Sharks acquire forward from cap-strapped Panthers; Grier talks Karlsson, Couture, Hertl

The San Jose Sharks made one major move Saturday on the first day of NHL free agency but three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson remained with the team – at least for the time being.

The Sharks acquired forward Anthony Duclair from the Florida Panthers in exchange for center Steven Lorentz and a 2025 fifth-round draft pick. Dialogue between the two teams began at the NHL trade deadline and picked up again earlier this week, Sharks general manager Mike Grier said.

Duclair, who turns 28 in August, is entering the final year of a three-year, $9 million contract he signed with the Panthers in 2021. He is coming off a season in which he had nine points in 20 regular season games and 11 points in 20 playoff games as Florida advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.

The addition of Duclair could fill a sizable hole in the Sharks’ top-six forward group that was left behind when 40-goal scorer Timo Meier was traded to New Jersey in February.

“He’s someone who scored pretty consistently in the last few years of his career, and he’s shown that he can play with pace and play with good players and produce,” Grier said, “I would say he’s gonna have every opportunity to be in the top six.”

Duclair has surgery to repair an Achilles tendon injury he suffered last summer while off-season training but had 31 goals and 27 assists the year before when Florida won the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s top regular season team.

In nine seasons, Duclair has 261 points in 490 games and 14 points in 34 playoff games. He averaged just under 15 minutes of ice time per game last season

Prior to the trade, the Panthers had just over $600,000 in salary cap space with 23 players on the roster, per CapFriendly. The Sharks, conversely, had about $7.6 million in cap space before the trade and the flexibility to make a move.

Duclair will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this upcoming season, giving the rebuilding Sharks a potential trade chip at or near next year’s trade deadline if they are out of the playoff picture by that time.

“It’s definitely kind of a feeling out period for us — and for him to see if he likes it here and see how the fit is — and for us to see how he fits in with the group,” Grier said of Duclair. “But with his age and the speed he plays with — we want to get faster and we obviously need to replace some goalscoring with Timo gone.  So he checks a lot of boxes for us, so he is someone that could grow with us down the road.”

The rebuilding Sharks also signed goalie Mackenzie Blackwood and forward Fabian Zetterlund, both RFAs, to two-year contracts and signed winger Givani Smith and defenseman Kyle Burroughs, to two and three-year deals, respectively, as free agents. The Sharks also signed forwards Ryan Carpenter and Scott Sabourin to two-way contracts.

Early Saturday, a report from Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic indicated that the Carolina Hurricanes, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Seattle Kraken were continuing to have dialogue with the Sharks regarding Karlsson, who is coming off a 101-point season and has requested a trade to more of a Stanley Cup contending team.

All three of those teams added defensemen on the first day of NHL free agency, but the Hurricanes, at least, are believed to still be interested In Karlsson.

Karlsson is entering the fifth year of an eight-year, $92 million deal that carries an average annual value of $11.5 million and a full no-movement clause, and any team seeking to acquire Karlsson will certainly need the Sharks to retain a portion of Karlsson’s cap hit. Although Grier has all but ruled out keeping 50 percent — the maximum any team can retain in a trade – it stands to reason that the more money the Sharks keep on their books, the better the return will be.

There is no guarantee a Karlsson deal will get done before the start of Sharks training camp in September, but both Grier and Karlsson’s camp appear to be motivated to resolve the matter.

“It’s been something that we’ve been working on and Erik and his camp have been working on,” Grier said. “The teams that have shown interest … we’ve had some dialogue. So I think it’s just kind of a work in progress here, and we’ll keep chipping away at it.”

Amid speculation that teams have inquired about Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl, Grier said he has no interest in moving either player right now.

“Logan’s everything I’m looking for and the organization is looking for in a player and person,” Grier said. He did a great job leading the group last year. I know it wasn’t easy for him.”

“Tomas is one of the leaders, someone that all the players look up to,” Grier added. “I know for him personally, he wasn’t satisfied with this season. He looks great. He’s put in the time (in the gym) and I think he’s ready to have a really solid bounce-back season and get back to the player we all know we can be.”