Could the Sharks Shop Logan Couture This Season?

The San Jose Sharks moving Brent Burns, Timo Meier and Erik Karlsson has some folks wondering if captain Logan Couture could be next.

The San Jose Sharks made two major trades this year, shipping Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils in February and Erik Karlsson to the Pittsburgh Penguins in August. Some observers wonder if team captain Logan Couture might be next.

Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli suggested Couture could be “a prime trade candidate.” He acknowledged that teams won't like the 34-year-old center's contract, which runs through 2026-27 with an average annual value of $8 million and a three-team trade list.

Seravalli noted the Sharks retained salary in the Karlsson deal and in last year's trade of Brent Burns to the Carolina Hurricanes. They have one salary-retention slot left, which they could try to leverage for a significant return for Couture.

Sharks GM Mike Grier said last month he's willing to entertain trade offers on Couture and Tomas Hertl if both players reached the point where they wanted to be moved. So far, however, there's no indication that Couture or Hertl want out of San Jose.

Retaining part of Couture's salary could entice playoff contenders seeking a veteran center with leadership skills and playoff experience. However, moving him could still be more difficult than it was to trade fellow thirty-somethings like Burns and Karlsson.

The biggest factor is the trade value of Burns. Meier and Karlsson was much higher than Couture's right now. Interest in Karlsson rose considerably last season thanks to his career-best 101-point performance, earning him his third Norris Trophy.

Couture remains a very good center who could help a playoff team. Nevertheless, it won't be easy drumming up the same level of interest for him that they got for Karlsson and Meier.