3 Sharks Who Won’t Be Back Next Season

The San Jose Sharks have dove into a rebuild as they not only traded Timo Meier at the deadline, but there were many rumours swirling regarding some of their other top players with term. The Sharks are going to have to get worse before they get better, and it will be difficult to do that if they are keeping their assets around instead of moving them. Here’s a look at three players who won’t be back next season for the Sharks.

Erik Karlsson

Erik Karlsson is the first player I was talking about when I mentioned all of the rumours surrounding some of the Sharks’ top players. He is having a season for the ages and is arguably a runaway Norris Trophy leader. He already has career highs in goals (22) and points (87) on the season and is far ahead of the next closest defenceman. Doing this on a team that has a very tough time winning games isn’t where a talent like his should be playing.

The Sharks aren’t going to be any better next season either, so Mike Grier will likely be working the phones to get Karlsson moved to another team in the offseason when it is easier to move a contract of that magnitude. Karlsson has turned back the clock and is playing like he did when he was healthy and with the Ottawa Senators winning Norris Trophies. He is going to get them a big return, and it would be a wasted opportunity for the Sharks not to trade him while his value is very high before a potential injury or decline. He will be 33 years old and is signed for four more years at $11.5 million AAV. Some of that contract will have to be retained, but that shouldn’t be a problem for the Sharks during a rebuild.

James Reimer

The Sharks’ goaltending has not been nearly as good as it was last year where it was serviceable. This season both James Reimer and Kaapo Kahkonen have struggled and that’s partly a reason why the team was unable to move Reimer at the trade deadline. The veteran is an unrestricted free agent after the season, and though he has given the Sharks some good goaltending at times, it’s time to move on.

Related: 4 Kraken Who Won’t Be Back Next Season

Kahkonen is signed for another year, but whether the Sharks decide to take on a bad goalie contract, bring in a different veteran, or give an opportunity to their young netminders in their system, Reimer is in the way of them doing so and is 35 years old now.

Kevin Labanc

Kevin Labanc is another one of the Sharks players who has some term left on his deal and was in the rumour mill a bit this season. For a team looking for secondary scoring at a fair price, he is one to target in the offseason for cheaper than normal. He hasn’t had the greatest season and has been inconsistent at best, but has performed well in recent years to warrant attention on the trade market.

Labanc has one season left at $4.75 million before becoming a UFA at the end of 2023-24. He could be a good year-long rental and even if he isn’t worth his entire cap hit, some dollars can be retained. He has 12 goals and 28 points in 61 games this season, but back in 2018-19, recorded 56. The Sharks would be wise to move him and I expect some offers to come their way as the GMs around the league know the Sharks’ situation.