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San Jose Sharks Prospect Benjamin Gaudreau To Re-Enter Draft

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05/10/23: Gaudreau’s agent, Eddie Mio of Octagon Sports Management, added some clarity to Gaudreau’s situation today. He told Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now that Gaudreau has decided to re-enter the draft and not sign an entry-level contract with the Sharks.

The stated reason was “because of what is developing with their goaltending prospects,” which could be a reference to the Sharks’ current situation with Chrona, Romanov, and Makiniemi already in their system. For what it’s worth, Mio disputed that notion saying “I’m confident in Ben, that he would have prevailed. We’re not afraid of competition. Just didn’t feel like a good fit.” So instead of signing with the Sharks, the 20-year-old 2021 third-rounder will now re-enter the draft process.

05/09/23: The June 1st deadline to sign prospects drafted from the CHL in 2021 is fast approaching and while many players unsigned at this point are likely going to be let go, not every team has made a final decision about whether they’ll be signing their players.  That appears to be the case in San Jose as GM Mike Grier told reporters including Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link) that they’ve yet to decide if they’ll sign goalie prospect Benjamin Gaudreau.  A final decision will be made in consultation with Director of Goaltending Evgeni Nabokov and Goalie Coach Thomas Speer over the next couple of weeks.

The 20-year-old was a third-round pick (81st overall) back in 2021 and has spent his entire major junior career with OHL Sarnia, becoming their clear starter over the last two years.  Gaudreau played in 44 games with the Sting this season, posting a 3.07 GAA and a .889 SV%, ranking him ninth and 20th league-wide, respectively.  Gaudreau was also named to Canada’s team for the World Juniors; he got into a pair of games but posted a .828 SV% in those appearances.

On the surface, Gaudreau’s numbers, while not the strongest, are good enough to typically earn an entry-level deal.  However, San Jose will have two other prospects vying for playing time in the minors next season in Magnus Chrona and Georgi Romanov while it’s likely that they’ll want to re-sign prospect Eetu Makiniemi as well.  That doesn’t leave much room for someone like Gaudreau to come in and get some playing time.  If they decide that they aren’t going to sign him, the Sharks could be able to flip Gaudreau’s rights for a late-round pick to at least get some value from that selection.

Chicago Blackhawks Win 2023 NHL Draft Lottery

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One of the most highly anticipated nights on the NHL calendar has finally arrived as the annual NHL Draft Lottery was held to determine which team would have the honor of selecting first and second overall at the 2023 NHL Draft. The 16 teams that failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs all had a chance to win the lottery, though teams can only move up a maximum of ten slots, so the bottom 11 teams in the NHL standings all had a chance of landing the top draft pick.

The results are now in and the Chicago Blackhawks have won the first overall selection in the 2023 NHL Draft. They had the third best odds entering the night, but jumped ahead of the Anaheim Ducks and the Columbus Blue Jackets to win the top pick. The Ducks won the second overall pick and will now step to the podium second at the draft after entering the lottery with the best odds at winning the first overall pick. The Blue Jackets had the second best odds of winning the lottery, but have dropped to third overall.

The now official order of the first 16 picks in the 2023 NHL Draft will go as follows:

  1. Chicago Blackhawks
  2. Anaheim Ducks
  3. Columbus Blue Jackets
  4. San Jose Sharks
  5. Montreal Canadiens
  6. Arizona Coyotes
  7. Philadelphia Flyers
  8. Washington Capitals
  9. Detroit Red Wings
  10. St. Louis Blues
  11. Vancouver Canucks
  12. Arizona Coyotes (via Ottawa Senators)
  13. Buffalo Sabres
  14. Pittsburgh Penguins
  15. Nashville Predators
  16. Calgary Flames

The prize for winning the first overall pick is a big one this season. Connor Bedard is slated to go with the top selection at the 2023 NHL Draft and he promises to be an exceptional NHL player.

Bedard will not turn 18 years old until July, but he did lead the WHL in goals, assists and points this past season. He scored 71 goals, 72 assists and 143 points in just 57 games. He was away from the team for a few weeks around Christmas to suit up at the World Juniors where he brought his world-class skills to the biggest stage yet. He was named MVP of the tournament after scoring nine goals and 23 points in just seven games, helping Canada claim a gold medal.

Adam Fantilli is likely to be the second player off the board at the draft, but he is an exceptional consolation prize. He won the Hobey Baker Award as the best player in college hockey during his freshman season. Fantilli scored 30 goals and 65 points in just 36 NCAA contests, showing he is ready to take the next step to the NHL immediately after being drafted.

The 2023 NHL Draft will be held in Nashville, Tennessee on June 28.

2023 Norris Trophy Finalists Announced

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The National Hockey League is announcing finalists for all of their end of season awards this week. Today, they have revealed the three players that are up for the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman. In the running are Adam Fox of the New York Rangers, Erik Karlsson of the San Jose Sharks and Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche.

Fox has quickly become known as one of the best offensive defensemen in the league, and his 72 points in 82 games are proof of that. He has also become a well-rounded defender and is regularly on the ice for the Rangers against the other team’s top players, and routinely takes over the play when he is on the ice. He also averaged over two minutes of ice time per game while his team was shorthanded, proving he can be counted on in all situations. The 25 year old has already won a Norris Trophy once, in 2021, and is now up for the award for the second time after playing just his fourth NHL season.

Karlsson had an incredible bounceback season for the Sharks. After scoring 97 points in 158 games combined over the previous three seasons, the 32-year-old defenseman had his best season yet by scoring 25 goals and 101 points. This was the first time a defenseman reached 100 points since Brian Leetch did so with the New York Rangers 31 years ago. Karlsson’s game is geared heavily towards offense and not as much towards defense, which could cost him in his quest for a third Norris Trophy after winning the award in 2012 and 2015. However, it is hard to argue the value of a defenseman that can score 101 points.

Makar has stormed onto the NHL scene much like Fox. Once they arrived, they immediately became stars. The 24-year-old defender won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2020, the Conn Smythe in 2022 as Playoffs MVP and he also took home the Norris Trophy last season. He was limited to 60 games this season, but made his mark by scoring 17 goals and 66 points while being a tremendous defensive presence as well. No one in the entire NHL averaged more time on ice per game than Makar’s 26:23 per contest and he is among the league’s best in all situations.

The Norris Trophy will be handed out on June 26th at the NHL Awards ceremony.

San Jose Sharks Sign Valtteri Pulli

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May 3: While “soon” may be a relative term, Pulli still ended up in a San Jose uniform. The Sharks made the contract official today, announcing a two-year contract for the Finn. PuckPedia reports Pulli’s deal carries a cap hit of $950,000.

March 19: Last month, it was reported that free agent defenseman Valtteri Pulli was receiving interest from several teams.  Now that his season in Finland has ended, discussions on an NHL deal can pick up.  Sasha Huttunen of Ilta Sanomat reports that the Sharks are one of the teams interested in the blueliner, going as far as to suggest that a contract already could be done.  Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek indicated (video link) the same, noting that the deal should be made official soon.

The 22-year-old just wrapped up his first full campaign at Finland’s top level, picking up a respectable 17 points in 53 games while logging nearly 18 minutes a night of playing time.  It’s also worth noting that Pulli stands 6’6 which was sure to intrigue some scouts, especially since he has shown that he can hold his own in the SM-liiga.

It’s worth noting that Pulli has another year left on his contract with TPS.  As a result, if Pulli doesn’t crack the NHL roster of whomever he signs with next season – the Sharks or otherwise – he will have to be loaned back to Finland for the 2023-24 campaign.  He will still burn a year off his entry-level deal in that situation, one that will only be for two seasons due to his age.

San Jose Sharks Sign Georgi Romanov

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May 3: The Sharks have made the signing official, confirming the two-year length. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

May 2: It appears the San Jose Sharks are making an early splash in the undrafted free-agent market. Per a report from Russian outlet Sport Express, the Sharks have signed goaltender Georgi Romanov to a two-year entry-level contract.

Romanov, 23, certainly has the size NHL teams desire. At 6-foot-5 and 207 pounds, there are few netminders who fill out the crease more than Romanov.

Developed in the Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg system, Romanov has been the starter for consecutive seasons for Gornyak-UGMK, Yekaterinburg’s affiliate in the Russian minors (VHL). While his save percentages have dipped slightly since, Romanov had marks of at least .930 in the VHL and juniors (MHL) between 2019 and 2021.

While the Sharks have both James Reimer and Aaron Dell as free agents this summer, they still boast solid organizational depth for goaltenders, at least among prospects. Romanov would become the fourth goalie under the age of 25 signed to an NHL contract by San Jose, with two other drafted prospects under the age of 21. It leaves 26-year-old Kaapo Kähkönen as the resident veteran in the San Jose crease, a position they’re expected to fill out more in free agency unless they opt for an untested youngster in the backup role to an inconsistent Kähkönen.

Assuming the report relayed by Sport Express from Romanov’s agent is true, he would become a restricted free agent in 2025.

Offseason Checklist: San Jose Sharks

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The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those that were eliminated early.  It’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at San Jose.

Expectations were rather low for the Sharks this season as GM Mike Grier signaled that a rebuild was on the way, highlighted by the move that saw Brent Burns go to Carolina.  The team muddled their way through this season and while there were some strong individual performances, San Jose was still near the bottom of the Western Conference.  With them still in teardown mode, their checklist this summer largely revolves around moving out more veterans.

Create Cap Flexibility

Typically, a lot of teams at the bottom of the standings often have cap space at their disposal.  This comes as a result of jettisoning some veterans in favor of using younger players.  That is quite likely the goal for San Jose as well but they’re nowhere near that point yet.

At the moment, assuming the salary cap goes up by $1MM to $83.5MM, the Sharks have about $15MM to work with, per CapFriendly.  They also have upwards of seven spots to fill with that money which doesn’t give them much room to try to go after an impact free agent if they want to expedite things or get involved on the trade front to take on a contract or two while being compensated with draft picks or prospects for doing so.

Grier should also want to keep an eye on 2024-25 this summer as well.  San Jose’s commitments drop to a little under $47MM for that season but that’s with only eight players signed.  Spending less than that amount to sign upwards of 60% of his roster will be difficult, especially if the Upper Limit of the cap jumps that summer, sending salaries upward quicker.  Creating more flexibility for that season is something that will need to be considered as well.

Buyout Decisions

Keeping 2024-25 (and beyond) in mind is likely to impact what San Jose does on the buyout front.  They have several players whose performance could legitimately have them under consideration in defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Radim Simek plus winger Kevin Labanc.  But doing so adds a lot of dead money to San Jose’s cap when they already have Martin Jones’ buyout on the books through 2027.

Vlasic’s contract has been a bust so far.  He still has three years left on a deal that carries a $7MM AAV which is top-pairing money.  However, the 36-year-old has been more of a third-pairing player in recent years.  A buyout would free up over $5.5MM next season but the structure of the contract means the cap savings would only be $2.8MM in 2024-25 while overall, nearly $16MM in dead cap charges would hit San Jose’s books over six seasons.  That’s a high price to pay someone not to play for you anymore and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Grier wait at least one more year to make the charges a little less drastic.

As for Simek and Labanc, both are entering the final year of their deals so there is no long-term cap consideration at play here.  Simek’s buyout would save $1.3MM on the cap next season while adding $650K in 2024-25.  Meanwhile, Labanc’s would free up nearly $4MM next season but add almost $2MM on the books for 2024-25.  Both were scratched at times this year and could see their spots filled by someone younger and cheaper.

Individually, there’s a case to be made for all three players to be bought out but adding more dead money to the books for 2024-25 when they’re going to have so many spots to fill will have to be considered as well.  Will that wind up being too much of a deterrent?  They have a couple of months to figure that out.

Decide Karlsson’s Future

It’s not often that a 32-year-old player has a career year.  But that’s what happened to defenseman Erik Karlsson this season.  A year after managing 35 points in 50 games, his numbers took off as the veteran tallied 25 goals and 76 assists to lead all NHL blueliners in scoring while making him a contender for his third career Norris Trophy.  In doing so, Karlsson’s name came up in trade speculation although no deal materialized.

Of course, there’s a very good reason for that.  Karlsson has four years remaining on his deal which carries an AAV of $11.5MM, the highest given to a defenseman in NHL history.  In a salary cap world, that’s a hard deal to move at any time but especially in-season.  But now it’s the offseason when deals are a little easier to make.  That will bring Karlsson’s future back to the forefront.

On the one hand, it’s hard to imagine Karlsson’s value getting any higher than it might be now.  On the other hand, with that contract, his trade value might not be all that high.  It’s a contract that Grier will have to pay down to some extent; doing so would encumber two of their three retained salary slots through the 2025-26 campaign, not to mention costing millions in actual salary dollars for a player not to play for them.

A year ago, it looked like Karlsson would have been in the mix for the most untradeable contract in the league.  Now, it looks like they’ll have an opportunity to get some value for him, although if the deal winds up being like the Burns one, a good chunk of the return might wind up simply being cap space.

Goaltending Upgrade

While it might seem counter-intuitive for a rebuilding team to look for a goaltending upgrade, getting a starting netminder has been on San Jose’s to-do list for a while since Jones failed to live up to his old deal.  Former GM Doug Wilson hoped he addressed the vacancy when he picked up Kaapo Kahkonen last year but the 26-year-old has played to a 3.64 GAA and a .890 SV% since being acquired.  He’s under contract for next season at $2.75MM so he’ll be in the mix but as a pending UFA in 2024, Kahkonen isn’t really a long-term fixture at this point.

James Reimer has been a serviceable veteran backup but he’s set to hit the open market this summer and doesn’t appear to be a strong candidate to return.  Meanwhile, veteran Aaron Dell is a serviceable third-stringer but isn’t a long-term solution at the NHL level either.  He’s also a pending UFA.

In terms of their prospects, Eetu Makiniemi showed some promise with the Barracuda this season but isn’t believed to be a starter in the making.  Strauss Mann held his own in his first taste of the minors but isn’t close to being NHL-ready.  San Jose is hoping Magnus Chrona could be part of the solution eventually but he is only starting his pro career next season and also isn’t close to being in the mix.

If there’s an opportunity to acquire a young netminder with some upside in a trade (perhaps as part of a Karlsson swap), it wouldn’t be surprising to see Grier try to do that.  Failing that, it wouldn’t be shocking to see them hand out a multi-year contract to a veteran in July to make sure they have a bit of stability at that position while continuing the search for a longer-term solution.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Justin Braun Announces Retirement

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Veteran defenseman Justin Braun has officially announced his retirement from the NHL after 13 seasons, the NHL Alumni Association said today.

A seventh-round draft pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2007, Braun would go on to play over 800 games, 607 of which came in a Sharks uniform. Braun would spend nine seasons with the Sharks, where he established himself as a reliable stay-at-home defenseman. He was then traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2019, where he spent the next three seasons before a short stint with the New York Rangers in the 2021-22 season. However, Braun would return to Philadelphia to finish his career.

Over his 13-year career, Braun scored 199 points and played in over 100 playoff games with San Jose. He was known for his strong defensive play, physicality, and leadership qualities, which made him a valuable asset during his time in San Jose.

Braun would routinely average over 20 minutes per game in San Jose but saw a decreased role during his time in Philadelphia. Things evaporated for Braun this season, unfortunately, as he registered just two assists in 51 games and played under 15 minutes per game. With his role decreasing quickly, the writing was on the wall for the 36-year-old Minnesota product.

His best season undoubtedly came at the age of 30 in 2017-18, recording career highs in assists (28), points (33), average time on ice (21:20), and hits (143).

Despite his late selection, Braun currently ranks third in games played among defensemen from the 2007 draft, sitting only behind Kevin Shattenkirk and Ryan McDonagh. He provided incredible value for the Sharks throughout his career and would likely go in the first round of most redrafts.

Latest On Sharks Goalies, Kevin Labanc

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Despite benefitting from a historic offensive performance from number-one defenseman Erik Karlsson and strong production from Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl, the San Jose Sharks finished the 2022-23 season with the NHL’s fourth-worst record. Their 22-44-16 record in the first year of their David Quinn era put them in a prime position for next month’s draft lottery, but not exactly in a place to help their veteran players win a Stanley Cup. A significant factor contributing to the Sharks’ struggles this season was their goaltending, as neither of their regular netminders posted above an .890 save percentage.

Sharks fans, then, might be pleased to hear word from general manager Mike Grier, via The Athletic’s Corey Masisiak, that the team does not plan on bringing the same goalie tandem (James Reimer and Kaapo Kahkonen) into next season. Reimer, 35, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, while Kahkonen has another year left on his deal at a $2.75MM cap hit. Finding an experienced, capable partner for Kahkonen (.883 save percentage in 37 games) could be one of Grier’s top priorities for the summer.

  • Another Shark whose status is uncertain heading into the summer is winger Kevin Labanc, who scored 15 goals and 33 points this season and is making $4.75MM against the cap next season. Bay Area News Group’s Curtis Pashelka relays comments from Grier on Labanc’s future, with Grier saying “I can’t say whether he’ll be here. We’ll see what happens in the summer and what presents itself.” Labanc’s production has declined sharply since his 56-point 2018-19 season, and it’s worth noting that the Sharks could save nearly $4MM against the cap by buying out Labanc this summer, at the cost of nearly $2MM against the cap in 2024-25.

Updates On Markus Nutivaara, Eetu Makiniemi

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Veteran defenseman Markus Nutivaara didn’t end up playing a single game with the San Jose Sharks this season, despite signing a one-year, $1.5MM deal to be a blueline regular. Injury trouble was the reason, and it’s issues staying healthy that cost Nutivaara the 2021-22 campaign as well, as he played just one game for the Florida Panthers that season. Today, Sharks general manager Mike Grier gave the media, including The Athletic’s Corey Masisiak, a clearer look at Nutivaara’s situation. According to Grier, it was a hip injury that kept Nutivaara out for the whole season, and Masisiak adds that it could be a career-ending injury for the 275-game veteran.

  • Grier also updated the media (via Bay Area News Group’s Curtis Pashelka) on the status of another player: Eetu Makiniemi. Makiniemi suffered a labrum tear, and was shut down for the season instead of making a comeback attempt in order to help him get ready for fall training camp. Makiniemi last played on February 11th, stopping 27 of 31 shots in a shootout loss to the Calgary Wranglers. The 2017 fourth-round pick was acquired by the Sharks in last summer’s Brent Burns trade and posted a .900 save percentage in 22 contests for the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.

Hertl Won't Play At Worlds But Sturm Will

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  • Sharks winger Tomas Hertl won’t be suiting up at the Worlds next month, notes Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link). The 29-year-old struggled defensively in what he called a challenging season but reached the 60-point mark for the second straight year and third time in his career while winning nearly 55% of his faceoffs.  His 63 points placed Hertl third on the team in scoring.  Meanwhile, in a separate tweet, Pashelka notes that center Nico Sturm will play for Germany in the tournament, his first time representing his home country.  The 27-year-old had a career year this season, collecting 14 goals and 12 assists in 74 games.

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