SalarySwishSalarySwish
Forums/Armchair-GM

A Brief Analysis of the Five Major Holes on the Sharks Roster

Created by: CheechYou
Team: 2022-23 San Jose Sharks
Initial Creation Date: Sep. 4, 2022
Published: Sep. 5, 2022
Salary Cap Mode: Basic
Description
5. TOP-6 LW

The obvious choice here is for Eklund to grab this spot by the horns and excel in it. A more than likely chance, I'd say, that this spot is filled by Eklund. However, I'd be even more happy if Eklund takes a 2C spot and slots Couture over to LW on the 2nd line. Having said this, the spot is still considered a hole until Eklund shows that he's able to fill this spot adequately. If Eklund doesn't show that he belongs, Svechnikov could be a dark horse candidate to fill the spot if he surprises everyone and finally puts it all together. Most realistically, expect a guy like Lindblom or even Bonino to start off the season in this spot if Eklund doesn't absolutely force the coaches to put him here after development camp.

4. 3RD LINE CENTER

Sharks have Bordeleau or Eklund to fill this spot over the long-term, but that doesn't mean this spot will be filled appropriately at the start of this season. Many Sharks fans, including myself, think Bordeleau is ready to start off this season as the Sharks 3C and succeed in this role. But at the moment, it seems that this spot is reserved for one of Sturm or Bonino, with whoever doesn't land it set to take the 4C spot. That could spell disaster for SJ, since both are 4Cs. If Bordeleau can showcase out of camp that he straight up belongs immediately, this spot is adequately filled for the "now" and the future. Let's hope so for SJ's sake.

3. TOP-PAIRING DEFENSIVE LDMAN

Knyzhov, who was the perfect candidate to fill this spot after spending all of last year on injured reserve, will not be able to do so for the bulk of this season at the very least. Who will fill this spot? Megna or Nutivaara? Simek? They simply aren't the type of players who could do well in this role, especially over the course of an entire season. Hatakka's the one guy I'm keeping an eye on that I'm hopeful can showcase a great camp to earn him a spot here, but I'm not counting on it since they need him with the Cuda and will more than likely want him to "earn" his spot in the NHL. For this reason, expect this spot to be a major concern over the entirety of this season since it's far from a guarantee (a long-shot, even) that a guy like Hatakka would even be a right fit for a top-pairing defenseman.

2. TOP-4 RDMAN

This is the spot that's a huge gaping hole on defense for San Jose. One of Megna, Nutivaara, or even Simek or some dark horse candidate like Hatakka could plausibly do a decent job defensively on the top pairing as EK65 does all the offensive work. But this spot? It's a legitimate concern for SJ. Merkley is the most obvious candidate to replace Burns' production both on offense and TOI. Last year, however, he showed that he really wasn't the strongest on his skates, and that to me is the biggest thing that's holding him back from being a legitimate top-4 dman. If he doesn't fix this, he stays a one-trick pony power play specialist. To boot, Benning's signing has Benning fit the bill better on the bottom pairing with Vlasic. If Merkley can't step into this role, expect a huge hole here for SJ. Severson can potentially fill it as an offseason signing next season, though Sharks do have Laroque and Havelid who can step in in 2-3 seasons, but even that's not a guarantee. This spot could be for either a defensive RDman or offensive RDman. The spot is such a giant hole that Sharks can't afford to be picky here with who they get. As long as the dman's not offensively inept, it'll do.

1. TOP-6 RW

This is the spot that's going to be a revolving door for SJ this season. There's not even a young "hopeful" that can fill this spot appropriately this season like how the other spots on the list have (i.e. Eklund for 3C/2LW, Bordeleau for 3C, Merkley for top4RDman). It's just a major hole on the roster. Expect to see guys like Lindblom, Labanc, Kunin, Bonino, Gregor, even Nieto to inappropriately go up the depth chart to fill this spot, probably Kunin to start with Bonino on Couture's LW if you ask me to make it a purely defensive 2nd line. Top-6 RW is IMO the #1 hole on the roster and why many Sharks fans are desperate for even an average-to-below average guy like Evan Rodriguez to fill it. Top-6 RW was a major hole last season and the new management did nothing to address it. The good news is that Sharks have a few guys who could potentially start to fill it starting next season in Coe and Robins. But for this season, expect Couture to get frustrated at a lack of help on his line.
Free Agent Signings
CREATEDYEARSCAP HIT
Top 6, RW
1$750,000
Top 6, LW
1$750,000
3rd Line, Center
1$750,000
Top Pairing, Defensive LDman
1$750,000
Top-4, RDman
1$750,000
Buyouts
Retained Salary Transactions
DraftRound 1Round 2Round 3Round 4Round 5Round 6Round 7
2023
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the CAR
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the CBJ
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the VAN
2024
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the VGK
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the COL
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
2025
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the SJS
ROSTER SIZESALARY CAPCAP HITOVERAGES TooltipBONUSESCAP SPACE
23$82,500,000$73,070,001$0$250,000$9,429,999

Roster

Left WingCentreRight Wing
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$3,000,000$3,000,000
LW, RW
UFA - 1
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$6,750,000$6,750,000
C
NMC
UFA - 8
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,500,000$2,500,000
RW, LW
M-NTC
UFA - 2
Top 6, LW
$750,000$750,000
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$8,000,000$8,000,000
C
M-NTC
UFA - 5
Top 6, RW
$750,000$750,000
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,500,000$2,500,000
LW
UFA - 2
3rd Line, Center
$750,000$750,000
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$4,725,000$4,725,000
RW, LW
UFA - 2
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$1,025,000$1,025,000
C, LW
M-NTC
UFA - 1
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,000,000$2,000,000
C
UFA - 3
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,750,000$2,750,000
RW, C
RFA - 2
Left DefenseRight DefenseGoaltender
Top Pairing, Defensive LDman
$750,000$750,000
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$10,000,000$10,000,000
RD
NMC
UFA - 5
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,750,000$2,750,000
G
UFA - 2
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$3,250,000$3,250,000
LD
UFA - 4
Top-4, RDman
$750,000$750,000
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,250,000$2,250,000
G
M-NTC
UFA - 1
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$7,000,000$7,000,000
LD/RD
NMC
UFA - 4
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$1,250,000$1,250,000
RD
UFA - 4
ScratchesInjured Reserve (IR)Long Term IR (LTIR)
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$950,000$950,000
LW, RW
RFA - 1
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$850,000$850,000
LD/RD
UFA - 1
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$850,000$850,000
LW, RW
UFA - 1
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$1,500,000$1,500,000 (Performance Bonus$250,000$250K)
LD/RD
UFA - 1
Taxi Squad
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$2,250,000$2,250,000 ($1,125,000$1M$1,125,000$1M)
LD/RD
UFA - 2

Embed Code

  • To display this team on another website or blog, add this iFrame to the appropriate page
  • Customize the height attribute in the iFrame code below to fit your website appropriately. Minimum recommended: 400px.

Text-Embed

Click to Highlight
Sep. 6, 2022 at 12:02 a.m.
#1
Smythe.over.Hart
Avatar of the user
Joined: Jul. 2019
Posts: 3,032
Likes: 2,348
5 holes:
1) 5 more years of Karlsson contract
2) 4 more years of Vlasic
3) 5 more years of couture contract
4) 5 more years of buyout on Jones
5) 3 more years of retention on Burns
Bonus: another 8 years on Hertl. (He’s good but 8 years yikes)

On the bright side. Wilson is gone.
JoeThorntonsBeard liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 12:14 a.m.
#2
Once a Kings Fan Too
Avatar of the user
Joined: Jun. 2018
Posts: 39,695
Likes: 24,612
Really thorough, accurate, unbiased, knowledgeable analysis. Wish that there was one fan like you in EVERY fanbase, not just half of them.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 12:16 a.m.
#3
Thread Starter
train, train
Avatar of the user
Joined: Jun. 2015
Posts: 2,996
Likes: 730
Quoting: OldNYIfan
Really thorough, accurate, unbiased, knowledgeable analysis. Wish that there was one fan like you in EVERY fanbase, not just half of them.

Thanks, I appreciate that 🙏🏻
OldNYIfan liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 12:44 a.m.
#4
They bought it
Avatar of the user
Joined: Nov. 2020
Posts: 331
Likes: 173
love seeing knowledgable fans put their thoughts out there for everyone to discuss. everyone seems excited for eklund so i hope its a good season for him. been cheering for san jose for a long time and its sad to see them head into this strange phase where they should probably rebuild.

you dont think labanc will play 2RW? kunin also has the ability to play up the lines
UBS_ARENA, OldNYIfan and CheechYou liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 2:43 a.m.
#5
Avatar of the user
Joined: Apr. 2020
Posts: 10,970
Likes: 4,542
Quoting: OldNYIfan
Really thorough, accurate, unbiased, knowledgeable analysis. Wish that there was one fan like you in EVERY fanbase, not just half of them.


Couldn’t agree more. on a side note as much as i love Barby he isn’t a top line RW. on a deep team he is a 3rd liner. so i would argue 2 top 6 RW are needed!
CheechYou and OldNYIfan liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 2:54 a.m.
#6
Avatar of the user
Joined: Apr. 2020
Posts: 10,970
Likes: 4,542
In addition I feel the sharks are content to lose this year, grab a top 5 from this deep draft.

Eklund Bordeleau Merkley etc could all use another year developing and building muscle, sharks knew this and set up the team with a bunch of underperforming younger Vets in hopes the hit on a few and then can add a bunch of youth plus a top 5 stud to the roster next year then we will start to look like real team again.
CheechYou liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 11:58 a.m.
#7
Kster
Avatar of the user
Joined: Aug. 2021
Posts: 1,278
Likes: 359
Good analysis - and maybe it was not the point of your post - but it really highlights how poorly the sharks have been managed recently. So many unmovable contracts on ageing players, very few prospects coming up, multi year buyouts / retention on the books - going to be some lean years in San Jose.
Why would they sign hertl to 8 year contract when team won’t be competitive for at least the next 3-5 years? Should have traded him (and anyone with value) at deadline for picks and/or prospects.
CheechYou liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 9:27 p.m.
#8
Avatar of the user
Joined: Mar. 2022
Posts: 180
Likes: 72
Quoting: Rob32sjsharks
Couldn’t agree more. on a side note as much as i love Barby he isn’t a top line RW. on a deep team he is a 3rd liner. so i would argue 2 top 6 RW are needed!


Maybe that's the 6th major hole. You have to limit yourself somewhere or you'd have 10 or more players to upgrade.
CheechYou liked this.
Sep. 6, 2022 at 10:35 p.m.
#9
Avatar of the user
Joined: Apr. 2020
Posts: 10,970
Likes: 4,542
Quoting: pavelski_tip_in
Maybe that's the 6th major hole. You have to limit yourself somewhere or you'd have 10 or more players to upgrade.


Fair and while Barabanov isn’t a top line RW he did have excellent chemestry with them and if he could push his numbers up around 15+ goals 50+ points I don’t see why that wouldn’t be fine. with Hertl and meier both 30+ goals.
CheechYou liked this.
 
Reply
To create a post please Login or Register
Question:
Options:
Add Option
Submit Poll