Noah Gregor has shown flashes of effectiveness, but is he worth a qualifying offer from the San Jose Sharks?
Towards the end of last season, San Jose Sharks forward Noah Gregor found his scoring touch again.
He will have RFA status this off-season. GM Mike Grier will have to decide whether to offer him a qualifying offer or not.
Before April of last season, Gregor had just five goals. In April, Gregor found a way to become a little more effective and scored five goals.
That included his first career hat trick on April 1 against the Arizona Coyotes.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-9U3A1tyCY[/embed]
His size, speed, and skill were on full display in this game. He showed off a quick release that finally hit the back of the net.
"I think once I was kind of in and out of the lineup, I probably didn’t have the best attitude. I was down on myself. I just wasn’t in the right mindset for a lot of those games. It’s hard to be in and out of the lineup when expecting a lot of myself. I expected to be a full-time player every game at the start of this season. When that didn’t go the right way, I probably didn’t have the best approach sometimes. That’s something I have to learn from," Gregor said during his exit interview.
Struggling to enter the lineup as a consistent forward when expecting to is a tough change. Routines and preparations change, and it can be hard to get into a rhythm.
"I think I’ve done a good job of that in the second half of the season and staying even keel and just trying to bring my best game every night. So that’s something I know I did a good job of in the second half," Gregor said.
During his hat trick, his speed was on full display. The San Jose Sharks need him to be that guy with speed and skill, as those are two qualities this team has been lacking.
"[Gregor] had a much better second half of the season. His last two months were good. He and I have talked about handling adversity, and I thought he did a much better job the last two months," Sharks head coach David Quinn said during his exit interview.
Quinn's style of play requires speed. It is an aggressive defensive style that helps push the offense off the rush.
If Gregor is offered a QO and an extension is worked on, I think we could see something similar to what he got last off-season. I think if an extension is in place, then it will only be a one or two-year deal worth around $1 million.
Gregor does have arbitration rights, and if the two sides are unable to agree to something and Gregor and the San Jose Sharks will go to an arbitrator for a one-year deal.