The San Jose Sharks now have an open retention spot with the Brent Burns contract off the books. Which is something general manager Mike Grier could use this season, especially at the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline.
The Burns retention spot was created in the trade that sent him to the Carolina Hurricanes back in 2022. The Sharks retained 34% of his cap hit, and now that contract is over and he’s moved on to a new one. San Jose now has an additional spot open, but who could they use it on?
While there isn’t anyone on their current roster that they would likely need to retain salary to move, there’s a chance Grier could help facilitate a three-team trade. In a deal like that, he could retain up to 50% of someone’s contract and be compensated with some extra draft capital in return.
With how Grier is building this roster, it’s pretty clear that draft capital is important to him. They have a very strong prospect pool and as they continue to progress out of this rebuild, if they can keep adding to that pool, it’ll extend their window to win and allow them to rely on more players on ELCs, which will help them manage the cap more efficiently.
It wouldn’t be surprising if they opt to take on a contract just to retain. But it would be surprising if they took on a deal that lasts longer than one year.
