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The San Jose Sharks continue their rebuild after trading the best defenseman in the NHL.
Erik Karlsson traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a three-way deal involving the Montreal Canadiens on Aug. 6. The reigning Norris Trophy winner is 33 years old with four seasons remaining on an eight-year contract and wants a trade to a contender for what could be his last chance at the Stanley Cup.
“Erik is irreplaceable,” Sharks captain Logan Couture told NHL.com a few days after the trade. “He’s an amazing player. He had an amazing season last year, so we’re going to miss the magic he can do on the ice. It’s going to take some time to adjust to life without him but it’s give other guys some opportunities.”
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Even with Karlsson’s statistical dominance (101 points; 25 goals, 76 assists), the Sharks had their lowest hitting percentage (.366, 22-44-16) since 1995-96 (.287; 20 -55, seven ties), and 25th in scoring (2.84 goals per game) and on the power play (18.4 percent). Couture is back Tomas Hertl, Kevin Labanc and Marc-Edouard Vlasic, the four holdovers from the last team to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs (a six-game loss to the St. Louis Blues in the 2019 Western Conference Final). Forward Mike Hoffman and Mikael Granlundand defenseman Jan Rutta acquired in the Karlsson trade, and forwards Anthony Duclair and Philip Zadinaand goalie Mackenzie Blackwood also recent additions to the roster.
“The expectation is that these guys are going to come in, they’re going to compete and play hard every day and try to win hockey games,” general manager Mike Grier said. “It’s definitely, I would say, more of a committee thing than relying too much on one guy to drive the offense. At times, that was the case last year.”
The delicate balance in this era is player development and the necessary expectation of winning games. Top forward prospects William Eklund and Thomas Bordeleau are at or near NHL ready and will eventually join Couture, 34, Hertl, who will be on Nov. 30. 12, and Vlasic, 36.
“I think every team faces that, whether you’re in our situation or a team competing for the Stanley Cup,” Sharks coach David Quinn said on July 26. “A lot of teams try to -inject a lot of young players into their lineup and part of it’s growth in the National Hockey League, which is hard to do. Mike and I knew the challenges we had when we got to San Jose, and It’s certainly not the record we wanted last year, but I think as an organization we feel we’re in a better position now than we were a year ago.”
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Duclair, an unrestricted free agent after this season, was acquired from the Florida Panthers on July 1. The Sharks signed Zadina to a one-year contract July 10 after the Detroit Red Wings placed their first pick (No. 6) in the 2018 NHL Draft on waivers July 3 and completed the final two seasons of his three-year contract. San Jose traded Blackwood on June 27 and signed him to a two-year contract on July 1; the goalie is working with a nutritionist while taking yoga and Pilates in hopes of staving off the persistent injuries that cost him the role of starter for the New Jersey Devils.
An NHL-high seven Sharks prospects participated in the 2023 World Junior Summer Showcase, pillars of the system led by Eklund (No. 7, 2021 NHL Draft) and forward Will Smith (No. 4. 2023 NHL Draft).
The foundation is already there. The hope is that victory will follow sooner than planned.
“It’s a down cycle right now and we’re going to claw our way back inch by inch,” Sharks director of player personnel Scott Fitzgerald said. “That’s the way I look at it and Mike and the whole organization looks at it. One player at a time, and we’re going to start adding some pieces here.”
NHL.com deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman contributed to this report