Report: Balcers, Sharks Have Began Contract Negotiations

Rudolfs Balcers told Sportacentrs’ Ulvis Brože last week that he’s began contract negotiations with the San Jose Sharks.

The 24-year-old RFA enjoyed a breakout campaign this season after San Jose claimed him on waivers in January, posting eight goals and 17 points in 41 games.

“Everything is in the start-up phase — nothing serious yet,” Balcers told Brože last week. “We’ll see what happens in the coming weeks. We’ve been talking for a while, but we haven’t got very far. I’ll talk with my agent in the next few days and we’ll go through it all.”

Brože himself confirmed this translation of Balcers’s quote to San Jose Hockey Now.

So what kind of contract should we expect the Latvian winger and the San Jose Sharks to sign his off-season? We took a guess, based on recent comps, here:

Quick Thoughts: What Will Free Agents Balcers, Barabanov Cost Sharks?

Balcers also told Brože that he wouldn’t be representing Latvia at the World Championships later this month. This might be a surprise, considering that Latvia is the host country.

“We’re still trying to figure stuff out,” Balcers told the San Jose Sharks press corps two weeks ago, when asked about suiting up in the Latvian red.

“If there was a contract, I would play right away,” the free agent shared with Brože. “I talked to my agent for a long time. We came to the conclusion that we can’t take risks in this situation.”