The San Jose Sharks made history on day two of the 2026 NHL Draft by selecting the tallest player across its 64 editions at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo. During the seventh round of the draft on Saturday, June 27, the Sharks used the No. 201 pick to bring in defenseman Alexander Karmanov, who stands at 7’ 1” tall.

Karmanov, who is 18 years of age, hails from Chisinau, Moldova, and he moved to North America a couple of years ago after playing in Russia and Belarus. Apart from being the tallest player ever drafted, he is also the first Moldovan-born player to be drafted into the NHL.

“Yes, you did read that height correctly. Welcome to San Jose, Alexander Karmanov!” the Sharks wrote in a post on their official X account to address the NHL fans across the board.

It was also accompanied by a stunning graphic featuring the Moldovan’s photo along with his height and weight, among other credentials.

Notably, before Karmanov, the tallest player to win the Stanley Cup was defenseman Zdeno Chara, who stands at 6’ 9” tall, as per the report published in NHL.com. The Slovakian, who is now 49 years of age, captained the Boston Bruins to the Stanley Cup title in 2011 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2025.

Canadian forward Matt Rempe, 23, is the tallest active player in the NHL with the New York Rangers at 6’ 9” tall.

In the same report, per NHL.com, it was mentioned that the Winnipeg Jets also made history of their own on day two of the draft at KeyBank Center. They used the No. 199 pick to select defenseman Alofa Tunoa Ta’amu, to make him the first-ever Samoan descent player to get drafted into the NHL.

While Karmanov was a late-round pick from the Sharks, just like Ta’amu at the Jets, he will be looking to make as much of an impact as the players drafted far earlier than him.

What’s been the career trajectory of San Jose Sharks’ late-round pick Alexander Karmanov?

Alexander Karmanov arrived in the US ahead of the 2024-25 season to play 16U Triple-A hockey for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights, as per the report from Sportsnet.

In the build-up to the 2025-26 season, Karmanov was selected by the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) team Brantford Bulldogs during the 2025 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft. He played 15 games for their top affiliate, the Brantford Titans, in the Greater Ontario Hockey League (GOHL), scoring seven points (3G / 4A)  and serving 68 penalty minutes.

After that, the Moldovan signed with the North Bay Battalion in November of last year before making 20 appearances for them in the OHL. He managed to register two points in the season with no goals and two assists, apart from serving 29 penalty minutes.

With the 2026-27 season on the horizon, Karmanov is likely to return to the Battalion in the OHL to further refine his all-around game. He has also committed himself to playing in the NCAA for Penn State, starting with the 2027-28 season onwards.

Moreover, in the coming years, with his massive size, he is likely to put the attackers out of their comfort zone by becoming a huge obstacle for them in the defensive zone.

Will Alexander Karmanov make it big in the NHL in the coming years with the San Jose Sharks? Give us your opinion in the comments.

Written by

Arjun Sharma

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi