Mega Mailbag I: How Should Sharks Improve Their Defense?

Mega Mailbag I: How Should Sharks Improve Their Defense?

Welcome to the San Jose Hockey Now podcast. I’m Shang Pang, editor-inchief of San Jose Hockey Now. You can also find my work at NBC Sharks on Twitter, Shang_pang and Blue Sky Shang Pang. And I’m Keegan McN. On Twitter at halfhole_hockey, my website half-wallhockey.com or it’s San Jose Hockey. Well, this week it’s a mailbag. Oh, no. It’s another mailbag. Two things. One, why don’t you talk about our sponsor and then I’ll talk about the gimmick that I’m going to do in the background here. Yes. Yes. Because we have an exciting running gag with our mailbag. But before we get to that though, let’s talk about our sponsor, Bring Hockey Back. Bring hockeyback.net. They do amazing t-shirts, hilarious t-shirts. They also do custom hockey jerseys. That’s a big part of it. So, if there’s any hockey jerseys that you guys are looking for for your team, uh, any size, for any occasion, go to bring hockey back. Bring hockeyback.net for your hockey jerseys. But in terms of their t-shirts, they have a couple cool Sharks ones up right now. There you go. You can see it right there. So, they have a Mac and Celebrity shirt on a ATV just like uh he tried to tried to kill Sharky earlier this season. and a director revives t-shirt too, which a lot of you guys have, you guys know and love. And coupon code sanockey now for 15% off. So, bring hockey back. Bring hockeyback.net. The coolest t-shirts, the best custom hockey jerseys. Bring hockey back. Love it. I have um in the background on another monitor behind my monitor, I have just started while you were talking the Lord of the Rings Return of the King extended edition, which we’re not going to tell you how long that is. But um if we surpass the Lord of the Rings Return of the King extended edition, I don’t know. I I think we get a medal. I’m I’m going to throw myself into Mount Doom. So, I’m He’s going to throw it. Yes, we’re going to throw Shang into the fires of Mount Doom. Well, you’re going to throw I’m throw myself off of it. He’s going to do it himself. Yeah. It’s like when Smeaggel has to like bite the finger off and he just falls back. Exactly. So, we’re going to pepper an entire podcast, I guess, with with Return of the King references. I just looked up one to make sure. So, it’s in the background. Can’t kill me. I am no man. I am no man. Which actually was basically said in the book, which I forgot. So, it seemed kind of corny when I watched it, but reviewing the because I had I had read the book, but it was a long time since I read the book. And it is actually in the book. Not in that kind of clipped and chopped form, but it is in the book though. Yeah. Um, so periodically through the episode, I will update you all on where we are at in the story. As of now, um, Smeaggel just found the ring in the water. So, Okay. So, just the flashback. So, this is the flashback. Yeah. This is where we present the background, the prologue of this podcast. At the last mailbag, you guys might remember went past four hours, right? I think it was like 402 or something like that, right? Might make it. We might make it. All right. In an effort to not get past the Lord of the Rings extended edition, we’re going to start. You ready? Yes. We have our first question um from Falco 5 who asks, “What stats or measurables can you find to you? can you use to find winning players? Um, some of it’s attitude and leadership. However, most people can’t watch every game of every team. So, what can be observed by watching games? Okay, so a toughy. It’s a it’s a good question though and I think it’s a question that the entire hockey world is trying to figure out and still hasn’t figured out because how do you measure that that kind of that that last kind of bit of will to do something to make a play. And some people will say well how about blocking shots because you’re you’re throwing your body on the line. But as we learned in analytics, right, the last decade that the team that blocks the most shots, a lot of times they’re the ones that are being shelled as we’ve seen with the Sharks. So blocking a lot of shots, yes, it is a sign of It’s not all bad either. I think there’s been too much of a reversal against blocking shots. Too much negativity associated with it because there is still a lot of it takes it just takes a lot of cones to do it. So guys deserve credit for doing that. But if you are leading the league in block shots, if you are leading as a team or individual, then that might be a sign that you’re just being shelled. Of course, another stat that I’ve thought about that I thought maybe this is a stat that could be a good barometer of it, but looking harder at it, and it’s a more recent stat, too. So, I think this one’s interesting to bring up, is puck battles. and puck battles that we see. It’s not readily available, but it is a micro stat that stack leads who I work with, Sport Logic, you’ve seen it from them and other other third party stat companies have provided, right? Mhm. And pup battles though is interesting though because one thing that I found looking at it harder this year and this goes back to a Will Smith article that I wrote a couple months ago about Will Smith and what was behind his improvement and in the second half of the season and one of the most interesting stats that I found if you guys recall the article or if you haven’t read it go read it is that Will in the second half of the season he got away from getting stuck in puck battles. Yeah. Because what Will was doing the first half of the season was he was in puck battles, but he kept losing them because he’s 19. He his body is he’s a college student basically playing a man’s game. And so the second out of season he kind of avoid he didn’t get he he got into I think by rate almost 50% less puck bounds, maybe 40% less puck bounds. So a significant amount less. And when I say that at first to to you to maybe an old school hockey person, they’ll be like, “Oh, what a what a weenie. He’s he’s avoiding the contact or whatever, right?” But when you look at it, look at staffletes, this is something that I had available that I put into the article, staff, the top 10 or top 10 least puck battle heavy forwards, right? Or the forwards that that engage in the least puck battles in the league. Yeah. Patrick Kane is there. Tyler Defoley is there and Patrick Kane is a great instructive example because of course that’s one of Will Smith’s favorite players and Patrick is smart enough to know and slippery enough too to avoid not getting into puck battles and that’s been throughout his entire career and a guy like Tyler Devoy too is a good example. Talibi is stronger than a Patrick Kane, but Tal Devoy is not necessarily he’s not Marcus Felino or he’s not he’s not built like a like a Mac truck, no pun intended. He’s not a guy that necessarily that’s his forte. And so if you avoid it, stay on the edges and then wait for the puck to come to you and then do something with it, there’s a value in that, too. So that’s not a perfect measure, too. Now, you want guys who are good on puck battles on your team, but sure, you don’t need to make you don’t need 18 guys to do it, though, is I think the point. And Falco, I think your question is trying to get at a stat that is a kind of a catchall. Not a catchall, not like war in baseball, but a stat that maybe signifies the best that, hey, you want 18 of these guys on your team basically or in your lineup on a given night. And that just isn’t there yet. I I think that that is sort of what everybody’s looking for and maybe it will be found in the micro stats because that is not as public and there’s still things that are not measured uh as far as I know on micro stats I love like I’ll give you example of stat that I really love that I haven’t really seen measured guys who can clear the puck from the defensive zone without icing it and there’s there’s an art to that and actually a guy that I think is good at it that you guys will laugh because I’m I’m trying to pip the the guys that you guys hate. But Broccoli Gadrill actually I think is good at that. And there are guys I’ve seen that I think are better at that than other people. And that is a verifiable. It’s a skill. It’s useful to the team too, right? Yeah. So anyway, so that’s something that that’s not the perfect example, but my point is that there are micro stats that aren’t measured either. And so maybe we’ll find that. Maybe it’ll be in like uh a player speed from in a micro area from the blue line to the dot. Yeah. And when we look at that, oh, a lot of teams win if you have a lot of guys who are particularly fast in that small area, right? Something like that. I’m just kind of making that up off top of my head. But anyway, that’s the best answer I have. Go ahead. Yeah, it’s really tough because like you could pick things out that you think are good indicators. like this guy gets the puck through traffic to the net from the point more than this guy and you’d be like, “Okay, great.” Um, but then the guy who just doesn’t shoot it from the point as often and like activates down low and creates this, you know, cross ice pass instead, maybe he’s more effective. So, it’s like there’s there’s different ways to interpret the game. And as of now, nobody’s really put all them together to be like that’s like that’s the hockey player that I want. you can get this eye test feeling of what a winning player is and that’s like something that scouts either are good or bad or or maybe even they’re not good or bad at it but like they’re like that looks like an NHL hockey player or like that looks like an NHLer and it’s kind of this weird feeling um that you get that is yeah that’s it. a feeling and they’re wrong or they’re right, but it’s it’s that it’s the eye test and that’s not a stat or immeasurable, which kind of sucks, but and maybe it is not that, how do you say it? Not not not that magical. Maybe it’s just a mix of certain styles. I think that with analytics, like there was the early days of public analytics, there’s too much emphasis on, oh, we got to get the guys that drive shot Yep. shots shot volume, right? And so I remember names like Shawn Bergenheim, players that didn’t last that maybe they were good in this area but they weren’t good at a lot of other things maybe. And maybe it’s just as simple as you need a mix of guys. So you need if you look at the block, we use Patrick Kane as an example, right? So you need your Patrick Kane. You need your Jonathan Taves though who’s going to win puck battles. Allah Minelbrini on defense. You need your Duncan Keith, your more finesse offensive guy, but also too, you need your Brett Sebrook to kind of handle some of the defensive load. And if it’s you have two Duncan Keats and you have two Patrick Haynes and you don’t have a Taz and a Seabbrook, maybe that’s not a winning combo. And maybe that is that simple an answer. Our first question has made it all the way to the point where they’re walking into Eisenard and Mary and Pippen are smoking on the wall. Oh, no. We’ve gotten out of the flashback. Oh, dear Lord. Yeah, we’ve gotten way out of the flashback. All right, next question. I love the ants part though. So get so so do not do not miss me when the ants get their revenge on Sora. All right. So that Gary 2 asks uh hi Shang and Keegan. Thanks for doing this. Wish both of you the best offseason. My question to this is where we got a little confused. So we’re going to answer both. Yeah. Um do you guys think any of the 2026 top draft eligible players will be able to make the Sharks roster this fall if drafted? problem is we’re in 2025, not 2026. So, if it’s about 2025 and which ones could make the sharks, I think we have an answer there. Yeah. And then we’ll talk about 2026 as well. Um, but the first part of it in 2026, I it’s really really really really early. So, I think Gavin McKenna is the obvious answer because he has already surpassed most players draft year production and his draft minus one. And what you’re saying is that Gavin McKenna could play in the NHL in the fall of of October 2025. Is I don’t think he would do amazing, but I’m sure he could play. Um, he’s not like he’s still too tiny to really give it a go. I think it because he’d be like he’s 16 now, so like that’s that’s hard. But he is skilled enough for sure. Don’t get involved in puck battles, Gavin. Yeah, exactly. Run away with the puck. Go somewhere else. Yeah. Don’t get involved in puck battles. Go somewhere else. Well, like Mary and Pippen when there are a lot of orcs around, right? Yeah. Flee. Uh 2025 is an interesting question because there’s a few that could, I think. Um especially if you’re asking if they’re going to make the Sharks roster, which is one of the worst rosters in the NHL. I think it’s possible. Um, Schaefer, Misa probably. Do you think any of them will play 80 like 82 games or stay on the charts? I mean, the whole season. I think I’d say if you’re asking would be able to. Yeah. Yeah. Or will. Yeah. Will. No, I don’t think will is is very likely to either one. um if they got Schaefer or Misa, but could I think both could because the Sharks have a horrible defense and it would be trial by fire and you’d have to sit him a lot cuz like he’d go from playing 25 games last year to playing a lot more in the NHL at a higher level. But Schaefer has a lot of ability that the Sharks defense doesn’t. So, I think if you sheltered him, if this is the plan you wanted rather than just sending him back to juniors, which would probably be the better plan, um, you could do it. Okay. Okay. You can give him the Will Smith plan. Yeah. Like third pairing and then sit him a lot. Give him a lot of power play or at least second power play and see if that works because he does. He’s very smart. He’s great in transition. I think he would do well in certain rushes with Celabbrini and Smith and stuff. So, that’d be fun to see. and and he’s not terrible defensively at all. So, he’d have to learn a lot in a short period of time. I don’t think it’s I don’t think it’s gonna happen. But, it’s going to be hard though cuz like if he does show out and say the Sharks somehow got him, like, you know, you’re looking at the guy that has more offensive talent than the rest of your roster on defense. So, by a long shot, no more Wman here either or anything. So Misa I think has a game that could play in a bottom six right now. So if you wanted to I think you could think he’s strong enough because that’s always the question. That’s that’s what I knew about Mlin or that’s what I saw in Mlin that like he was dumbing guys in development camp and then I was like okay. And then he was dumbing guys in rookie face off. I was like okay. And then he was doing an exhibition. That’s when you kind of knew like, okay, exhibition is basically AHL level and he is physically at times dominating guys at age that at basically the AHL level, guys who are bigger and older than him. And so that’s when he figured the strength part wouldn’t be an issue in the NHL because again, you just extrapolate the exhibition to NHL. And so with Misa, that’s the part I always wonder about with the with the 18-year-old if that part is ready for that. Yeah. Yeah. I’m I mean Smith wasn’t the most developed since he made it so. Right. True. I don’t know. And Misa has a lot of wheels like a lot more speed than than Smith does. And I mean I think CBrini probably has a maybe a touch more speed but it’s tough. They’re probably very comparable. So I think he could get out of situations a lot easier um just because he’s fast. So whereas Smith kind of had to lag and has to hold on to the puck sometimes and like he has to play that style. So he’s got to be physically ready to take hits more. Okay. It feels like I guess the more interesting question that we will answer later because someone asked is what is better for Misa’s development? So we’ll get to that later though. All right. James R says Haval basically does he appear does Havlid sign as ELC? Does he appear destined for the Barracuda next season? And does Greer see an NHL future with Mati Matias Haval? Yeah. Uh, I think you could argue that if they signed an ELC somewhere, it would be unlikely for an NHLGM to not see an NHL future, at least a possibility of one, right? So, yes, but do we see one? I don’t know. Um, yeah, I I don’t think it’s likely looking at his track. Uhhuh. I actually like I asked someone about Hwood a couple like a month ago or so. So I’m I’m trying to look back on that a little bit. But you had some thoughts on his season just his course right where he kind of struggled in the SHL and then he found his game but it was in the all spent skin and he’s 21. If he was 18 then you’d be thrilled by that but 21 you’re not as right. He’s a guy that like this happened when he was in his draft year. he found himself into a really good system where they can use him as like the primary like puck mover in a certain situation on power play time and stuff like that and he gets he can put up some points and he can actually look effective. Um the problem is is when you take him out of those specific situations, he doesn’t look effective at all. And he he um makes a lot of defensive gaffs and isn’t the biggest guy, isn’t like the fastest guy either, and isn’t um there’s just not a lot of deception to his offensive game that you’re really pushing play at five on five with him. M so it’s kind of a you’re in this mixed bag of a couple of tools that are good but a lot of it doesn’t round out too much. Um and that’s why he had basically middling stats and just didn’t do a whole lot in the SHL for a couple years now. And honestly if he didn’t go to the Alpenskin and have a pretty good year he might not be signed to an ELC. So I am cautious. I think that Barracuda need more of him. um in on that right side of the defense, but I think there are other defenders that have moved ahead of him that the Sharks have drafted since. And it’s been sometimes sometimes two guys sort of do better in the AHL than in the Europe the ice. Yeah, the the the smaller ice actually is better for some players. I feel like Beast’s a guy that actually has adjusted okay and he’s been more productive in the AHL generally than he was in the in the SHL, but I am with you with Hav. That’s a little bit of a long shot, but you wouldn’t give a guy ALC if you didn’t think that there was a smidgen of a of a decent or not decent, but a reasonable chance. Yeah, I did want to add too that you guys might hear me sniffling throughout the podcast. A little bit like Frodo, I’m playing hurt. I had a sore throat a couple days ago. I had the sniffles. So, just so you guys know, if you hear that that that’s that’s me doing that, me being dramatic. But anyway, one thing that someone did mention to me a couple months ago in regards to Havlet though is that he is healthy now. And so, I don’t know if he was as healthy earlier this season or last season. And I wasn’t exactly sure what that was a reference in, but that seemed to be a big deal to this person. And so, maybe that helps. And I think too that he will I would guess he would come over. Um I you guys might be aware of the there’s an agreement between the NHL SHL just generally speaking I don’t want to go into whole details of it but unless you’re first round pick that um generally you will stay in the SHL to develop unless your team releases you and there are some exceptions to the rule obviously. I think actually Elias Person, the other one, the defenseman is a is example of that. But anyway, in this case, this might be a case of the Sharks sort of obviously Havit’s development in SHL has not been as linear going upward as you or going upward uh trending upward as you’d like. And so this is a chance to sort of maybe take take control of his development and to some degree salvage him. Yeah. Yeah. And again, the Barracuda could use that. So that’s also a benefit, too. It’s like it’s a position of a little bit of need on that right side. So at least somebody who can push play offensively. Like you got Thompson and you have Pole Camp eventually coming eventually. Um but there’s not a lot of Rise on the Well, Thompson is there now. So that Thompson is different. Thompson’s a little more developed. But but yeah, but to your point though that AHL there’s so much turnover that there’s going to be a chance for him to win win a spot. Yeah, exactly. James R had another question about what’s your guess on whether Pavvelski or Couture rejoin the Sharks as development coaches or front office staff. Yeah, I would say the chances are higher couture over Pavvelski with the Sharks just because with Pavvelski there’s obviously another team that would be buying for his services and he lives there now. He didn’t move back. So, but I think that that both teams he would consider, I’m sure. Yeah. But I think both will return in some kind of role. I think it’s they just they’d just be too good at it. Yeah. So whether Yeah. whether whether you’re still in the camp of like man these guys still didn’t win the Sharks cup these guys are not winners or whatever right Pavvelski and Couttor right same I guess the same did not win the Sharks cup but in terms of well going back to Fal’s question in terms of the things that we can’t measure the stats right both those guys ooze that and so both those guys are what’s they whatever they want to do they’re going to do well in I I’m just guessing this is just free willing here. So, I’m just going to guess that I see Logan maybe being a little more of a development coach in the end or being like face like management type. I don’t really see him doing the coaching nitty-gritty. I could be wrong about that. I think he said that too in his interview with Frank Saravali recently, but I that’s just my feel. Whereas Pavvelski, I I see like he should be management or maybe he could be a coach, but management like I think like development that stuff like he could I mean I think he could do anything well but but I I don’t know why he just looks like management to me. So I think he goes to like scout assistant GM GM kind of role kind of thing. Okay. That’s my that’s my Yeah, assistant GM. Yeah, maybe scout for a couple years. that that’s a tough life in terms of the travel, but you only do that for a couple years and you and then you move up. And I think Logan has said that he doesn’t want to do this in that same interview with with Frank, but that yeah, he’d be great on TV if he ever wanted to do it, but I don’t think he he wants to. So, all right, we’re ripping through it. Uh, we just finished We just finished an extended edition scene where Legalis out drinks Gimly because like Gimly Oh, I don’t know. I’ve seen that one. Yeah. Gimly drinks like 20 pints and Gimley’s like just like hammer drunk. And then Legololis is drinking the same amount. At the very end, Legololis goes, “Wait, I feel some tingling in my hand. It’s affecting me.” Cuz like elves are, you know, immortal and whatever and just all powerful beings. So, but Gimley’s like shitous and like falling over. Anyway, um Brucelis asks, “Uh, hey Shanki, how crazy of an idea is this? San Jose offers basically nothing to Pittsburgh for Eric Carlson. Should the Sharks pay for Eric Carlson?” Yeah. Like, should they reacquire Eric Carlson? Yeah. Because the Sharks need a offensive defenseman. Uh, and actually there was one thing that that Bruce Celis joked about that that that I joke with you. Bruce Celis asked, “We’ll kill our chances for 2026 lottery pick.” And I reminded Keegan, I’ll remind you guys, I’ll remind you that Eric tried his best to up the Sharks lottery pick in 2023. And even he couldn’t do 100 points and Norish trophy. So the Sharks lottery pick is probably safe in 2026. Just don’t know how safe, how high or low it’ll be. But I think there’s a good chance they’ll land on the lottery. But to answer your overall question of whether or not the Sharks should trade for Carlson, I actually think it’s more interesting than I think Keegan found it. Carlson has two more years on his contract after this year. So, it’s almost expiring. There is game in there still for sure, right? We saw Pittsburgh. We didn’t see it enough, right? And we know Kyle Dubis kind of skewer Carlson ended the season, but we saw the pieces of it at Four Nations. Carlson was very good there. Um, I don’t think it’s it’s it’s the craziest idea. Um, I would say that like a lot of players you bring in though in terms of like their their impact on a room and that sort of thing. Not that Carlson is bad like but uh is he the leader you want around so like those guys right coming up and I I asked that about any player you bring in now because I asked them well how would that affect Mlin? How would that affect Will and guys like that and Ekllin and all those kind of guys, right? And not to say that Carlson would be bad. Uh they could use the skill. I mean, he does check off a lot of boxes. They really need a player like that. I mean, they need all kinds of defense. They could afford him. He’s expensive, but they can afford him. They could have him for cheap. I’m sure Pittsburgh would trade him. Well, Pittsburgh may not trade him to San Jose just because of how bad it would look to trade Eric Carlson back to the Sharks for, let’s say, a fourth round pick. Yeah. Um, after all you you dumped to to to get him in the first place. It’s a bad idea bad look. Yeah. Yeah. It’s a bad look. But I I’m not against the idea though. I I would think about it a little bit. And you have somebody that can play with Mlin and Will in the sense of the high skill player, right? That can help the power play out to be just be able to skate with with Mlin and the Sharks lack a lot of players who can do that obviously. So anyway, uh my short answer was no. And long answer is hell no. I just I’m done with that. Like I don’t it’s more of a an optics and a more of a we tried this, it wasn’t a good thing. It was and it wasn’t a good thing. Like there was good parts, but yeah, it was not uh the thing that the Sharks needed. And I unless they paid you to take him back and then you go, “Okay, sure.” Yeah. Which would be ultimate. I think Alisa should just be fired at that point. But like Well, they basically did though. If you trade a fourth round pick to the Sharks, they basically paid you Sam Dickinson and Muel Brandley. Yeah. Two first round to Yeah. for for a couple of years of of of Eric Carlson renting renting space elsewhere. He also like he wants to be with a winner like he wants to go win. Yeah, I don’t think it would happen. That’s right. I mean, Derek still has his no trade clause. And I do agree with you that in the sense of what you said, like just the vibes seem off about that, I guess. Like if we’re if we’re measuring everything the Sharks do the last year and in the coming year on pure vibes, the vibes are a little bit off with that. Yeah, that’s a good way to put that. Ty Combmes says, um, what were CBrin and Smith’s draft combine interviews with the Sharks like? which is kind of specific. Um, yeah, that’s an interesting one because I remember we we saw their interviews after they were drafted to the Sharks at the draft because both of us were at both of those drafts. No, but he talking specifically about the inside the meetings they had the dinner had at that steakhouse in Buffalo that Yeah. Um, so yeah, I I actually checked in a little bit on it. I didn’t get anything back it that’s really interesting but if I do get anything back it’s actually a good story to write about around the draft combine so I will and I I plan on being at the combine too guys so look for my coverage there so it could be a good story for that time so if I come up with anything I’ll let you know but I don’t know if there’s anything that stood out just early returns of uh I sent out a couple fillers for hey anything stand out on those on those days that you heard or whatever right did did uh Will Smith like kill kill a Porter house like in double the time Mike rear and that impress Mike and it’s like that’s a guy got a draft that guy is a he’s a high compete you know son of a you know that guy’s a winner I do okay so I know that this is not related to the question but I remember hearing Will Smith’s pre this was before he was drafted by anybody they had like this whole media availability thing and we were sitting there in Nashville and I remember him like just being very direct and answering the questions and looking you in the eye about being post post combine. This is at the draft before the couple days before the draft, right? Yes. This was like the media availability like a day or two before the draft. He seemed very intense and very like focused on being a winner. And I remember that that stuck out a bunch was like like he seemed like a competitive kid. And I I talked about that after it was that uh interview happened too. He seemed like a very competitive kid. And yet Half Wall Hockey still drafted Matt Bay Meov. I did. Also, you know, he didn’t say anything. Um he had he just had that aura. He was just around. Uh yeah, I did. I drafted Matt Mechov despite knowing in my heart that the Sharks would draft Mil Smith. That’s why we were all settled huddled around me and JD and Victor and a bunch of other draft nerds were all huddled around Will Smith because we were like Sharks are getting that kid. Anyway, what a good time. Yeah. All right. I one day I want to just a quick aside like a de 10 years from now 20 20 years from now I wanted another shark’s draft board from that year because we know Bard was probably one but then I’ve always thought that if they had a number two pick they would have drafted Carlson and then Fanti the size right and then and then Smith at four. Yeah Smith was ahead of Mechov. I think that’s that’s obvious and rhy and all that stuff. But anyway, that’s that’s a quick aside. That’s the uh future Sharks Easter egg. That would be really cool to learn. But yeah, I’d love to know that. Yeah. SJ Shorky has two questions, but we’re gonna answer the first one. Are there any goalies worth grabbing in the draft this year? All right, take the stage. Uh late late round, too, right? Middle round season. We’re not talking about the top goalie. The one that’s the top goalie is Joshua Ravensburgen who’s going to probably just be taken in the first round in the 20s, I think. So, he had a good enough year. He’s got the pedigree. He’s got um all of the athleticism that you’re looking for. There’s not a huge amount of goalies. So, and this draft is not very strong in the last 15 20 picks of the first round. So, it’s like a recipe for a team like, I don’t know, Tampa to be like, “Oh, we’re gra not Tampa because they don’t have a pick.” But, you know, one of those teams to pick a guy needs a goalie in the future, right? Exactly. Like, you’re gonna store him for four or five years and see what happens. Um, like Jack Ivan Kovic is a good one. Um, he’s probably going to be in like the second, third round. There’s, um, some overagers like Dawson Cowan who are pretty decent. And oh no, he was at Sharks development camp this past. Yeah, right. He was um he’s had a good year. He had a good year. Then I think it’s Rebeck is the other one of the other overagers that had a good year as well. Uh yeah, Ben Herbick. Um good I’d say okay size. He’s listed at like 6’3, but looking at him, he looks like a real 63. No, he looks like 6’1. Okay. He’s also very skinny, but I like the way he plays. Um kind of a scrambly style, and I I like that in a goalie. will probably be available in like the fifth or sixth. Um, so yeah, it’s just not that many this year. There’s a couple of Russian guys, too. I think last year was a stronger crop of goalies. Um, and then the year before also had even better goalies. So, quick question for you. So, the Sharks have two firstrounders, two seconds, a third, two fourths, a fifth. Damn. My question to you is knowing the Shark system as you do, what do you what do you think is the earliest you might go for a goalie? If a guy you really like the Ivan Novich, right? That guy you like Ivan Kovic, sorry. If he falls to like the fourth or the fifth round. Oh yeah, take him immediately. So So like maybe the fourth then is like the earliest you might. Yeah, I think Ivan Kovic is probably given the the He’s probably gonna actually end up going in like the second. Um, right. I’m just saying in theory though if a guy falls though, what’s the earliest that you would spend a pick on a goalie in this draft knowing that obviously if Ascarov on the way and you’re not worried about the future be between the pipes at the moment? Yeah, with the Sharks I I think I would probably spend maybe the second second round pick like if Ivan Kovic or somehow Ravensburg in or whatever. Oh, really? You would you would still use that higher pick? Okay, I think so. It’s always good to grab one of these guys cuz like they still they also maintain a lot of value. You never know. Yeah, for sure. For sure. They’re pretty good. I I think there’s not the like Michael Robble, Adam Gion, Jacob Fowler, Damen Claraara that there was in the 23 draft or whatever. But like they’re still decent goalies. Okay. Sharks just don’t need one which is a rarity because most of the years were like a god who are the sharks in the draft goalie. Last year last year they hadn’t inquired as yet. So we were like last couple years were all looking hard at goalies every year and then a couple years ago you thought that they had moved up to try to draft somebody but they got beat to him, right? So yeah, they that was Jacob Fowler had who had went two picks before the the uh Brandon. Yeah. Yeah. So I I swear that was for him. like that’s just my gut. But um I will one day ask my career or you can ask my career that um because they needed a goalie and Jacob Fowler like Boston and and all that and he’s a great goalie. God that was a good draft year. 23 was like if you’re a draft junkie what a good draft year. Yeah you we look back on it just how deep it is right Bard is still declared number one but you have you have even even Smith there were rumblings. I think that might have been more smoke than anything, but that that he might go as high as maybe it was it was Columbus. There’s a lot there was some smoke that that they liked him at three, right? Yeah. Columbus was three in that draft, but just uh that Smith still has a good chance of ending up in that layer with even though he was the last guy picked of that layer, but with Fantily and Carlson. And Leo obviously didn’t have the the greatest season this year too. And also obviously Machov in terms of just pure talent and production. He should have been up there too, right? For the reasons that he fell, but it wasn’t a talent question for sure as we saw this year. Yeah. Just an absolutely loaded draft that um it’s not this year. Like there’s there’s good players here, but it’s not this year. Like that year was like Leo Carlson was tearing up the SHL. Will Smith had like broken records in the UNDP. Bedard broke records in the WHL. Adam Ventil had an outstanding college year. So, it was like a lot of And Mitchkov had a record-breaking KHL year. So, it was like the Yeah. The perfect storm. Those four guys, Carlson, Fantily, Smith, and Mitchkov. We don’t want to go too hard into it, but all those guys would be really good contenders for number two or even number one in this draft, right? Yep. 100%. Yeah. So, all right. SJ Shy had uh second question which is what are your thoughts on Tom Wanderer when he’d be a good fit for the Sharks. Um I the weird part with this question is I don’t know what the hell Vancouver wants to do with their team. I never know what Vancouver wants to do with their team. And that’s the problem is it’s hard for me to create a realistic trade scenario because I don’t know if Vancouver’s going up or going down or going sideways what the hell they want. So, I don’t know, right? But I think Shi’s question to some degree is about the player. And so, I did reach out to a scout, actually something that I was going to write a couple weeks ago, but I got busy with the Barracuda stuff, so I I didn’t write it yet. Maybe I’ll still write it. But I asked at least one scout’s opinion is that he does project as a top four guy. Yes. And so, with that being said, then, of course, any legitimate top four defenseman should be on the Sharks radar. So, don’t know what it’ll cost though. He was the 12th pick of a draft, right? I think so. Yeah. And I don’t think he’s a guy whose stock has really fallen much or anything like that. He hasn’t upgraded that. People think he’s going to be a top pairing guy, but top four is pretty solid for the 12th pick if that the ceiling of the top four is pretty solid for the 12th pick. And so, you would have to trade something kind of equivalentish in a one for if it was a one for one. Um, so it might be a it had to be a guy whose draft stock has risen to like if he did a reddraft he might go higher. Um, which might be then we’re talking like Shaw is like a third round pick or something like that. Shaw like it would not be 33 anymore, but I don’t know how high he would go in a red draft. He might still be like 15 or 18 or something like that, right? So you got to add that sweetener, right? So I don’t know if Mukmadulan or Musty they quite cut it as a maybe they do too as centerpieces but that’s what we’re talking about that you got to trade something that’s like roughly equivalent one for one and maybe you got to add a sweetener but you can’t be like pack I’m not saying you’re suggesting the shortkey by the way but you can’t be packaging like hey let’s throw a second rounder and we love Colin Graph but Colin graph or we lander that’s not going to cut it. Yeah. Yeah. It’s like maybe they would be interested in something like a Shernave, but I don’t think they’re going to be interested in Mugabulan plus some extras. Yeah, maybe not. I mean, I guess they could be in a sense that Mukadulan is ready to play kind of, but yeah, but it’s like the uh Yeah, unless Tom doesn’t want to sign there, and I don’t know if that’s the case either. Um, then that’s something different because if it’s like a he’s not going to sign, then that’s different. And the mob part too is like, do you believe he is a future AHL top four defense? And I still do. And so why would you just trade one guy who is more ready for another guy who’s less ready? Yeah. Other than one is right-handed and that’s it. Okay. Yeah. But who projects about the same in terms of impact though? Yeah, that’s fair. I think the um the Yeah, there’s a lot more runway with Wander whereas Mukaban’s got to start proving it. So yeah, but the sharks kind of need to be better next year a little bit. Yeah. Yeah, that’s fair. You can’t basically you trade mukuman now. You’re doing this the team meer thing where you traded for Mukadull in a couple years ago and you’re like well he’s a little older but it’ll take a little time and that’s you’re kind of just resetting the clock for that spot in on your roster. So yeah, speaking of that, Zack Benson went number 13. God, I love Zack Benson. He’s had a okay time in Buffalo, but good hockey player at Sack Benson. Um, good draft that 2023 draft. All right, our next question comes from Connor, who uh, you want me to explain it? No, a complicated one. So, I’m going to say, why don’t NHL drafted players get traded to another team after they’ve been drafted on the same night as the NHL draft? That’s what he’s asking. Right. Right. And we see it a lot in the NBA. If you guys are are basketball fans, obvious the one of the most famous example might be Kobe Bryant who was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets and then traded to the LA Lakers with it on the same night. So anyway, I I I reached out I I asked about this uh with the player agent because I was curious and he didn’t actually give have a great answer for in some ways. Yeah. Uh one of the things he said was that one thing that and this this is this is this part is a good answer. He said that well the let me actually look back on it uh to be sure. Um but basically like the in his view like the NHL they’re tracking for a future impact whereas the NBA is more immediate impact. Yeah. which is relatively true because you just NBA just have a better sense of what a player will I’m not exactly sure why but just like you have a better sense generally of who’s going to develop and who’s not going to develop in the NBA as opposed it’s a little less of a crapshoot basically. Yeah, that’s fair. Yeah. And so so like that’s so okay. So he says like a smaller roster makes a smaller roster in the NBA too makes it easier to identify a player that might fit and easier to have another club kind of draft you in that sense like they have a better sense okay we want this specific guy. But then I asked though, like, well then why why do that in the NBA though where like why don’t you just trade that pick to the team that is like why didn’t the Charlotte Hornets just trade that pick to the to the to the Lakers directly instead of going through that like process of the Hornets drafting Kobe and I think wearing a a Hornets hat at at the draft, right? That kind of awkward thing, right? That’s kind of thing he was asking about. Like that does happen in NBA where a guy gets drafted by a team and sometimes he doesn’t even know he’s going to get traded. He does interviews for like 15 minutes worrying like I’m really excited to be a 76er and then he gets traded 30 minutes later to the Grizzlies, you know. Yeah, that’s weird. I’m happy the NHL doesn’t do that because I would hate that. That’s really awkward. Yeah. So anyway, his answer to this, he wasn’t sure. He just said, “Well, just some leagues have different norms, I guess.” Yeah. So So not much of an answer there. But in terms of the advantage to it though, yeah, it’s hard to kind of figure out what the advantage of that is in terms of I think the whole idea of course is okay, if you’re if you’re trading for a specific player or pick, yeah, you kind of know what you want, but yeah, why you don’t like right before that pick is is about to be made, why don’t you just trade that pick and select that player yourself? I’m not really sure. That might actually be NBA question. So maybe there’s reason why for collective bargaining reasons or whatever they do that in the NBA. But like Keegan says though, it is the for the best though. Like how awkward would that be for the Penguins to draft Sam Dickinson and 30 minutes later, hey Sam, hey buddy, you’ve been traded. I think it’s just that the NHL prefers to trade up to the pick and be like, we’re picking this guy after we’ve traded three picks to get him and be like, there’s our guy, right? But the NBA short circuits that step by one, but just having the original team pick the player and then trade the player. It’s super strange. Um, and also like the NBA draft is like two rounds long whereas the NHL is seven. So, right, if you don’t get your guy, there’s another guy on the list right after it theoretically. Right. Right. So, yeah, that’s what the H1 was trying to say that there is sort of more of that how do you say it? Like for a specific player, there is there’s less of a there’s less supply out there. So, so, so yeah. So, that that would I do that in like NHL GM modes on E? I would definitely do that. I do that all the time. You do that? Yeah. They’re like, “Wait a minute, you selected that guy. I want that guy.” Then I just like slam trade proposals at him until I’m like, “That’s mine.” Anyway, I do that. Um, but it’s not And I guess that could happen too where like if you pick somebody and we’ve never really seen that happen, right? You had one example, but that was not the exact example. But like let’s say like you you pick let’s say the Sharks pick at number one and the team’s like Evan’s like you know what we’re going to give you Conor McDavid and our next three first round picks for M draft. Um the only example I found was Dylan Ferguson in like in the I think it was in the inaugural Vegas draft, right? Was traded from Vegas to Dallas two days after the draft. Don’t know why, but he was traded. All right. Are you sure about that? He played for Vegas that first year. Oh, or maybe it went the other way. Maybe he was from Dallas and then was traded. Yeah, he was drafted by Dallas. Um, yeah, he was drafted by Dallas around 2017 and then they traded him to Vegas and then they traded him. Yeah, like I don’t know how many days later, but they traded him with a 2020 second round pick for Mark Mthot. There’s a call back. So, good old Mark Mthot. Oh, right. because I think I think Mark was actually still like pretty was still pretty highly regarded back then and so yeah belong like he would be Vegas’s number one defenseman or number like top four defenseman then if I remember right the Sharks have a little bit of interesting history in this too because I think that Charlie Coyle was drafted and then was traded with the Brent Burns trade like really pretty recently after I think let’s see let’s that’s that’s a good one yeah so it does happened though like with the Ferguson thing to some degree. Let’s look at this Burns thing though. So, I’m going to get Charlie Coyle’s hockey reference page. Let’s look at the trades. Uh he was traded on June 24th, 2011. Oh, okay. No, no, that’s a year later. Yeah, that’s a year later. Okay. All right. I got my years mixed up. It was just near the draft. That’s why it was around the draft, though. So, you’re you’re you’re thinking my brain was thinking, but it’s the year. You’re on the right track. You’re on the right track. But that happens like a year later. They teams trade process. I guess it is possible. It’s just not kind of just something that’s not done. Like you just kind of you want a guy, you just trade for the pick to get the guy. Just like the Sharks wanted Logan Couture, they traded for the pick and made a pick themselves, right? But yeah, I mean there’s got to be examples of it maybe more, but it’s it isn’t a thing though, right? There are no there are no hockey cards with pictures of I don’t know Chris Pronger wearing uh you know some you he Chris Pronger was drafted by the Whalers and so he wore a Whalers uh Whalers cap and jersey. So Yep. Um all right we have I’m going to I’m going to count one two three four questions related to defensemen and how to Oh the defenseman. Okay. Right. This is kind of a big part of the show. We have Yeah. Yeah. We have some big uh key lynchman moments and yeah, basically we talk a lot about defense and then we have a whole section for the number two pick. Trading up, trading down, trading sideways. Yeah, it’s also important to note that this is all happening while Gandalf is talking to the steward of Gondor. Uh and he has just brought Mary across many many fields. Oh, that guy sucked. Yeah. Steuart of Gondard. Yeah, that guy sucks. Not a fan. Not a fan. He’s very upset right now. Not a fan. Not like, “Hey, Aragorn’s coming.” He’s like, “I this is my kingdom.” And that’s what’s happening right now. I don’t want to give it away, but Steuart the Gondor gets what he deserves at the end of the movie. Dude gets lit on fire. And he deserves it. He deserves it. All right. Joshua Kerry asks, um, he’s the first one of these. With defense being such a big need, is there any defenseman the Sharks could trade for or look for to sign to an offer sheet this year or next year? Okay, so we’re looking at offer sheet people, right? Yeah. And one thing that that we had to remind everybody, and some of you guys already know this, but uh for the Sharks offer sheet, somebody in the range that that we’re probably looking at, they’ll need to reacquire their 2026 third round pick, which they do not have. And so when you do offer sheets, the the draft picks that you you trade that that you have to trade to the team that you’re you’re taking the player from, they have to be your own pick. So just a reminder of that. And the Sharks traded are 2026 third to Pittsburgh. And so Sharks do not have that. They’ll have to reacquire them. And that that that range of offer sheet is 6.8 to 9.1 basically. So that’s that’s going to be a little tough. naturally 4.5 to 6.8 million the this the next tier after the one I just mentioned that is also you need to trade your third round pick. Yeah. So so the shar right now are not eligible to do to to to do to do either of those tiers. So anyway that makes it tough but you can get the pick back though. Um Keegan, you had an example of St. Louis doing that last year. It wasn’t ridiculous. So yeah. So St. Louis had to reacquire their pick and they traded down from a third to a fifth to do it. So that’s all it kind of took. They basically took their second, they got it back, they gave them a later second and then also traded from their third to a fifth. He basically decided to give Pittsburgh a reason to give you back the pick and it won’t be that much. It’s like, “Hey Pittsburgh, we want a third round pick back.” Okay. Uh give us a third round pick in 2027 and as a sweetener, give us a fifth round pick or a fourth round pick another year. So, some sort of pick arrangement seems to be the way to do it unless the team really wants to screw you, which hopefully they don’t. Right. So, anyway, in terms of the RFA kind of defenseman out there, um really worth offer sheeting, I don’t know if there’s anybody that stands out to me. Like Bart’s a very good offensive player, but we need to offer sheet him. You know, Byron’s out there, he’s good, but again, do you need to offer sheetum? Uh oh, Dos, I mean, there’s players out here. Dobson, but again, when we’re talking about a lot of these guys. Okay, now we’re talking about probably in the 6.8 to 9.1 range. So, are you going to trade and this is what the the wall you run into for for actually from 4.5 million AAV up? You got to put in your 2026 first round pick. I know that we had a guest Steve Werier. Good show. Steve’s a good guest, but you’re not going to do that. He suggested it. You’re not going to do You’re crazy to do that. Yeah, it would have to be a guy that like is projected to be a a real stud. Like a real Yeah. You’re basically saying like are you willing to trade the chance for Gavin McKenna for no Dobson? No. Right. And if it’s like Rasmin Stalin, I I know he’s the example I keep using, but like okay, that’s a true blue number one defenseman. Let’s talk. But these other guys I mentioned, they’re all very good players, but none of these guys are strike me as number one defenseman right now. you know, Luke Hughes is on this list, too. So, you can kind of have fun with that and try to get Quinn Hughes to to San Jose, too. But not likely, though, obviously for uh also too for the fact too that Mike Greer is good friends with Tom Fitzgerald, too. So, that that so I I doubt that would happen, but yeah. Anyway, so it’s tough because also the cap is going up by a ton. So, a lot of these teams that are like in cap crunches are going to be out of cap crunches. Um, they might get themselves back into it, but like that’s part of the reason why offer sheets work is because like the team cannot afford them, right? So, looking at anyway this year’s RFA list though, Buchar, Luke Hughes, though no Dobson, Bowen, Byram, Miller, look at the some of the top RFAS. Definitely some good players and players that will help the Sharks, but are you willing to put your 2026 first uh in the jackpot for it? I seriously seriously doubt it for any of these guys. Um let’s look at maybe the he uh yeah, Joshua asked about the next year. So, let’s see. Let’s see if we can pull that up really just to give a tease at least. And if Puck Pedi is right, then we’re looking at Simon Edmonson, Jackson Lome, those are interesting guys. Thomas Harley, that’s a that’s a that’s a good name. Lane Hudson, that’ll be a fun one. Um, Brent Clark, Olen Zelwagger. Yeah, those guys haven’t quite proven themselves yet though, completely. So, I’m going with a little higher end guy, slightly higher end than those guys. Mitch, but and in that one, you’re going to then be putting your 2027 first at risk, which maybe you would be willing to do. Yeah, maybe. Right. Yeah. And I I like Lane Hudson. And Lane Hudson is going to be the deserving winner of the Calder. Sorry, Sharks fan. He’s going to be deserving winner of the Calder. But is he going to be allound number one defenseman? He’s not. He’s more offensive leaning. And so is that the guy that you want to put your, you know, maybe 2027 you’ll feel okay with, but that’s a wait and see. Let’s see how your team does next year. But anyway, so to answer Joshua’s question overall, like those are some of the names, but I don’t know if you would do it for any of these names. Yeah, it’s um it’s going to be an ongoing question. I don’t think offer sheets the way to go either. I think we’re going to need to sign a trade. Offer Sheet’s just too risky with the way that the Sharks are built and having to give rid of one of these picks that is super super high. I think if you can get it in the lower range, right? Like if you get it below the 4.5 range where from 2.2 to 4.5 AV, then you’re would you give up your 2026 second round pick? Okay, that’s a good pick. That’s pretty churnishoff. But if you can get a guy a team on a cap crunch like the Blues caught the Oilers, okay, that could be worth it to add some good talent along the margins that a sneaky top four defenseman, a legit top nine forward, okay, that’s worth it. So that might be the range that you’re looking at, but that’s not a range that’s going to get you a top four, a legit top four defenseman, though. So in most cases so um all right he this next question is also about D um it’s interesting it’s more about a trade specific with a trade specific partner like the Chicago Blackhawks who have um not a plethora but a good amount of young dmen like Alex Art Lionov um Kevin oh it’s it’s from Daniel Almarez yeah sorry it’s from Daniel Almarz um Almarz sorry about that Almarrage, I apologize, and Sam Renzel. So, it’s um they’re missing some un they’re missing some forward prospects. We’ve got forward prospects. They’ve got some good D. Um I’d imagine it would take a decent hall to get a guy like Renzel Kinsky, and we agree, but I think there’s an interesting trade partner there. I don’t my my uh it’d be weird because the two teams are both rebuilding. Um, and that would be an interesting trade, but it’s possible if they don’t if Chicago doesn’t get what they want out of this draft, um, that they feel like they need to trade one of them. But I’m not too sure. I think they’re going to get a forward and feel pretty comfy going forward. Yeah. You you thought that of the four young maybe lynchpin Blackhawks defenseman prospects. Yeah. Blastic, who’s the proving guy, Le Shunov, Renzel, and Kchinsky that Korchinsky is actually the one that it might be the most expendable of that group. Blastic has already signed to a long-term deal. Lunaf was the number two pick and Renzel’s a guy who was really his stock has really gone up a lot since he was drafted. I think he was a was a second round pick or late first, right? But anyway, I think it was a very late first. Very late first. But still, so Kinsky is the one. Korchinsky is the one that might be the most available. I know you said you’re not the biggest fan of Kchinsky, but I guess Sharks fans, we’d ask you like, is Kchinsky the guy that you want? I know that a lot of people liked him in the his draft year, but we’re we’re three years away from that now. And so, yeah, that might be the guy that you can get. And then what do you got to trade for him? I don’t think you need to trade like your your top top prospects. Like maybe that’s where you could start to like maybe like Musty is the most that you give up. Maybe you don’t want to give him up, but then you can start going even to the tier below that maybe. I don’t know. But yeah, not that I don’t love Ren or or Kevin Gorchinsky. He just was I had a couple guys ahead of him that year. Like I had I think I had Mattek ahead of him. Even though Mateé has some warts and still is developing. Um but he’s still a good player. Mhm. I had Vincava ahead of him, too. Got taken after. Oh, good call. But the Yeah, it’s I think he because his stock or he got sent back to the AHL for a lot of this year, it’s definitely on the downswing. So, if you’re trying to get like stock down and trying to get it kind of a cheap asset, yeah, I think it’s that’s a reasonable get. It’s just it’s all going to be about those. Do you want to give up your your musties and churnishavves and your plethora of of good prospects right now? Maybe there’s a chance there if you don’t if you don’t hit on the other stuff. Maybe you saw to give up a lot though. So a great example of this this season obviously is Eurichek and Eurichek’s stock has fallen from being the I think the sixth pick of his draft, but you’re still not getting him for a song. It’s not at that point yet. And so you’re still giving up Minnesota gave up a first round pick. Granted, not not the strongest draft this year, but you’re still giving up something decent though. So yeah. So was the sixth pick in that draft and Kchinsky was the seventh pick. So it’s like he’s right there with them. Right. Right. Right. I mean, I don’t know. Pchinsky star has fallen maybe as much as has, but Yeah. I think Gorchinsky had such a a better year originally that people thought he was gonna be just a plug-andplay this year and then he just stepped back. So, yeah, tough to say. It’s a good It’s a good thought though because I hadn’t really considered Chicago to be the trade partner just because they’re in a rebuild like us and they want all their their pieces and prospects, but maybe. Right. Right. Right. Yeah. And actually, I have a couple other teams that I think uh might I was talking with with a scout about this about teams that might have like have a plethora of defenseman. So, let’s get to that in a second. Me. So, we’re going to answer that in one of these questions coming up. I think we have two more defensive questions here. So, yes, like free slice who ask um who do we like out of these available in quotes, which is a good way to put it. D targets. Um, Noah Dobson, Simon Nemage, or Brent Clark. I have a I have an answer. Um, okay. But it’s only because I like this player more than the other two. That’s a That’s a good way to put it. I like Brandt Clark. I’ I’ve always liked Brandt Clark. I think he has a certain amount of offensive talent that like Dobson obviously put up 70 points last year, so like he can get there, but this year was not the prettiest um for him. But Clark is young enough that and I’ve seen a lot of him at lower levels and at points in the NHL that like you you could maybe believe that he could get there one day. Like he has a lot of offensive skill. Um there’s problems with him because he’s not the fastest and he has never been the quickest and he’s his defense leaves a lot to be desired, but if you’re looking for an offensive um right D with a great brain, I like Brand Clark a lot. So I would try to find him, especially if LA is in the mood of just giving away Brand Clark for some reason. Well, they’re not going to give him away. Let’s But okay, so let me ask you this. You have think that everybody would be available and then there’s all these things of him being fair. But uh Dobson, Neich, Clark, let’s say the the beginning cost is let’s say Quentyn Musty. So you would you would do it for Clark. I would do it for all. I would do Quinton Musty for any of them because like Sharks have enough. Okay. Quinton Musty. It’s the Sherneshov. It’s okay. How about Sherneshaw then? A little higher up the Yeah. draft rankings. Um, I’d do it for Clark. Just for Clark. I’d do it for probably Clark and Dobson. Okay. I think the Do the Dobson one is tough because you’re kind of you’re sinking yourself into $8 million, $9 million. Right. Right. Right. You don’t have to. Right. Now, so that becomes a little bit less of a a nice situation. Um whereas if Clark never pans out, you don’t have to pay him $9 million. You just you lost out on Chernishov, but you don’t have to pay him $9 million to also lose out on him, you know. Okay. So, that one’s tough. Neich is not in the same realm of like Right. Not as proven, right? Yeah. Yeah. Clark’s tough though because there’s definitely weaknesses with him that have always been there and you really hope that they’re going to overcome but they might not. So, I don’t that’s tough. I I mean, I don’t know if I really love any of these guys because I always like more two-way, more Sure. And if we’re going to go in more of a dimension, I like the more defensive side. Yes. So, Clark’s got the offensive tools. It’s just the rest of it’s not there. It’s like an Evan Bushard, but different player entirely. But, right. But they can help your team though. And so like Eric Carlson, right, could still help your team even though he trends obviously way more offensive too. So yeah, I mean I think they’re all pretty close to me. I do remember asking about the asking a scout about Dobson earlier in the season and he just said just exactly what you expect. Like there are a lot of tools there but he’s got to be a lot better defenseman to be a true number one defenseman. Yeah. And so if we’re not target I so I guess that’s part of it like a lot of these names that you see out there like yeah they may end up playing the most minutes on your team but are they uh true number one defense the number one defenseman that you want to win with. Yeah. And there’s only I I don’t know how many of those guys are on the league. There might be like 10 of them or something like that. They don’t get traded and they Yeah. They usually do not get traded. They don’t usually get free for agency etc etc. And so that’s what I would say that okay if we’re going to trade for one of these guys that’s fine but you’ve got to be we’ll get this question later like would you trade a number two pick for these guys? No I wouldn’t because these guys are not these guys these guys on a really good team might be your number two defenseman which is fine but like if you think higher of a Michael Misa or something like that like you don’t you don’t make that trade I think. So so that’s how I kind of see these guys. These guys are talented, but they’re going to be your they’re they’re going to be your your maybe number two defenseman at best on your team, which still valuable, but not a number one. Our next one comes from Patrick. Um, it’s a kind of a long question. Well, um, basically the Sorry for interrupting there. Sorry, this this part I’m gonna interrupt Keegan a lot because the what the one thing I do in my writing is turn a lot into try to write it as in in in as few words as possible just that. So that’s that’s that’s sort of what I what I do on the site all the time. So anyway, basically like what’s the best pathway to the sharks upgrading the top or the blue line? That was basically the the germ of of the question, right? Because we talked about offer sheet already. So yeah, we talked about offer sheet. Um Patrick did ask to any sense of whether the Sharks would look to acquire their their third round pick and we did talk about that it’s not that hard to do if they really want to do it. I just don’t know. We just don’t know if any of the guys are really worth it. But in terms of the best pathway though. So okay. So this is where I I will jump in here with so a few teams were were thrown at me that maybe they are full up on on defense. Uh or you know they just have kind of a glut. Oh this before I get to that though this story might make you laugh. So I did ask another angel scout this exact question. The exact question I asked was, “Are there any are are are there any teams that kind of have a blood of defenseman and and they have an underused guy that might be a legit top four guy?” And what this guy said was, “I’m not telling you. That’s for my team.” So I told him, “This is how I know you’re legit, because if you weren’t my friend, you might be pushing Nikita a hot tube on me as a to to throw some misinformation at me.” So So another scout gave me some answers. So you can judge yourself if you think this scout is kind of feeding me some BS or whatever. But I thought there were good answers here. Nonetheless, those worth sharing with you a little bit. So, one name that stood out to me, I don’t know what you think, is he said Anaheim. And he said that in his mind, Lome is that’s going to be the power play guy. And so, suddenly Zelwaker, who I think was up and down this year, is suddenly a guy that may not may not be as secure. And so, he might be a sleeperish guy to kind of give your your top power play spot to. Maybe he can grow with your guys. So, I don’t know what you think about that. Yeah, I I’ve always I liked Olan Zwigger. I think he’s got lots of skill, lots of talent, aggressive style of play. Tiny guy. Um, it’s a again it’s a rebuilding team that’s trying to tinker around the edges. Yeah, I could see that. Okay. Another thing you mentioned, but they’ve already got him right, you know, doing well. And in your mind, has Lome sort of he is their power play guy. It looks like he is their guy now. So yeah, I mean you you assumed for a while that it was going to be Zelwagger just because that’s the what he’s grown up being, but yeah, it seems like he’s taken the reigns more than he’s also three years older, so that Okay, so my guy didn’t didn’t necessarily steer me wrong there. No, I mean that makes sense. Another team that’s obvious to you guys is Buffalo, but with Buffalo though, I know everyone talks about Dalan, Byron, and Power, right? So, but let’s get away from that. They have three other defenseman there. And so, is there a guy there that you can find some value in that can that can you can maybe find his game in a in a friendlier situation? You know, Buffalo fans are tough on their players. And one guy that I remember hearing a lot of good things about before and I didn’t like him when I watched him this year, but Matias Samuelson, right, is a guy that has had pretty good tape before and Buffalo gave him a good contract and he’s been disappointing ever since. And I’m not really sure his situation. I don’t know if he was injured. I know I watched him this year against the Sharks and I did was not impressed at all by him, but that’s a guy that I mean this guy is signed forever actually, which maybe you don’t want him. He signed up 20 2029 30. But like that’s the kind of that’s the kind of guy that you if you believe in the player, you take a chance on him and you can well in this case Buffalo will pay you to take him because Yeah. Yeah. So that that’s so so so we get out of the obvious the the the the triumphant of of top Buffalo defenseman that might be a guy that if you if you like him there’s a reason why Buffalo gave him a seven-year contract that okay you you think that in a different situation he he can he can find his way but Buffalo does have a lot of different guys I guess very we get another Buffalo question later on too. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I won’t I won’t get to the main guys. The main guys I’ll get to later. Um he also mentioned that Montreal seems to have a lot of left-handed defenseman that he he thought were were competent, so I’m not sure if that’s accurate or not. So, let’s let’s take a look. I didn’t get a chance to to look to look this part up before. Hudson, I guess. Yeah. Well, Hudson’s not available, but who who could be available, I guess. Right. there. They also have what? Logan Mayu and um Kaden Ghouly. Is that right? Stubble Ghouie. Um I can’t the guy whose name I can’t say. Arbor. Uh yeah, I I I heard his name in playoffs, but yeah. Huh. Logan Mayu is a right-handed. Oh, okay. Okay. So, I assume he’s referring to Mat, Hudson, uh, Strugo, Ghoulie, and Arbor. So, I guess why don’t um I have to go figure out why my dog is is uh doing that. So, I will be right back. If you can’t hear it, my dog is whining really. I could hear it. So, you can if you want to continue on this, I will continue. I will be right back. But look at looking at those five Montreal defensemen really quickly. See, Ghoulie played a regular shift this past year. Strugle’s a little more down. Strugle might be a guy. He’s younger, 23, so maybe you can find a role for him. Uh Arbor, uh even though he’s more of a like a forcerish type to some degree, right? But yeah, so it’s okay. So there’s there’s some guys that are possible if you see one of these guys one of these guys being able to maybe outplay being a bottom pairing defenseman that that you could take a chance on one of those guys. Another name that was that was mentioned actually JD mentioned it a couple podcasts ago. He mentioned Nick Perix of the Lightning. Perbeck played 14 minutes a night this past season. But he’s a guy kind of in the I think he sounds like in the the Jaylen Chadfeld realm that he becomes a free agent at a at a younger age I believe. Like let me double check that on Perix. But I do believe Perex is slightly younger. Let’s I’m going to double check that. Perix. Nick Perix. All right. You know what? I should just search for Nick Perex. That’s why you have two two people doing doing these shows so so you can help each other. Yeah, Nick Pervix is 26. So we fixed the problem. Uh what’s everything okay? Yeah, it’s just Anna’s in the shower and then the dog is alone. Oh, okay. She’s just in her kennel freaking out. She’s fine. Okay. Okay. All right. Yeah. So, I’m gonna run run through some options here. So I think trying to think there’s anybody else. I he also mentioned Cororsack of Vegas maybe having some game. I don’t know. So I do like Cororzak. Okay. But he’s like 27, right? I think he’s a little older. He just hasn’t really Vegas has a great defense. Hasn’t like stuck with him. No, he’s 24. That is the kind of guy to look for though that Yeah. not just not enough spots for a guy like that and maybe he’s got a little more talent than than his usage has shown so far. Yeah. And maybe in a more ice time he can really blossom. Yeah, for sure. They have to kind of Nick Hey, who’s going to be an RFA as well, so he’s been always a steady 17 eight minute night a guy, but maybe there’s a little bit there too. Okay. He was a firstrounder as well. One of the few Vegas first rounder that actually plays for Vegas. I thought I thought Nicholas Egg was a second rounder. Sorry. He was a second round. He just had like he was the 34th. So he was right out. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I remember I was still covering Vegas when they drafted him. So you remember? All right. Next. I think it’s a guy that I would think they would sign though, right? So probably want to. Yeah. But it’s like he is the reason why Corors doesn’t get a job kind of thing. Mhm. And Vegas is a classic one like whenever we’ve done these like how to improve the sharks defense every summer we always look at Vegas because they always seem like they have too many defenseman. So I think we’ve written about or I’ve written about White Cloud maybe looking at him like hey maybe he’s he can be a guy that can excel in a larger role. Hey. Yep. Another guy maybe Corzac, right? So yeah. Yeah. For sure. Yeah. They always have like a good solid top four plus extras that are decent. Yeah. So, it’s a uh it’s a factory out there. Is Kayen Corsac, is he a RFA, I assume? No, he’s still got a year left. So, he’s going to be just under contract. Okay. Okay. I think is the only one they got to sign. Okay. It’s an interesting one, though. Uh good. Yeah, it’s a good one. Cella Beauty asks, “Are there any 2025 NHL draft prospects with Snarl?” Oh, okay. So, we’re out of the the the the phantom zone of improving the shark’s defense kind of. We have another part where we talk about the number two overall pick which touches on the defense heavily. Or if you want to do a Lord of the Rings reference that like that swamp that you fall into on the way to Mordor, which is a bunch of dead people. I don’t remember. You can’t get out of it. Yeah. Yeah. You can’t get out of the uh can’t get out of the swamp. Um but this is a question for you, Keegan. Yes. Uh, Kahan Hansen, which you talked about in your question, Sol Beauty is a great one. He hits he hits like a truck. He likes to shoot the puck. He plays oldtime hockey. I like Kahan Ason. I think he’s going to have a fun role in the NHL. How far that’s going to take him, we we’ll see, but there are definite um there’s a fun factor with Kahan Ason. Brady Martin’s the one that’s very popular these days. Brady Martin um also hits very very well. There was some NHL scout pundant person who was like he hits better than a lot of NHLers do. Right. Right. He told Cam Robinson that. Right. Yeah. So, he’s a great one as well. I um I think the Sharks might be in a position to get a Brady Martin if they trade it up into like the 10ens unless Brady Martin goes super high. But Well, that’s tough though, right? Yeah. Trading to 10. But how about uh is it Aterson or HS? Yeah, I love HSN. He’s a defender. late late first maybe the Dallas pick. I think he’s going to be gone before the Dallas pick. I think he’ll be in the teens probably like 13 to 15 to 17 just cuz he’s got a lot of physical tools. He’s fun. He shoots. He great scorer. Um and in a draft where like the the fun factor starts to disappear real hard and he’s a defender that hits like that, people are going to like him and somebody will take him early. So you had to trade up to get him. He’s also I he’s a lefty as well. Not that it matters, but like it seems like every time the Sharks find a possibility, it’s like, oh well, he’s a lefty, so add another lefty onto the pile, which is fine. You still need both sides. But so Martin and Agent seem like maybe long shots with the Sharks, right? So yeah, unless they traded around, right? Anybody else? Um, let me look down the list and see. Yeah, like lower maybe, you know, use a second rounder to get him. Yeah, use a uh one of the um the further down picks or their or their Dallas pick to get him. Um you know, not really in that range. Not that I could see right now. I was going to answer with Brady Martin. That was going to be my pick. Horov, maybe. Horov. He’s in like the 50s, 60s. Is he the son of Shawn Horov? Uh, he is the son of Sean Horov. Oh, cool. Okay. Yeah, big guy. Uh, got some skill. He’s got a decent snarl to him, you know. Sean Horov, also a former teammate of my career. Hey, that’s a good that’s a good shout then because you never know. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. He’s an NTDP, which is also something that the Sharks, not that they typically draft from, but they have in the past taken from the NTDP. So, um, and college and everything. So, yeah, I think that would be another answer as well. I like this uh this line from Cell of Beauty though. Cell of Beauty. I love Smith, Mac, and Ekki, but I worry that they are too nice. I don’t think I don’t think Sullies is too nice. Yeah, I think I think you’re gonna see some nastiness for Cella Brittney. I think he’s got a little of kind of that McKinnon in him, but yeah, a little bit angry cross and actually Elyn is is a little bit of a pass, too. But anyway, so neither here nor there. Um, all right. Next one is, uh, from Stephen. Stephen asks, um, if the Sharks knew that Blackwood success would continue, do you think they would still make the Ascarof trade? H, yes, I think this is a good question. Yeah. Um, lot of whatifs here, but yeah. Like, do we just keep the first in the um and Edstrom Ed, you know, signed uh Blackwood do a 5×5 or 58, whatever. I mean, granted, the again though the 2025 first as we get closer to it, the Vegas is pick not the greatest pick. Yeah. But still first. Still first. Edstrom would be in that competition to be the next Sharks 3C. with Beaststead and O Stopchuck. And I I I want to add this is a little bit of a side. No one asked this question, but like if you watch playoffs, if you rolled out Beast as being a Sharks future 3C, just because they drew for O Stopchuck, that doesn’t make any sense. So I think it’s more about adding more guys with the possibility of doing such an important job. And so Beast’s still in the mix. Oh, stop is still in the mix even though he didn’t show a ton of offense this this goound with the Sharks and the Barracuda. But just wanted as a reminder of that that yeah, I thought people were way too quick to see the otopic trade as a signal that management was unhappy with beasted. I I that’s not how I saw it back then and don’t see that right now either. But anyway though, uh, good question. Yeah, it’s a good one, huh? Yeah. Um, I don’t think so. I think I I would say just you want to grow with a goalender in this way that the the curve of when Blackwood’s going to be very good is in the next two or three years and the Sharks are not going to be good in the next two or three years. And I still don’t think there’s enough there to to say that like it’d be it’s easier but I don’t think it solves the issue. Whereas Ascarov you could solve it for a long time. Like a really long time. Yeah. I actually disagree with you here. I think that and this is not like from the Sharks because it’s hard to talk with the current Sharks management about such such a kind of a a hypothetical that’s as far out as this, right? But I would say that it would make a lot of sense to hold on to that first in Edstrom and use them for exactly look the same thing that the franchise needs the same thing has needed the same thing for the last couple of years. Once you drafted Celibbrini, everyone looked at the defense and yeah, goalending is a question, but I am more on the side of you don’t necessarily need your Connor Hella, your guy that your 10 your 10 by 10 or sorry, your 8 by10 8 by 12 million goalender to to to be to to win games. You can do it you can do it the Vegas way. You can do it the Washington way. You can do it other ways. And that’s kind of what I subscribe to. If you happen to draft that guy, that’s great. But to trade for him, especially if you have that kind of the burden in the hand with Blackwood right now, and that’s not I like I like the Blackwood trade. I’m sorry, the Ascrooft trade when they made it. But now, you know, Blackwood has put up another good year [Music] that you can you can argue with me on it. I guess there’s an argument for for just for just keeping those assets and then putting them toward a defenseman that that you need. Yeah, that’s a good good point, too. You got more assets for the thing that you really need. I don’t know. Yeah, it’s it I don’t know if there’s an easy answer for that one. This is another one to chalk up to or um add to the list of being assasser in two decades. So, yeah. or the three-headed monster and see where we come out with. Yeah, that’s actually a fun one. Yeah, that one to go over. Here’s an interesting tidbit and it’s only from the extended edition. Um, did you know that Pippen’s like, you know, he’s got the the the Citadel armor like the little the little crest that he gets going to get he joins Gondor and give him like a little uniform. There’s a scene where uh Phamir comes in and says, “Hey, that was mine when I was a when I was a child. That was his that was his that was his armor.” Well, like I’m fairly certain that I put on the extended edition on background before, but I’ve never sat down and watched it though because honestly, the Return of the King the reason Oh, if you guys don’t know what we’re doing here, we’re just doing a a bit where we’re we’re we’re going to see if our podcast is longer than the Return of the King extended edition. extended edition and so I’m just updating you know where we are in the story and faramir just mentioned to Pippen that yeah that was his armor as a boy which I think is Return of King is definitely my least favorite of the three initial yeah because it was just it was already too long original and if you guys have watched it I thought the movie ended five times and kept going I honestly also hot take I’ve watched all the extended editions I don’t like the extended editions I think they kind of like ruin the movies in some ways. Like they they take out your your emotion from it so much. Like there’s just these scenes where you’re like, “Why is this in here? I don’t need it.” Fellowship of the Ring is I think one of the best blockbuster whatever movies ever. The mo that movie is not the extended edition that the the actual cut is like no notes good. I I think I I really I really love that movie. Um, so anyway, so that’s that’s the bit that we’re doing. So every once in a while we’ll tell you I’m gonna tell you all about Lord of the Rings in the background. Soron and Oh man. Um, Miguel Leonard um says, “Sign Matt Duchain.” Okay, it’s longer than that, but would you say he would sign to a two-year $8 million AAV with us? Damn. Okay. So, my argument against this though is that Matt has already taken a contract less than he’s worth to try to win a Stanley Cup. So, why I’m not seeing that unless maybe he wins with Dallas this year and then so then he kind of thinks like okay. So, I don’t think I don’t think Matthew Matthew Shane does not want a Stanley Cup and so that would be my he is a good candidate. So, and you’re right that he’s sort of the least mentioned. Obviously, we talk a lot about Marers, the UFA, Eers, right? The biggest names out there. I’ve mentioned Gran Linen, Tavvarz, and we haven’t really mentioned Duchain. And Duchaine is I I did say this I think a couple weeks ago that Duchain is sneaky the the best contract in the league this past year. I think he put up 80 points and he’s was making three million. But again, that three million is him taking a cut to go to Dallas to try to win a Stanley Cup. And so doesn’t mean that that’s impossible. He’s not the worst idea. So yeah. So yeah. Yeah. Of course you you don’t hate it. I mean you need a guy like that for sure. I think that what the Sharks are looking for is a a guy that’s willing to teach, be a mentor, and who is still a point per game or close to that kind of player, right? So I think Dvarz and Granlin still make that cut even if Duchaines were more productive this year. and is willing to lose grin grin and Barrett and and teach the kids a bit. Uh, Rothgar asks, um, are there any top Euro free agents that the Sharks could sign because the prior regimes would do something similar and try and add talent for free, um, from across the pond and and that’s one thing that I I we should say that I think as we look back at the Doug Wilson regime and we have criticized a lot about the end of it and fairly so, but one thing that they did do well on a consistent basis is fine guys from Europe that maybe they just give you a year or two like Shimik gave the Sharks one good year. Marcus Sorenson gave the Sharks one good year. Donsoy actually ended up being a pretty good player for a few years. I know Melper wasn’t the most popular Shark, but he gave the Sharks a few good years too. So, they did a good job with that and that dried up, but they did a good job of that over the years for sure. But to answer your question though, in terms of free agents this year, I we both checked around on this and it seems like this class of European free agents isn’t the strongest. Yeah, Cory Proman wrote an article about that. If you want to look back back in February, but even in that article, he mentioned the defenseman that the Oilers actually ended up signing, which I didn’t realize at first, but yeah, um it was uh Atro Leanin. I I sorry if I’m saying his name wrong, but he was number three on Promin’s list. So, pretty high up there. He put up what did you say? 63 points. Yeah. 63 points in 60 games in LIA. Yeah. He’s what, 26? Yeah. And he was 26. I asked some somebody I trust like, “Do you do you see this guy as a future AHL guy, impact guy?” He’s like, “No, no.” So, that’s number three on your list. So, this may not be the year for especially at defense, which the Sharks need the most, right? Yeah. Uh there were a couple names though that that I did get something on that was interesting. So the Sharks might need some goalender for the AHL if he let Roman off walk and you can keep carrier or not. He can be your well you also have Matt Davis too. So maybe like carrier walk. I don’t know. But um he did mention a um I don’t know if I’m saying his name right. Motor I don’t know. Uh let me let me let me look up his first. I think it’s Ilia Modrin. And I’m sure I’m saying his or Maxim, sorry about Maxim Modrin. I’m sure I’m saying his last name wrong, so I apologize for that, but uh just learned about him today. I didn’t know too much about him, but he is 22. He is undersized. He’s 6’1, so that’s a strike against him. But he just led Dynamo past um I think it’s a team that wants to sign Polarowski, right? Uh Scott, no, that’s that’s not No, that’s Alvon Guard. Anyway, so Scott we know is a traditional power, KHL power. So anyway, so this this guy is interesting and this scout uh this is a Russian NHL scout too. I’ll add thinks that that this guy does have AHL starter potential. Uh maybe a long shot, but so this guy might be it might be interesting signing even if his his height will probably scare some teams off there. But that’s a that’s an interesting one that was brought up to me. He also brought up uh Shabbanov who who I I have heard I think hockey newsshub very connected with with Russian hockey has connected that name right he’s tiny guy though yeah has connected uh him to to the Golden Knights and hockey news seems has seemed pretty accurate on stuff in terms of just um read re I just he yeah he he reads Russian news reports I believe and he can Yeah. And he can translate it over. So he’s done a good job with that. And so he’s also 5’8 though. So I don’t think that’s a that’s doesn’t sound like a my career target. 5’8 winger. Yeah. So two uh names in this list that are interesting to me. Number 14, Noah Beck, which the Sharks signed Noah Beck. Yeah. Well, the Barracuda did, right? Um No, no, he signed it with the Sharks. It was okay. I didn’t know. Yeah. For next year. Next year. But he’s older. So, it’s a one-year contract next year, so it’s going to be I’m sure they’ll give him a lot of looks in Barracuda season for him. He was number 14 on this list. And then, uh, Oscar Steen was number 18. And Oscar Steen I’ve watched as a Providence Bruin. I’ve confirmed that he just went back to the SHL this year and had a good year. So, I guess he’s on this list to maybe come back. He was He’s a decent tweener guy. Like, did okay in the NHL for a little bit. Did okay in the AHL. He’s 27. If you needed a body, maybe you’d get him if you wanted to come back. Yeah, but he’d be like a fourth liner or something. Yeah, he’d be like a fourth 13th forward, something like that. So, yes. So, uh Rothbart, to answer your question, uh not a lot. Yeah. To to quote Rick Patino, Larry Bird isn’t walking the door. Bill Russ is not walking the door. Not from Europe, at least. Not from Europe. We’ll have to find him another way. All right. Uh they’re about to sacrifice all of their troops against um the uh Oscil where they just run out in their their stupid horses and get shot with a bunch of arrows which is the dumbest scene. I hate the scene so much. Why is he just getting they’re just going to get killed with a bunch of arrows and the guy eats the tomato the whole time. H It’s a good scene, but it’s Anyway, it’s time for Chris R’s two questions. Um, oh, I did find out the the dead the so the the lagoon with the dead people is the dead marshes. So the dead marshes. There you go. It’s like dead marsh. Like Adam Dead Marsh. Yeah, exactly. Hey, that’s a good one. Yeah, that was my favorite player. Really? One of them. Oh, it was. Yeah. Yeah. You always get those players that just like you hear about and they stick in your brain, you know? Like Maximanov and I was like, great names, right? Yeah. Maximanov, what a what a damn name. Uh anyway, Chris R asks, “Let’s say Greer makes two trades. What are your two dream trades?” Realistic trades, right? Yeah, I guess. Yeah, it’s a dream, but you’re awake. It’s a waking dream. Um that is a great question. Do you have any off the top while I while I think about it? Oh boy. Um uh if neither of us have one, that’s that’s one that that Yeah, actually. Yeah. I I didn’t think long and hard enough about this one, but yeah, I mean, obviously it would help the defense. Mhm. Um, let’s say that Buffalo would break up those three defensemen. Sure. They’re not trading, so get that out of your head. Sure. I would actually take Byum over Power. We’ll talk about that in a second because I think you would take Power over Byum, so we’ll talk about that. But let’s say it’s Byum and for what would be make sense for them? I mean, I don’t know because Buffalo Buffalo wants the window though. I I don’t know if that’s Yeah, because they’re bringing back Adams, I think, right? For another year. So, basically, he’s got to make something out of out of this team. So, maybe that’s not realistic then, actually. Then, yeah, because I think that they trade one of those guys, it’s it’s with the eye of making a team better. Um, okay. I’m I’m going to say this one may not be super realistic, but like let’s say it’s Byum and you take on Samuelson’s contract because that does help Buffalo win. Now, and you got to be sure, you got to do your due diligence on Matias Samuelson because well, I know Buffalo fans hate him. That I do know from Twitter and I know I didn’t like watching him this year either. But I also know that he was given a seven-year contract and maybe there’s a good reason for that and maybe there’s a player in there if he gets out of Buffalo. So, um, so maybe something like that and then you give them like one good asset. You give him like a musty or you give them Yeah, you got to give them something that they can show to their fans a little bit. I think I think I think there is a little bit of that with Buffalo, the pressure that they’re under. So, if you just give him the Dallas pick, I don’t think that’s enough. So you give him the local boy in in musty. And for the Sharks, you have definitely improved your defense with Byum and you’re definitely taking a chance on Samuelson. And you might have to buy out Samuelson at the end of next year if he’s still crappy. But anyway, okay. So, one of them is acquiring a defenseman from Buffalo. Okay. What about for you? I am still trying to figure it out. Okay. Um I kind of want to like swing for a random superstar. like a random not not random but like a a guy who signed to a a deal at a team that that’s not really going anywhere, you know, like and that maybe you could get him for not cheaper but like less than you would have to a pay him because he’s already under a long-term deal. Like if Nashville decides to randomly try to rebuild instead of um instead of trying to continue with this core or whatever, but that would be crazy because they just signed Stampos and Maro and all that. Yeah. And Shay and Sheay. Um but if they really don’t think it’s working next year and they want to try and tear this thing down in the middle of the season, then try and grab Philip Forestber from them. I would love that. Like he’s 30. Yes, he’s older, but he’s still a productive, very productive firstline winger that um I think would complement the Sharks current forward. This is more dream than realistic, though. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It’s a dream, but I’m awake. Um there’s some awakeness to it. Um I just It’s really tough. I think I think the biggest dream that I want is some to acquire somebody like Neich, Brandt Clark. Maybe I’m still not sold on on Dobson entirely. Um, you might be right. I think that that’s the the ultimate dream is getting one of those top four defenseman projected in the future. So, I don’t know which one to pick. I’m going to go with Brand Clark because I like Bran Clark a lot. Okay. I think it might be Neich though because Ne is the easiest. Is proven and they are they do have a lot of guys. Yeah. They gota clear space for Quinton Hughes too. Yeah. So, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That might be the most realistic. The Buffalo idea I just floated seems kind of crazy because I don’t know. I I I don’t know enough about Matias Samson to be like, I want to take on that contract till 2030. But but if somehow though he is the the Samuelson that Buffalo signed and you have Bow and Byron, you suddenly added two top four defenseman who are in a happier place than Buffalo and that might be something that puts at least accelerates your your your rocket ship out of last place. Yes. Which is what the Sharks need. They need to not be last place. You could also try and get Keandre Miller. I really like Kandre Miller as well. Yeah. I’m not saying that though. Rising Cap, I know the Rangers like him. So, yeah, you’d have to pry him away somehow. Yeah. Or Braden Schneider or Zack Jones, but they’re not like solid solid guys. They’re just kind of you’re just hoping at that point. Like Braden Schneider is fine, but Zack Jones is kind of a a hope. So, so maybe then I would say then dream realistic is maybe getting being able to turn that Dallas pick into the centerpiece for an image. I guess something like that. That’s a good that’s a good way to put that. Yeah, that is going to be weak though. But I don’t know. All right, we’ll figure it out. Add more pieces to it or Neich releases an article that he’s super unhappy and needs to be traded. That’s all it takes is the agent going, “Fuck this. I’m not getting playing time. You know, here a Lakers fan a Lakers fan area hope um for all you Lakers hater Lakers haters is always reports of okay Giannis wants out of Milwaukee and then the next day he only wants to go to the Knicks the Lakers or that’s the only way you can get a guy like that because you can’t offer him you can’t offer Milwaukee the best package for a guy like that. So in this case yeah that’s what you want out of that Mitch. I guess you want him to somehow, but that doesn’t happen in the NHL. That players don’t force their way onto Yeah. specific teams usually. Uh um you you need you need Lane Hudson though to force his way out of Montreal because he wants to play with Mlin. You know who I really like as a player that will never be traded, probably not recent, not not soon, is Martin Faravari from Washington. He’s a He’s just such a I don’t know. He’s got a lot of well-rounded attributes to him and he’s makes so little money for what he does and brings on the ice. Like he’s like a 2.5 million contract, man. Washington does some good stuff. But he’s not like a dream scenario. He’s just like a that’s a guy you add in that’s going to help you win games kind of thing. So I like it. Vegas does it really well, too. I know everyone hates Vegas, but Vegas, man, like they do the the forwards, like if if if Vegas picks you up off of waiverss as a forward, like you have like at least a 33% chance of signing a multi-year double figure uh eight figure contract within within a couple years of them picking you up from waiverss like Chandler Stevenson. It wasn’t I don’t know if Halen was waivers, but he was pretty pretty down there though, right? Yeah. So they just they have their whole bottom like nine is like Barbashev Nicholas Roy Nicholas Roy is another one. Yeah that wasn’t really Riley Smith Dora Brandon Sad Keegan Kolazar. Hey that’s the best Keegan in the NHL. Um the only Keegan in the NHL. They have just like a bunch of dudes that are really good just gift of that and so that’s something to do with like their their pro scouting or their development but they just they just find guys. So they really do their bottom sixes end up being decent and not expensive. And I was wrong too. I thought that they might drop off a little bit because I didn’t really like Olivess that much, right? Like they this past off season they really went budget on their wings and they figured it out. So, yeah, I was wrong on that. All right, Chris R has a second question, which is would Ferraro take a pay cut to stay in San Jose, right? And I think this one’s a quick one to answer. I think probably not. Like, why? Um, granted, I guess the only reason that that he might do it is because the market tells him that he is a bottom pairing defenseman and so he might he might get like high-end bottom pairing money, whatever that is with the rising cap. But that might be like two and a half or that might be like maybe three million about where he’s making now. But so I guess it’s possible. Uh, but that is if he does that though, that’s not a bargain though because that’s the league telling you that that he’s not a top four defenseman. if he was regarded leaguewide as a top defenseman, he would he’s going to be making six7 million dollars um the during during uh next free agency, but I don’t see that. So, so I guess to answer your question is yeah, maybe yes, because just the market won’t be that strong for him and the Sharks can afford to have a $3 million bottom train defenseman that is great in the room, etc., etc., right? Um, we have while Aragorn is being gifted um the rebuilt uh shards of Narcil blade that cut off Sauron’s fingers. He’s being gifted it from um uh What’s his name? Damn it. The elf. The elf. Legololis. No, the the other elf. The big elf. The the big elf. Oh, Hugo Weaver. Yeah, the guy from Hugo Weaving. Hugo Weaving. The guy from the Matrix. Um I don’t know. He’s being gifted. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter. Damn it. How could I not get this? This is how we’re going to make to to the end of the extended edition, right? Struggling to to make Return of the King uh references. No, my brain is failing me. How do I not know his name? It’s like right now. Oh, Elron. It’s Oh my god. Can’t believe I beat you to it. So, of course, I’m wearing a Superman. All right. He just got gifted the sword, and now he has to go go into the cave and fight the the ghosts in the cave. Anyway, [Music]

The San Jose Hockey Now Podcast is sponsored by Bring Hockey Back!

It’s part 1 of a mega-2025 Draft Lottery mailbag!

Part 1 will focus on how to improve the San Jose Sharks next year, especially on defense.

Part 2 will center on what the Sharks should do with the 2025 No. 2 pick.

Let’s get to the questions!

Falco5: What stats/measurables equate to a “winning” player? (3:25)

Gary To: Would any 2025 or 2026 Draft prospects make the San Jose Sharks this fall?

James R: Thoughts on Mattias Havelid? Guess on whether Joe Pavelski or Logan Couture re-join the Sharks as development coaches or front office staff?

Brucellus: Should Sharks trade for…Erik Karlsson? (23:55)

Ty Comes: What were Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith’s Draft Combine interviews with the Sharks like?

SJShorky: Are there any goalies worth grabbing in the 2025 Draft? Thoughts on Tom Willander?

Connor: Why are there no Draft night trades of players after they get drafted in the NHL a la the NBA?

Joshua Carey: Is there any defenseman that the San Jose Sharks could sign to an offer sheet either this year or next? (47:41)

Daniel Almaraz: Could the Sharks trade for one of the Chicago Blackhawks’ top defensive prospects?

free_slice: Of the “available” defensive trade targets, who do you like, Noah Dobson, Simon Nemec, or Brandt Clarke?

Patrick: What’s the Sharks’ best pathway to upgrading the top-four of their blueline? Trade or free agency? (1:04:45)

CeleBeauty: Who are some 2025 Draft prospects with some snarl?

Steven: If the San Jose Sharks knew how good Mackenzie Blackwood would end up being, do you think they still would have made the Yaroslav Askarov trade?

Miguel Lenhart: Should Sharks target Matt Duchene in free agency? (1:24:54)

Rothgar: Any top European free agents that Sharks can target this off-season?

Chris R: Two dream (but realistic) trades for Mike Grier this summer? Would Mario Ferraro take bottom-pairing money to re-sign with the Sharks?

Part 2 is coming soon!