Elliotte Friedman Confirms One Canadian Team Has Contacted The Sharks For Their Star Defensemen

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Skyler Walker
December 18, 2022 (11:31)

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To begin the 2022-23 season, Erik Karlsson has been the NHL's top offensive defenseman. The Sharks are still one of the lowest five teams in the standings, though. The San Jose Sharks, who are trying to rebuild after the Post-Thornton, Marleau, and Pavelski era, don't seem to match well with Karlsson's age. With an average age of 26.62, the sharks are presently the seventh-youngest club in the NHL.

Karlsson's trade value has never been higher at 32 years old, even if he could be in the latter years of his peak productivity. Karlsson would be a terrific acquisition to any club wanting to add a significant senior element to their roster with his 10 goals and 14 assists in 18 games. One team has been actively contacting the San Jose Sharks to try to sign the defender, according to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman.

The Ottawa Senators are that group. It will be incredibly tough for the Senators to sign the highly-coveted defenseman with a $11,500,000 budget charge through 2026-2027, barring the Sharks from keeping payroll.

The Senators now have $3,300,000 in projected cap space, so they would need to rearrange some things if they were to sign this enormous contract. Karlsson played for the Senators for nine seasons until joining the Sharks in 2018, where he rose to fame and produced his most points.

The Senators had a strong start to the season, but they have since cooled off and are now 6-9-1, worst in the Atlantic division. This would be a fantastic opportunity to overhaul the squad's failing defence in an effort to salvage their season because expectations were high for the team this season.