Upcoming Free Agents

[Slimpikins]

Although next off-season will really be the interesting one I thought I would get the conversation going for this off-season. With the cap going down, and although the Sharks are not in a terrible spot, some choices will need to be made.

Signed next year:
Thornton (7M) - Burns (5.76M)
Couture (2.9M) - Marleau (6.9M) - Havlat (5.0M)
Pavelski (4.0M) - Wingels (775K)
Burish (1.85M)

Stuart (3.6M) - Boyle (6.67M)
Vlasic (4.25M) - Braun (1.25M)
Irwin (1.0M) - Tennyson (1.18M)

Niemi (3.8M)

RFA
Galiardi
Sheppard
Desjardins
Demers

UFA
Torres
Gomez
Kennedy
Hannan
Griess

So my question to you is who do you want to see re-signed and who would you let walk? Keep in mind that the cap drops to 64,300,000 next season. Our current cap hit this year was 66,371,000.

 

[Slimpikins]

I should also add the total for the players already under contract next year is 55,902,000 so we have approximately 8,648,000 in cap space to work with.

*All numbers have been rounded and are not accurate (but they are close enough).

 

[Cbrower91]

Jimmy Howard is off the market oh poo lol Man the red wings screwed the pooch on that one, 6 years for a mid tier goalie ooof

 

[Reefer]

Jimmy Howard is off the market oh poo lol Man the red wings screwed the pooch on that one, 6 years for a mid tier goalie ooof

Yea I've never been that impressed with Howard and 5+ mi extension l for him seemed unnecessary. Makes Nemo at his 3.8 look like a steal.

I'd like to see and assume Galiardi Shep and Desjardins back up front and Demers on the back end. I think one of Demers Braun or Boyle (depending on the playoffs pan out) is gone. I would hope that shep and Desjardins man the 4th line with Burish. I think the rest of the forwards will depend upon if Hertl or Nieto are on the roster. It should end up being an interesting offseason and I wouldn't expect the sharks to be very active in the FA market.

 

[Slimpikins]

I want Sheppard re-signed, he has had flashes this year and coming off of his injury I don't think we've seen him in top form yet.

Demers should still come cheap, and Desi is a solid 4th line guy plus he is willing to drop the gloves.

Where I run into a problem is Galiardi. Sure he has been good the last couple of games but he was also piss poor for long stretches. Depending on his price tag, I may rather see him dealt at the draft. He can forecheck and he has some tools that this team generally lacks, I just question if he can keep up a consistent level of play that justifies that contract.

I say let all the UFA's walk. Even and especially Torres, I know he is effective and helps the team but I think he has no integrity and I would rather look to other options. Gomez we can replace, and the others are nothing special. I think that Stalock should be the back up next year so we won't have space for Greiss.

To make the cap work I think that Boyle is going to be the casualty.

 

[23sharks]

I would bring Torres back in a second. He brings something the Sharks are severely lacking in. As long as plays hard, and not over the line, he is a great addition to this team.
Matt Cooke was a dirty player for many years, but he's cleaned up his act, because he knows he wasn't going to get another chance.
Torres isn't just some head hunter, he's a solid all around player.

 

[Cmon_WTF]

I want Sheppard re-signed, he has had flashes this year and coming off of his injury I don't think we've seen him in top form yet.

Demers should still come cheap, and Desi is a solid 4th line guy plus he is willing to drop the gloves.

Where I run into a problem is Galiardi. Sure he has been good the last couple of games but he was also piss poor for long stretches. Depending on his price tag, I may rather see him dealt at the draft. He can forecheck and he has some tools that this team generally lacks, I just question if he can keep up a consistent level of play that justifies that contract.

I say let all the UFA's walk. Even and especially Torres, I know he is effective and helps the team but I think he has no integrity and I would rather look to other options. Gomez we can replace, and the others are nothing special. I think that Stalock should be the back up next year so we won't have space for Greiss.

To make the cap work I think that Boyle is going to be the casualty.

I'm pretty sure Galiardi will be back. Every time he was put in a scoring line role he flurished. It's when Galiardi was stuck on a line with Burish, Desjardins, or Handzus that he really struggled. Same goes for Sheppard.

If Torres keeps playing the way he is he should be re-signed. I wouldn't mind them keeping Gomez either but I don't think he'll stick around to be the 4th line center.

Barring major PO overachievement I believe Boyle will be moved. If Boyle can return a young top six forward Havlat might be moved as well. Havlat's been solid most of the year but he just hasn't produced enough. It also appears his preferance to play an East/West style game isn't the best fit for the Sharks current straight ahead North/South system.

 

[Slimpikins]

How much do you think Galiardi will get? I wouldn't be opposed to him coming back but I fear Doug will overpay. Maybe his RFA status will keep the cost down.

I would be interested to see what we could get for Havlat but doesn't he have a NTC?

 

[Cmon_WTF]

I'd venture a guess that Galiardi's next contract will be somewhere around the $1.5m per range.

I would expect a very minimal return for Havlat. His lack of production, high cap hit, and NTC will all have a negative effect on his trade value.

 

[RaiderZar]

I'd venture a guess that Galiardi's next contract will be somewhere around the $1.5m per range.

I would expect a very minimal return for Havlat. His lack of production, high cap hit, and NTC will all have a negative effect on his trade value.

Burish = dead weight

I don't think I would want Gomez back either. I have enjoyed his work ethic & attitude during this down side of his career.

 

[MrFlyingV]

I am not a big fan of Demers. Let him go. tennyson can take his spot. All the unrestricteds can go too except one. Only guy I want signed is Torres. Hate the guy when he is not on your team, love him when he is.

 

[Reefer]

I am not a big fan of Demers. Let him go. tennyson can take his spot. All the unrestricteds can go too except one. Only guy I want signed is Torres. Hate the guy when he is not on your team, love him when he is.

I like Tennyson, but I'd be weary of tabbing him to take over for Demers instantly next year. Demers hurt his wrist in Finland which definitely affected his game this year. I personally prefer him to Braun, but you can't just let him go. He could be moved for something or packaged with a draft pick. Problem is his trade value is likely lower right now than I think his talent and potential is worth.

 

[Slimpikins]

If Boyle is traded, does Burns move back to D? I think he would almost have to, otherwise there is an offensive hole on the back end.

 

[sjrules99]

At this point, it's impossible to tell what should happen in the offseason. The key cog Id like to see stay is torres. Maybe something like the deal he got from phoenix in the 2 yr, 2M per range.

Id love to keep gomer but I dont see it happening. He'll want a chance to revive his career, so I would assume he'll be gone. If he would stay for 1.5M or less, Id do it, but I doubt it. Hannan can walk...

Demers, desi, gali, and shep should all be resigned if super cheap. Demers for another 2-3 years at 1.25 per is fine. Desi will resign in the 800k range, which is good. I definitely want to keep him. Shep will be 800k per and Im ok with resigning him at this point if under 1M. Galiardi is the tricky one. He can be a 3M per player or he can be an 800k player depending on the day. I think it depends on his performance from here on out. If he rocks it and the team goes deep and he keeps up the work ethic he's had the last few weeks, then he is a keeper. Still, frustrating as he has been, he's only 24 and he is just now entering his prime. A 3 year deal for 1.25 per would be fine with me. Could be a waste of money, but its a rather small price for a player who could returns to a double digit goal scorer who plays physical and causes problems.

Basically, I would try to resign all of them. The interesting thing will be to see what happens with guys like tarasov, hayes, brace, Nieto, and the other worcester rooks. They have a few forwards who look like they have NHL potential, so leaving one or two roster spots open for those guys to compete in camp wouldnt be so bad.

 

[Cmon_WTF]

Nieto and Hertl are the only prospects with a legit chance of making the team out of camp IMO. Tarasov and Schwartz are long shots to make it out of camp but are likely to see some time with the big club as injury call ups. I haven't seen enough of Hayes to guage where he's at with his developement.

Here's the issues I see that need to be fixed and they all fall on the defense.

1 - Boyle has gone from being effective against other teams top lines to being inconsistant against their bottom ones. His ability to run the PP has fallen off a cliff as well.

2 - There's no way Braun should be part of the team's shutdown pairing. An upgrade needs to be found to pair with Vlasic.

3 - Stuart/Demers pairing needs to be split up. Both are natural right side dmen and both have admitted to being uncomfortable and less effective playing on the left side.