Askarov is expected to protect the road net in Saturday's preseason finale against the Golden Knights, Max Miller of NHL.com reports.
Askarov went 21-20-4 with a 3.63 GAA and an .883 save percentage over 47 regular-season appearances in 2025-26. He is poised to enter the 2026-27 campaign as San Jose's No. 1 netminder, but he will likely compete with Alex Nedeljkovic for starts.