The chatter has grown, and not only in volume, but in urgency. San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson keeps shining this season and rumours have made him one of the most coveted targets on the trade market ahead of the March 3rd deadline. And this, despite what’s left of his hefty contract with its four-plus seasons at an $11.5 million cap hit. Pierre LeBrun reported on last night’s Insider Trading on TSN that the deal has not stopped rival teams from investigating about Karlsson’s price and revealed how some have called the Sharks to talk trade.
“Well, Karlsson has continued to have a torrid season and what’s happened subsequently – we can confirm that teams have engaged with the San Jose Sharks about what a trade could look like. I still think it’s more likely this waits until the off-season, if at all. Karlsson has a full no-move … but the noteworthy aspect here is that teams have called and have talked to San Jose about Erik Karlsson.”
As LeBrun points out, this may be too big of a transaction for general managers to take on ahead of March 3rd and fans might have to wait until the summer to see Karlsson move.
So far, the Sharks star defenseman has been linked to his former team, the Ottawa Senators, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Edmonton Oilers, even the New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Calgary Flames. There are rumours that Karlsson would love to return to Canada and therefore, the Montreal Canadiens could also jump into the mix.
We get why Karlsson has garnered a lot of interest in trade chatter. He leads all NHL defensemen in goals (13) and points (55), and ranks seventh among NHL skaters in points. Rasmus Dahlin scored his 13th goal of the season, tying Karlsson for the most by a defenseman this year.
While a move is expected to occur in the offseason, per LeBrun’s point of view, Karlsson remains in control with a no-movement clause in his contract.
Recommended articles:
