On October 2, 2006, the Sharks acquired Vladimir Malakhov and a first-round conditional draft pick in exchange for Jim Fahey and Alexander Korolyuk, who was playing in Russia at the time.
Shortly after, however, several key players missed time due to injuries, and the Sharks continued to struggle with consistency as their results dropped off.
With Rivet playing quality minutes on defense and Guerin scoring goals on offense, the Sharks began winning at a torrid pace, finishing the last 16 games of the regular season with a record of 13–1–3.
When Toskala injured his groin, Nabokov made 14-straight starts and played arguably the best hockey of his career, significantly contributing to the Sharks' late-season spate of victories.
As a result, despite Toskala's return from injury, Head Coach Ron Wilson retained Nabokov as the number one goaltender to finish the regular season and enter into the playoffs.
The Sharks iced four rookies during the season: Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Matt Carle, Ryane Clowe and Joe Pavelski, with each making significant contributions to the team's success.