What Should Sharks Expect Back for Renting Out Their Cap Space? | SJHN+

It’s the Trade Deadline and Doug Wilson is open for business.

But apparently, it will be a different kind of business than San Jose Sharks fans are accustomed to around this time. Instead of pushing in his chips to win the chip, Wilson will be collecting assets in an unusual way this Apr. 12.

Per Pierre LeBrun: “San Jose has told teams it has cap space for rent. The Sharks have more than $6 million in cap space and are seeking to leverage that into an asset or two. Keep an eye on them potentially being that third team in a complicated cap deal to facilitate trades.”

This type of three-way trade occurred last Trade Deadline when Chicago sent Robin Lehner to Vegas. Because the Golden Knights couldn’t take on Lehner’s entire cap hit, Toronto stepped in as a middle-man, retaining 50 percent of Lehner’s hit and getting a fifth-round pick from Vegas for helping the Golden Knights stay cap-compliant.

This was the complete transaction: The Blackhawks got Malcolm Subban, prospect Stanislav Demin, and a second-round pick from the Golden Knights. The Maple Leafs got Lehner from Chicago and a fifth-round pick from Vegas. Toronto then shipped Lehner, 22 percent cap hit retained, to Vegas, along with prospect Martins Dzierkals.

Will Wilson receive a little more for his trouble than the Maple Leafs did? Remember, last Trade Deadline, there wasn’t a flat salary cap and the pandemic hadn’t sapped revenues yet. In theory, the San Jose Sharks’ ability to take on money is more valuable now than it would’ve been last year.

Hart Levine of Puckpedia thinks so.