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Sharks Re-Sign Four Players

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San Jose’s busy day continues.  After acquiring Devan Dubnyk and Ryan Donato in separate trades from Minnesota, CapFriendly reports in a series of four tweets that they’ve re-signed center Maxim Letunov, defensemen Jacob Middleton and Nicolas Meloche, plus winger Jayden Halbgewachs.

Letunov’s one-year, two-way deal pays $700K in the NHL and $140K at the minor league level.  Middleton receives a two-year, two-way pact worth $700K in 2020-21 and $750K in 2021-22 while paying him $225K in the minors both years.  Meloche received a one-year, two-way deal worth $700K in the NHL and $100K in the minors while Halbgewachs signed for two years at the league minimum in the NHL ($700K and $750K) while getting $150K and $200K in the minors.

Letunov made his NHL debut this past season, getting into three games with the Sharks where he scored his first career goal.  He was also quite productive in the minors, leading the Barracuda in scoring with 12 goals and 28 assists in 50 games, beating his numbers from his rookie season.  The 24-year-old is still waiver-exempt but should push for more NHL ice time next year.

Middleton played in 10 games with the Sharks this season, logging just shy of 11 minutes a night on their back end.  Most of his campaign was also spent in the minors where he played in 32 games with the Barracuda, recording a goal and five assists.  With Brandon Davidson and Dalton Prout both eligible for unrestricted free agency this week, the 24-year-old should move up a couple of notches on the depth chart.

Meloche, 23, has been a stay-at-home defenseman over his three professional seasons but has yet to suit up in the NHL.  He was acquired by San Jose last September from Colorado for goaltender Antoine Bibeau and had seven assists in 41 AHL games this past season.

As for Halbgewachs, he was a dominant scorer in the WHL with seasons of 101 and 129 points and has spent the last two years with the Barracuda.  He finished only behind Letunov in scoring in the minors this past season with 19 goals and 16 assists in 55 games, equalling his rookie point total in nine fewer games.  Like Letunov, the 23-year-old also has one more year of waiver exemption but should push for a chance to be recalled at some point in 2020-21.

San Jose Sharks Acquire Devan Dubnyk

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In their second trade of the day, the San Jose Sharks and Minnesota Wild have announced that Devan Dubnyk is heading to California. The Wild will receive a 2022 fifth-round pick in return, while the Sharks will receive a 2022 seventh-round selection in addition to the veteran goaltender. Minnesota will also be retaining half of Dubnyk’s remaining $4.33MM cap hit for the 2020-21 season.

The two teams completed an earlier trade that saw Ryan Donato go to San Jose in exchange for a 2021 third-round pick. Sharks GM Doug Wilson released a statement on the latest deal:

Devan has been one of the League’s top goaltenders for many years and after playing so many years in the Western Conference, is someone our hockey staff is very familiar with. As we head into what will surely be a unique season, his acquisition gives us a high-quality and experienced tandem of netminders.

For the Sharks, this means the team will have an experienced tandem, but one that will need drastic performance improvements next season. The team’s starter Martin Jones has now posted back-to-back seasons with an .896 save percentage, allowing 394 goals in 103 appearances. That save percentage was third-worst in the NHL last season among goaltenders with at least 30 appearances, ahead of Pekka Rinne and, unfortunately, Dubnyk. The Minnesota netminder posted a dreadful .890 in his 30 games for the Wild, though does at least have several recent strong seasons to fall back on. In 2018-19, when Jones was still struggling, Dubnyk posted a .913 save percentage in a league-leading 67 appearances for Minnesota.

Amazingly, these two goaltenders finished fifth and sixth in Vezina Trophy voting in 2017. While it seems unlikely they can get back to that level in 2020, it’s not necessarily out of the question. With Jones signed for four more seasons at a $5.75MM cap hit, the Sharks will try everything to get him back to playing at a high level. Dubnyk meanwhile comes in at a relatively inexpensive $2.17MM cap hit after the salary retention, plus is actually set to earn even less in actual salary.

The Sharks also paid a very low price for the acquisition, swapping a pick two rounds up for the chance to see what Dubnyk can do in San Jose. That’s almost nothing, though given the overflowing goaltending market this offseason this acquisition certainly won’t excite many fans.

For Minnesota, moving on from Dubnyk was an obvious move for GM Bill Guerin. The team wants to get younger and provide opportunities for some of their prospects, which could include reigning AHL Goaltender of the Year Kaapo Kahkonen. The Wild also still have Alex Stalock under contract for two seasons at just a $785K cap hit. Kahkonen, who is just 24 and coming off an outstanding season in the AHL in which he posted a .927 save percentage, is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent in need of a new deal. Whether he can handle the starting job isn’t clear, but with Dubnyk out of the way, there is a clear path to the net.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Minnesota, San Jose Complete Ryan Donato Trade

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11:20am: The deal has been officially announced. Donato will head to San Jose in exchange for a 2021 third-round pick.

10:09am: The Minnesota Wild and San Jose Sharks have been working on several trades over the last week and are closing in on at least one of them. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets that the two sides will soon announce a trade that will see Ryan Donato head to the Sharks in exchange for a 2021 third-round pick. Devan Dubnyk, who the two sides have also discussed, will be in a separate trade if they can complete it.

Donato, 24, will be heading to the third NHL organization of his young career after previously being traded from the Boston Bruins in 2019. The 2014 second-round pick made one of the most electrifying debuts of the last few years after starring at Harvard and on the Olympic stage, but hasn’t been able to reproduce that magic on a regular basis. In 130 NHL games he has just 57 points and found himself on the fourth line or in the press box on several occasions this season.

That certainly doesn’t mean he won’t take his game to another level in San Jose, but the Wild have clearly made a decision to change the makeup of their forward group. Minnesota GM Bill Guerin has already traded Eric Staal and let Mikko Koivu depart through free agency, acquiring Marcus Johansson and Nick Bjugstad in the process. Donato and his $1.9MM cap hit will head to San Jose for a draft pick, opening up another roster spot for one of the team’s other young forwards.

San Jose of course is looking for ways to rebound after a brutal 2019-20 campaign that saw them score just 180 goals in 70 games. Timo Meier led the club with 49 points and Evander Kane was the only player who could score consistently on the powerplay. Donato will likely have an opportunity to play up in the lineup for the Sharks, who have their own youth movement happening upfront after watching Joe Pavelski leave last offseason. Melker Karlsson and Joe Thornton—two of the team’s three remaining 30-plus forwards—are both unrestricted free agents that could be looking for new homes come Friday.

Antti Suomela Training With HIFK In Finland

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  • Sharks center Antti Suomela has started skating with HIFK, the SM-liiga team announced. At this time, he’s only skating with them to stay in shape for next season but as their press release indicates, that could change once he gets a deal done with San Jose.  The pending restricted free agent had a goal and six assists in 20 NHL games this season while chipping in with five goals and four helpers in 14 AHL contests.  If a deal is reached soon, he could join the growing list of players suiting up overseas on loan agreements.

Goalie Notes: Sharks, Ustimenko, Bachman

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The San Jose Sharks have been linked strongly to Devan Dubnyk in recent days, meaning Pierre LeBrun’s latest report for The Athletic should come as little surprise. LeBrun writes that the Sharks are on the lookout for a “1B” to install behind Martin Jones, with Dubnyk, Braden Holtby and James Reimer all candidates.

Short-term is the key part of the Sharks search, leaving Holtby as an interesting inclusion. The former Washington Capitals starter is about to hit free agency after his worst season in the NHL and perhaps could be looking at a shorter deal to rebuild his value. Still, signing to serve as the backup, even if it is in a tandem role, may not be the best way to accomplish that.

  • Sometimes when a team has a young goaltender starring in the NHL, it’s easy to forget about their other prospects. That’s the case in Philadelphia where Carter Hart steals all the headlines, but the pipeline is filled with other interesting names. One of those, Kirill Ustimenko, is headed overseas for the time being, loaned to HC Gomel of the Belarusian Extraliga. That’s Ustimenko’s hometown team, where he can continue to develop his game before eventually returning to North America. The 21-year-old was a third-round pick in 2017 and posted a .919 save percentage in 31 starts at the ECHL level in 2019-20.
  • Former NHL goaltender Richard Bachman’s playing days are over, as the Iowa Wild of the AHL has announced his hiring as goaltending coach. Bachman, who suited up in the AHL and SHL just this season, played in 49 NHL games over a long professional career.

Sharks Loan Alexei Melnichuk To The KHL

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While Sharks prospect Alexei Melnichuk opted to pursue a career in North America and left the KHL back in May, his playing days at home aren’t quite done yet.  Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod of the KHL announced (Twitter link) that they’ve added the goaltender on a loan agreement from San Jose.  This comes on the heels of Torpedo acquiring his KHL rights in exchange for the rights to Oilers winger Jesse Puljujarvi.

Melnichuk had several teams pursuing him back in the spring following a dazzling season with SKA St. Petersburg that saw him post a 1.68 GAA and a .930 SV% in 16 KHL contests.  He was almost as good while playing a level lower in the VHL with a 1.95 GAA and a .925 SV% in eight contests down there.

The move will give him an opportunity to stay in playing shape and should help give him an edge as he tries to make a push to earn a spot with the Sharks for next season.  With Aaron Dell set to become an unrestricted free agent next week, there is a vacancy between the pipes for San Jose and if they don’t fill it with a veteran, Melnichuk could have a strong opportunity to see NHL action next season.

Snapshots: Ryan, Soucy, USHL

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The Ottawa Senators bought out Bobby Ryan over the weekend, but that doesn’t mean his playing career is over. Interest has already started to emerge, with Kevin Kurz of The Athletic tweeting that the San Jose Sharks are one of “many teams” that have checked in on the free agent winger.

Ryan, 33, will be making more than $1.8MM in each of the next four years regardless of what his next contract is, meaning he may be willing to take a cheap deal to get back on the ice with a new organization.

  • The Minnesota Wild are still negotiating with Carson Soucy according to Michael Russo of The Athletic, one of their pending unrestricted free agents. Russo reports they are also speaking with Kyle Rau and Matt Bartkowski, and will be signing Hunter Warner to an AHL deal instead of issuing him a qualifying offer. With the Stanley Cup now awarded, front offices will be in overdrive trying to get new deals in place before free agency opens on October 9.
  • The USHL has released its schedule for the 2020-21 season, expected to start on November 5. Each team will be scheduled for 54 games over the 24-week season, which ends on April 24. The junior league is an important development step for many prospects and will try to navigate the season with a regional schedule.

Overseas Notes: Sorensen, Chlapik, Maltsev

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Marcus Sorensen has signed a contract with HC Vita Hasten in Sweden’s second league, according to the team. The San Jose Sharks forward is still under contract in the NHL, meaning this is almost certainly a loan agreement for the next few months until NHL training camps open again. The 28-year-old forward is set to earn $1.5MM on the final season of his two-year contract with San Jose.

With just 197 regular season games under his belt, Sorensen is on track to be quite an interesting free agent case next offseason. He scored just 18 points in 60 games during the 2019-20 campaign, but did put up 17 goals a year before that. At some point this year the Sharks could look to extend the Swedish forward, but for now he’ll be suiting up overseas to stay in shape.

  • Filip Chlapik doesn’t have a contract with the Ottawa Senators, but playing overseas won’t stop him from getting one. The young Ottawa Senators forward will be playing for HC Sparta Praha for free while he continues to negotiate his next NHL deal. Just 23, Chlapik is coming off his entry-level contract and scored six points in 31 games for the Senators this season. He is not arbitration-eligible, meaning the Senators could just issue him a qualifying offer and wait to see if he takes it.
  • The New Jersey Devils have sent Mikhail Maltsev back to the KHL for the time being. Loaned to SKA St. Petersburg, Maltsev will join a crowded roster for the next few months and then be recalled in time for NHL training camps. The 22-year-old forward scored 21 points in 49 games for the Binghamton Devils this season, his first in North America.

Minor Transactions: 09/28/20

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As the two surviving teams prepare for Game Six of the Stanley Cup Final tonight, the other 29 teams are busy preparing for the NHL Draft and the opening of free agency. Not only that, minor league affiliates, junior teams, college programs, and countless European clubs are getting ready for the 2020-21 season, as are the many players who still don’t know where they are playing next season. As a result, there are a number of minor moves being made every day:

  • AHL veteran Ryan Olsen is on his way to Germany. The 26-year-old center has signed with the EC Kassel Huskies of the second-tier DEL2, the club has announced. Although Kassel is not among the elite clubs in Germany, it has attracted a fair amount of North American pros over the years, including James Wisniewski. Olsen, a Winnipeg Jets draft pick, has spent the past two seasons with the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage. Olsen has been a useful player in the minors over the years, setting a career high with 34 points just two seasons ago, but has not been able to earn an NHL contract since his entry-level deal expired in 2017 and is ready for a fresh start.
  • Rod Pelley, a name not heard in NHL circles in quite some time, has decided to call it a career. Ohio State University, where Pelley starred for four years, announced that their alum has officially retired. Pelley is best remembered for being a regular for the New Jersey Devils for six years after college. Even after he was traded to the Anaheim Ducks in 2011-12, he returned to the Devils to captain AHL Albany for several more years once his contract expired. Pelley last played in North America for the AHL’s Stockton Heat in 2017-18 and has spent the past two seasons in Denmark and Romania respectively. He retires with over 250 NHL games and over 550 AHL games to his credit.
  • Curtis Brown, who retired back in 2011, was back in the headlines recently with the news that his son, Garrett Brown, had committed to the University of Denver. This would be a major accomplishment for any young player, as the Pioneers are an elite NCAA program, but even more so for a California-grown product. In fact, it was the San Jose Jr. Sharks who initially announced the commitment for the standout. Curtis played his final season in the NHL with the San Jose Sharks in 2007-08, but returned to the area after three seasons of playing in Switzerland and Garrett has grown up in the area. Now 16, the younger Brown looks like he is developing the skill to challenge his dad, a long-time Buffalo Sabres star, and should be an interesting prospect to follow once he arrives at Denver in a few years.

Free Agent Focus: San Jose Sharks

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With free agency now less than a month away, many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign.  While cap space remains an issue in San Jose, this is not the year that their free agents are likely to break them. The team does have a key restricted free agent to sign, but the team must decide what unrestricted free agents they want to bring back after a disappointing 2019-20.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Kevin Labanc – The only significant restricted free agent the team needs to sign is Labanc, who surprised quite a few people when he signed a one-year, $1MM bargain contract last offseason with many expecting he took a low deal with the assumption he would be rewarded with a long-term deal the following year. We’ll see if that’s the case, but Labanc’s production didn’t jump off the charts like many had hoped. In fact, the 24-year-old finished with a disappointing 2019-20 season, posting just 14 goals and 33 points in 70 games, significantly less than the 56 points he produced the previous year. What type of contract Labanc receives will be interesting to see, but the forward is still considered to be a significant piece to their core and must return to his 2018-19 form if the team hopes to improve on its dismal season last year.

F Antti Suomela – The Sharks are hoping to bring back the 26-year-old back as a potential fourth-line center, but the Finnish center spent most of his season in the press box in San Jose as the team’s extra forward. He managed to appear in 20 games with one goal and seven points, serving mainly as the team’s fourth-line center. With plenty of questions marks down the team’s middle, Suomela has every chance to prove he deserves a more significant role.

Other RFAs: F Jonathan Dahlen, F Jayden Halbgewachs, F Maxim Letunov, D Nicolas Meloche, D Jacob Middleton, D Jeremy Roy, G Andrew Shortridge, D Tony Sund, F Manuel Wiederer.

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Joe Thornton – The Sharks have made it quite clear that if Thornton wants to return next season, he’s welcome to. So, the question isn’t whether the Sharks want him, but whether Thornton wants to return. The 41-year-old made it clear at the end of the season that he would like to have a chance to win a Stanley Cup before his career ends. That seems unlikely to happen, which could suggest that Thornton may be more interested in joining a legitimate cup candidate for 2020-21. He was hoping to be traded to a contender at the trade deadline, but the team wasn’t able to find the right trade partner. Regardless, with the questions up the middle, the Sharks wouldn’t mind bringing back their heart and soul of the team despite his declining production. He did remain healthy all season, but produced one of his lowest totals since his rookie campaign in Boston back in 1997-98 with just 31 points.

F Melker Karlsson – The long-time bottom-six forward could be looking for another team as the Sharks must decided whether Karlsson’s lack of numbers is worth holding onto. Solid on the penalty kill, Karlsson’s three-year $6MM contract is now up and it’s likely the team might be ready to move on from him after scoring just six goals last season, his lowest numbers ever. Even his hits saw a major decline. If they do bring him back, expect it to be at a much lower AAV.

G Aaron Dell – After two impressive years in net in San Jose, the next two seasons have been less impressive. It’s likely that Dell will be asked to move on as the team attempts to find a better tandem fit with Martin Jones now that they announced the will not buy him out. Dell got more appearances this year with a career-high 33, but a 3.01 GAA and a .907 save percentage wasn’t what the team was looking for while Jones’ struggled. Expect Dell to find a backup job elsewhere in the league.

Other UFAs: F Jonny Brodzinski, D Brandon Davidson, F Anthony Greco, F Stefan Noesen, D Dalton Prout.

Projected Cap Space

Unfortunately for the Sharks, the team doesn’t have some of the cap advantages that other lottery teams possess (or the lottery pick, for that matter). The team has about $67.4MM committed to just 16 players, so there isn’t too much money remaining for the team to fill the rest of its roster spots. Regardless, they will likely dip into the free-agency pool a little bit to bolster a depleted roster, but will most likely have to focus on improving their defense and adding a more reliable goaltender who take take some of the pressure off of Jones.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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