Anaheim Saved Themselves From A Cap Hit Disaster
The Sharks are swimming into stormy waters as far as their cap space goes. That places them in a win now situation. If they want to win the cup, they have to do it this season because they’re going to be in trouble come summer time.
Currently, the Sharks have less than $2M in cap space. That doesn’t seem like a big issue up front. However, if you take a deep dive into where they stand at the end of the season, things aren’t looking pretty. At the end of the 2018-19 season, San Jose has 13 players that will be at RFA or UFA status.
That is roughly $25M tangled up in 13 contracts. If you add in a deep playoff run or a Stanley Cup, these players are going to want more than what their current contract is worth, which is reasonable. Even if they don’t make it that far, and a player still performed well, he’s going to want a bigger contract.
If Karlsson performs well, he’s going to want his big payday, and reasonably so. Of course, there are always players San Jose can trade so they take less of a cap hit. However, how does that help Joe Pavelski and Joe Thorton?
If the Sharks win a cup, I wouldn’t blame Thorton if he hung up his skates. However, if they don’t, who knows? Gordie Howe was 52 years old when he retired. If he can do it, I have a feeling Jumbo Joe might have a few more years left in him too. If that is the case, he’s going to deserve more than $5M a season.
Pavelski, although a veteran, has been one of the Sharks top point producers since he made his NHL debut during the 2006-07 season. He has stayed consistent and, at 33, he hasn’t slowed down, still flourishing in his prime. His current contract is $6M per year, and he can rightfully argue that he deserves more.
If the Sharks decide to keep Erik Karlsson, and Karlsson wants more than $6.5M per year, either one or both of them is going to have to be moved. Rumor has it, the Sharks are eyeing an 8-year contract extension of EK65. The big question is, do the Sharks really want to move two players who have been with the franchise for years in exchange for Karlsson? If the answer is no, Karlsson is back on the open market. If the answer is yes, there’s trouble ahead.
Why does this matter to the Ducks? Anaheim has roughly $6M in cap space available, with only Nick Ritchie left to possibly sign. They can still use Silfverberg as a bargaining chip to bring in one or more game-changing players if the need arises. The Sharks have absolutely no wiggle room if they don’t find success. Unless they want to call up underdeveloped prospects.
The Anaheim Ducks and GMBM basically saved themselves from a cap hit nightmare. Plus, we get to keep players like Brandon Montour, Cam Fowler, Hampus Lindholm, and any other player whose name might have been thrown out as a bargaining chip. Did we really want to lose all of those players just for a rental? I don’t think so.
While this doesn’t prove that Erik Karlsson wouldn’t have helped the Ducks in their success, it does prove that we were saved from losing a lot and gaining, in my opinion, very little. Although I will touch on this a little later, the Ducks have what is shaping up to be a great blueline. I wouldn’t count them out just yet.