defenseman has been making waves in the Ontario Hockey League as part of the Oshawa Generals. Unlike other players, his size hasn’t really made any negative impact on his play, as his passes are still as silky as they come.
HISTORY 🇨🇳
Simon Wang becomes the highest drafted Chinese-born player in NHL history!
📺: 2025 Upper Deck #NHLDraft on @ESPNPlus, @NHLNetwork and @Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/YequWZb06I
— NHL (@NHL) June 28, 2025
While most sources thought he wouldn’t come up before the 40th pick, the Sharks seem to have taken a gamble with Wang. His enormous frame allows him to effectively kill rush plays and handle the physicality in front of the nets. His wingspan enables him to be a great defender.
There is even more to like about the 17-year-old. As the Athletic’s Scott Wheeler puts it, “Wang’s an extraordinarily mobile player for his size, with impressive skating technique through his inside and outside edges laterally and flowing mechanics going north or back to pucks. And while his handling still needs a little refinement, he’s got some skill…”. For Wang, his size is not an impediment, and with proper guidance, the team capitalize upon his impressive frame.
With defense being one of the team’s key issues, it is plausible for the Sharks to go big on the blue lines. Wang’s plays will go particularly well with Jake Walman and Mario Ferraro and will allow Misa and Tyler Toffoli to focus on the offense.
Prospect Analyst Chris Peters believes that while Wang will be a long-term project, his basics give NHL teams enough to get a top defenseman. He mentions, “This is a pure upside pick, but Wang will have to become a harder, more aggressive overall player to be the kind of defenseman a team wants to repeatedly throw over the boards.”
With drafts like Misa, Wang and Ravensbergen, Sharks may finally expect to rebuild the team and look forward to better days.
