Trade Rumors: Hertl, Couture, & Other Sharks Forwards Continue To Appear on Trade Boards
Sportsnet named 25 players who could be trade candidates, and three San Jose Sharks were on the list. Daily Faceoff, The Fourth Period, and the Athletic's Pierre LeBrun came out with their lists and named more Sharks forwards that weren't on Sportsnet's list.
Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports - Trade Rumors: Hertl, Couture, & Other Sharks Forwards Continue To Appear on Trade BoardsSportsnet named 25 players who could be trade candidates, and three San Jose Sharks were on the list. Daily Faceoff, The Fourth Period, and the Athletic's Pierre LeBrun came out with their lists and named more Sharks forwards that weren't on Sportsnet's list.
LeBrun named the two big fish that could be on the move. Tomas Hertl and Logan Couture. With San Jose in Toronto to play the Maple Leafs, insiders like LeBrun could talk to Hertl and Couture.
"It's not easy losing games after so many years being top of the league," Hertl said to LeBrun. "For sure, there's a lot of questions. What is the next step? What is the idea for me? But at the same time, I try not to think about it. I just try to do my best here, and maybe after the season, we'll see what happens."
In the Athletic's report, LeBrun says that Hertl will talk to the team after the season and assess the situation.
LeBrun waited to speak to Couture as he took extra time on the ice this morning and inched closer to a return.
"To be quite honest with you, we haven't spoken about that (his playing future) since I got injured," Couture told LeBrun of his conversations with Grier. "It's all been about, 'What can we do to get you back feeling healthy in your day-to-day life and then get you back to playing hockey? Griersy is very honest. He's very upfront. His door is always open. But yeah, right now, I'm just trying to get back in the lineup."
David Pagnotta only had one Shark on his list, Alexander Barabanov.
Pagnotta says that despite Barabanov's down season so far, he will still be a player that teams will try to acquire.
"Alexander Barabanov is having an off year in San Jose, having missed a good chunk of the season because of a broken finger. The Sharks would like to hold on to him, but he could be a prime addition for a contender," Pagnotta writes. "With all the available pieces in San Jose, he will be someone to watch leading up to the deadline."
The other interesting part of Pagnotta's report is that San Jose wants to keep the winger. There have been no reports of a possible extension for Barabanov, but during training camp, he did say he would like to stay in San Jose.
Barabanov has three goals and four assists in 20 games this season.
Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli made his own top 25 trade list. Two San Jose Sharks made the list: Mike Hoffman and Kevin Labanc.
Mike Hoffman was ranked at No. 19. Hoffman is a shoot-first forward who will be a UFA at the season's end. His current cap hit is $4.5 million.
Hoffman has eight goals and five assists in 39 games this season. He can be a terrific addition to a playoff team's second powerplay unit and third line. While his offensive production has slowed down from the start of his career, his ability to shoot the puck hasn't diminished.
"The Sharks took on Hoffman's contract as a salary cap dump in the Erik Karlsson trade (from Montreal) with the express intention of acquiring a flippable asset ahead of the March deadline. After a solid start to the season, that part is looking a bit in doubt now. He's currently riding a 12-game scoring drought and has scored in one game since Nov. 27," Seravalli writes. "He's on track for 17 goals this year, but six of those game in a six-game stretch. The bright side: by the time March rolls around, with the amount remaining on his deal, teams might not even need San Jose to retain salary to bring him in. Hoffman has limited playoff experience but he's scored at a slightly better rate in the postseason than the regular season."
Sharks GM Mike Grier has one more salary retainment spot remaining, as Erik Karlsson and Brent Burns currently take up two of the three currently take up two of the three. San Jose may need to use a third team to take on some of Hoffman's salary if a team can't fit him under their cap.
The NHL Trade Deadline is on March 8th, and Mike Grier should expect to be on many phone calls as that gets closer.
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