THN.com/podcast. From THN On The 'Dub': WHL First-Round Thrillers and Sharks Prospects Erik Karlsson and Logan Couture [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MTk3OTY5ODI0MzM5NDcwMTA5/usatsi_19572609.jpg] Erik Karlsson and Logan Couture There is always reason to pay attention to NHL teams that no longer are in (or never were in) this season’s Stanley Cup playoffs. One of the teams that’s most intriguing is the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks suffered through a miserable season in 2022-23, finishing 29th overall, including winning only a league-worst eight games at home (8-22-11). But that pain turned into them landing the No. 4 pick in this summer’s NHL draft. The Sharks didn’t luck out in the draft lottery and win the right to pick phenom Connor Bedard, but they didn’t fall behind their spot in the league in the regular season, and they’ll have a crack at one of the other four top prospects available at fourth overall. That’s where the first intriguing part of next season comes into play for San Jose. Anaheim is likely to take Michigan State star forward Adam Fantilli with the second-overall pick, but after that, there’s some question as to which player will go at the No. 3 spot. Columbus is in that position, and THN’s latest mock draft [https://thehockeynews.com/news/instant-mock-draft-bedard-fantilli-michkov-and-more] has the Blue Jackets biting the bullet on top Russian prospect Matvei Michkov, who won’t be available for NHL play until his Russian commitments end in 2026. That would leave the Sharks to choose between Swedish center Leo Carlsson [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/san-jose-sharks/opinion/sharks-should-draft-leo-carlsson] and American center Will Smith [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/san-jose-sharks/opinion/sharks-should-draft-will-smith]. Both Smith and Carlsson would instantly bolster the Sharks’ pipeline down the middle and could be counted on to be notable contributors for more than a decade, if not right away. However, if Michkov [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/san-jose-sharks/opinion/sharks-should-draft-matvei-michkov] isn’t taken by Columbus, the Sharks will have the option to take him at No. 4. But that would be accepting a long time until Michkov was available. Is the Sharks’ rebuild that patient? We’ll see how San Jose GM Mike Grier plans to build his team by his first pick in the draft. That said, the Sharks have a second pick in the first round – the 26th-overall selection, courtesy of the Timo Meier trade with New Jersey – and projections put Swedish center Otto Stenberg on their radar with that pick. San Jose does need help down the middle, so it’s highly likely they select Carlsson or Smith, as well as Stenberg, and set themselves up for success for a full competitive cycle or longer. The major issue for San Jose is which way Grier directs them. They have too many key veterans – most notably, captain Logan Couture, Norris Trophy candidate Erik Karlsson, and winger Tomas Hertl – to engage in a Chicago Blackhakws-style full rebuild, but they don’t have the wherewithal salary cap-wise to make a few additions and try to compete for a playoff berth next season. As per CapFriendly [https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/sharks], all three of Couture, Karlsson and Hertl have some form of no-trade or no-movement clause in their contracts, which makes Grier’s job of trying to move them that much more difficult. And Karlsson’s massive salary-cap hit of $11.5 million will almost certainly require Grier to assume some portion of Karlsson’s contract. That will bite into the amount that’s saved in a trade for the defenseman, and San Jose has only $14.9 million in cap space, with nine free agents to make decisions on. In sum, the Sharks have all sorts of questions to answer this summer. The Pacific Division they’re in is the weakest in the NHL, but it’s likely that the teams close to San Jose in terms of development – the Ducks, Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames – will all improve in 2023-24. It projects to be another long and trying year for the Sharks, but Grier’s task will be to temper the agony with a clear vision for long-term success. How he gets his team there promises to be fascinating.
