San Jose Sharks
What’s Next for Skinner? Sharks Winger Understands Roster Crunch, But Wants To Play
Where does Jeff Skinner go from here?
The San Jose Sharks winger has been a healthy scratch for two weeks. It’s a tough spot for a veteran winger who’s a six-time 30 goal scorer and was signed to a one-year, $3 million contract over the summer.
“The last few games I played, I felt like I was contributing positively to the team,” Skinner said. “I don’t know. Two weeks ago, I don’t think I forgot how to play. I think that I’m pretty confident in myself to be able to contribute at this level.”
In Skinner’s support, he had two goals and six points in his last six games, from Dec. 31 to Jan. 11. He’s been scratched since then, for five contests and counting.
He knows the problem: The San Jose Sharks have a logjam of talented wingers, not to mention Phillip Kurashev and recently-acquired Kiefer Sherwood soon to return from injured reserve. Veterans Adam Gaudette and Ryan Reaves have sat recently. Star rookie Igor Chernyshov, right after a two-assist effort at the Florida Panthers, was sent down.
“I’m aware of the roster situation,” the 33-year-old said, when asked if he had asked for a trade. “I’m aware of the amount of young guys here, and sort of where I fit in the big picture. Again, I’m not in control that. So, I just come to practice, and practice. Things [that] go on like that [are] between managers or agents. I think as a player, I just worry about playing or practicing.”
Skinner has a full No-Trade Clause through Jan. 30, and an eight-team Trade List after that.
Skinner has six goals and 13 points in 33 contests this season, battling healthy scratches and a mid-November lower-body injury.
“I think everyone saw I was playing sort of a little bit up and down,” Skinner lamented. “[I felt] like I could get to another level. Then I got injured and come back from injury, and same thing, just up and down. And then I [felt] like I was starting to find some rhythm, and starting to find my game, and now we’re here.”
Sherwood and Kurashev are expected to return on the San Jose Sharks’ upcoming road trip, so an update on the pending UFA’s future should come soon. Until then, the veteran winger is focused on what he can control.
“I think any player wants to play,” Skinner said. “I feel like my game is in a decent spot, it is what it is. As players, people always talk about, ‘You just control what you can control.’ And for me, that’s what I focus on every day.”
It’s a numbers game. Like he says his game has been up and down. I hope he finds a good landing spot, seems like a good soldier through it all.
He was definitely signed as “where we will find goals next year is uncertain and he’s still laying out there in free agency, maybe he will take some of our money” guy. So when things worked out without him, no surprise he is the one on the outside.
No demand for him in free agency, so not much in trade. Who’s a playoff team with a bunch of injured forwards with a 4th round pick to spare?
Even though Skinner’s individual game has been up and down, I really just think he was done in by circumstances pushing Dellandrea to 3C. He’s spent about half his 5on5 time with Dellandrea and those minutes are UGLY. His minutes away from Dellandrea have been much better.
With – 160 TOI, 23.1% GF, 35.6% xGF, 36.6% SF, 36.7% FF, 38.6% CF
Without – 173 TOI, 50% GF, 51.6% xGF, 49.4% SF, 47.3% FF, 48.3% CF
I remember when he signed or shortly before, I saw someone point out some metric he was good in last year for the Oilers, and that it was therefore kinda funny how people were paying other guys and leaving him on the shelf. I have referenced before that he’s been killed by playing with a center who provides zero offense as well, but I am not totally sold he’s a winning player. I like stats and analytics but still regard hockey as a sport very difficult to analyze that way and will override some things based on my eyes. It’s… Read more »
Right now the difference between Celebrini and the rest of the team has a lot of folks ready to vote him the Hart winner, so it’s not entirely wrong. But I think the young guys are catching up, with Graf, Smith, and Chernyshov, while Eklund and Toffoli seem to be getting over some injuries and starting to play better too. I expect Misa to continue his mini jump over the last few games and start to show real promise as well. It’s possible that he will be the true 2C by the end of the year, but having Wennberg as… Read more »
Honestly, if Dellandrea is ready after the Olympics I think they’d give him 3C back and go back to development year for Misa.
Which would be one bad sign. Then there is whether they make a proactive effort to have Dellandrea on the team next year, and what they pay him for it. If that happens, it’s DEFCON 1.
I don’t think that is the plan at all. They kept Misa up to develop and I think Dellandrea either gets traded or waived. The team moved Kunin and Sturm last year, I think Skinner and Dellandrea probably go for similar low prices this year.But they didn’t send draft capital and clear a roster spot to stall Misa’s growth, I think we all have to show more faith than that. Even if you question the Sherwood trade, you have to likely concede it makes the team better this year, so there is some reason to do it, even if you… Read more »
I don’t think Misa would be playing near as much if Dellandrea wasn’t hurt. Misa staying with the NHL team, when it was officially announced, was phrased as this being a development year for him, better to be up here hanging around than going to junior. I don’t think he’d be in the lineup too much if Dellandrea was healthy. He’d need to play some, but I am confident Dellandrea would be the primary 3C. I’ve had plenty of good things to say about Grier. I don’t really know why you’re so hung up in almost every post saying we… Read more »
Correct me if I am remembering incorrectly, but wasn’t Dellandrea the 4C before Misa got hurt? Maybe Dellandrea played a little 3C along with Gaudette as Misa was being brought along slowly (like Smith last year) – also further complicated by the 50 contract situation. And it was after Misa got hurt that Dellandrea went primarily to 3C and Chucky got called up to take over 4C? I don’t think Dellandrea has ever been a priority over Misa, and I don’t think he will be when he comes back unless Misa is playing badly enough where they can’t even justify… Read more »
Yes you’re correct. Dellandrea started the year at 4C then moved up to 3C when Misa got hurt. Ostapchuk was called up and became 4C.
Agreed.
I hope so, but to be completely accurate, Misa was scratched the first two games and Dellandrea was 3C and Gaudette 4C. After that, Misa played most of the games, some center and a few as wing. Dellandrea spent time on third and fourth lines until Misa was injured. Maybe being confident Dellandrea would be getting 3C reps now is going a little overboard, but they are weird about him and Goodrow. And in the time between Misa getting hurt and coming back from WJC the team went from another disaster to playoff contender, so it’s quite possible the priorities… Read more »
Misa didn’t line up at wing at all this season until one of the most recent games when they threw him up with Celly.
I’m not sure Delly gets traded but I do agree he likely gives way to Misa at 3c. No way will Misa be a 2C this season though.
Given the mixing and matching in the second and third lines I just don’t see any real point in any labels for those guys other than “middle six”.
Funny I just wrote a longer post saying the same thing when I could have just put a “!!” emoji on this one. The optimists and the pessimists are coming together!
3c means less minutes. Celly and Wenny will get the most.
I will not worry about a distinction between 2C and “playing like a 2C” at this time. The middle 6 right now feels pretty interchangeable and if the minutes are pretty close, it won’t matter. Maybe the team gives the Wennberg line the tougher matchups like they’ve been doing all year, but we could see the Misa line holding their own defensively while being a whole lot more dangerous offensively by the end of the year. And if the minutes are about the same, it won’t matter which wingers are 2nd or 3rd liners either. Yes, I know I’m an… Read more »
Pretty horrible position to be in, right? 1 clear cut first line and 2 second lines? By this time next season, or by TDL next season, it’s possible that there could be a clear cut 3rd line and 2 interchangeable 1st lines. That is the optimist in me, and the potential I see this team having in the next year or so.
They don’t feel interchangeable at all to me. Misas line has to be given soft starts, and Wenberg gets significantly more.
Right. And I’m saying I think it will be a whole lot closer at year end
I think you’re underselling Wendy’s role.
More just belief in Misa
Those are interesting numbers! Thanks for taking the time to put them together for us. I really value Dellandrea this year, but those numbers do at least tell us that he’s not a great compliment to Skinner’s offense.
Is it possible that Dellandrea is good at being a 3rd line depth guy, and Skinner isn’t effective unless he plays higher in the lineup?
I actually think Sherwood might finally be the guy who means healthy scratches for Goodrow. If Sherwood can replace Goodrow’s PK minutes, that would probably make the rest of his role extremely replaceable as well. I’m not suggesting Sherwood is a 4th liner, but it would possibly mean Dellandrea could be an upgrade on Goodrow’s 4th line wing minutes while Sherwood could make an impact on the top line, and possibly adding physicality to Misa’s line. Post-Olypics, perhaps something like: Smith-Celebrini-Graf Toffoli-Wennberg-Eklund Sherwood-Misa-Chernyshov Dellandrea-Ostapchuk-Reaves/Goodrow Kurashev and Gaudette might mix in on some nights and be insurance in case of injury.… Read more »
Sherwood is going to play in the top 6. They aren’t saddling their shiny new toy with a rookie center before he re-signs.
It’s crowded in the top 6
Cherny is back down, so I would assume Sherwood takes his place (not on the top line, but in the top 6).
I still can’t figure out the timing on the Chernyshov move. According to puckpedia, they have only 22 rostered players. I suppose they did it so he could play with the Cuda and get Gaudette or somebody back in the NHL lineup. But it’s a little mysterious… Will Kurashev be back tonight? Boy, the Canucks are having a year. Demko is done for the season and they just put Buium and Boeser on IR, too. The Sharks are playing a skeleton crew tonight and it’s a game they really need to go in and dominate if they are going to… Read more »
Not really. Eklund, Graf or Toffoli can all easily be moved down. All 3 are better 3rd liners than top 6 anyway.
If SJ is serious about retaining Sherwood, yeah they aren’t going to play him on Misa’s line this year. If Sherwood sticks after the TDL, and if Chernyshov comes back up as some have considered, I could see Sherwood and Graf swapping lines in kads example line up. Even though the 3rd line would be mostly rookies, I could see how it might give other teams a challenge as the regular season closes out. Although…Graf pushing Toffoli down to the 3rd line would be an interesting experiment.
With everyone healthy this is how I see it…
Sherwood-Celebrini-Smith
Graf-Wennberg-Toffoli
Eklund-Misa-Regenda
Goodrow-Ostapchuk-Gaudette
Delly, Kurashev & Reaves swapped in for specific matchups or for injuries.
Delly, Kurashev, Guadette and Eklund should all be considered trade targets to get the number down. I think UpChuck gets sent down unless they’re trading some of those 4 in a big move for a defenseman. I think it’s very possible the roster is dramatically different after the TDL. Might hurt their playoff chances this season but next season they’ll be better for it.
I think it’s a combo of Dellandrea isn’t a 4th line guy who can’t play up and Skinner is best suited to play in the Top 6 with other skilled players.
I think I know what you meant, that Dellandrea is a fourth liner, right?
Yeah I accidentally did a double negative there. I meant Dellandrea is either a 4th line guy who can’t play up or isn’t a 4th line guy who can play up.
He isn’t not a 4th liner!!
D-man Carson Soucy traded to the Rangers. Gets a 3rd from the Isles.
Same cap number as Mario. Bit of a different profile, as he’s big. But similar numbers. 8pts +4 in 17min per game. Mario is 12 pts, -2 at 20min per game. Soucy has blocked 66 shots, Mario 95.
Thats a very low price.
If that will be the market for Ferraro he is not going anywhere.
Doesn’t matter he signs or not.
The market could heat up closer to 3/6, but getting a 1st for Mario doesn’t seem super likely now. A 2nd would seem doable, but Grier might not feel that return is worth the impact in the room. My assumption is he’s not getting traded. I also don’t think the team can do longer than 2 or 3 years for him, since his value in the league is pretty established and capped, and it won’t go up if his contract is 60% more than it has been. Orlov, Dickinson, Mukhamadullin, Sahlin Wallenius, and Cagnoni can probably hold it down next… Read more »
How sold are we on Cagnoni (I haven’t seen him play this year, so I am asking)? There was a lot of hype around him last season, but this year it feels more like a whisper. And when it becomes a whisper, it often means a guy hasn’t taken the next step that was hoped for. And the few whispers I have heard have suggested there isn’t much difference between his game last season and this season. But maybe the logjam is also contributing to the quiet – obviously there has been no room for him at the NHL level.… Read more »
I’ve only been to one Cuda game this year, so my opinion on Cagnoni isn’t too up to date, but if he’s not as offensively skilled as Lane Hutson and yet still the same size, I see some fundamental issues in his future. But if he’s LHD5, I’m ok with that. And if they trade for a major LHD, he could be bumped further.
GMMG said the rest of the AHL has figured Cags out so he’s just doing good-ok rather than dominating and he likely will get pulled into the big club if the team needs a PP QB, which doesn’t look like its this year.
Love Cags but I could definitely see him moved out as part of a deal for a better defenseman.
sharks aren’t gonna move mario at the deadline unless someone offers up the 1st that grier and co have presumably set his price at. since no one will pay that they’ll just keep him since his minutes munching and pking are vital to whatever counts as “success” for this weak d corps
I doubt it’s going to take that.
fwiw, my guess is Skinner gets put in position to succeed for a couple of games to show his value. Then GMMG moves him if he can. Or waives him if he can’t.
Learning from the Goodrow situation with the Rangers, you give Skinner a chance to select from destinations that have interest in him and that he has interest in. Waiving him is the last item in a sequence of events.
How can they put him in two games where he can succeed? They’re supposed to mess with the top line for a couple games so he can hopefully score playing with Celebrini? That makes no sense.
Skinner won’t have trade protection in a few days, it’s not analogous to Goodrow at all.
And no, it’s not important that he does Skinner that solid, and it won’t make the Sharks more attractive to other players if he does so.
If he plays on a line with Misa and Eklund or Regenda, that’d be the opportunity. Sufficient ice time with offensively good players against teams weaker defensive lines. He’s not getting on Macklin’s line and putting him on Wennberg’s line means playing against other team’s top lines/pairs. So give him the best 3rd line you can and see if that helps get him moved. I do think it matters that you give veterans that shot. Its good for the room, good karma and good vibes in a tricky situation. Also, Skinner goes from NTC to an 8 team trade list.… Read more »
And Goodrow got waived and went to the worst team in the league. My guess is Skinner’s real list is any other team in the hunt. I’m sure that Grier is treating it as such. And if there’s nothing brewing with the top 20 teams, they will waive him. Not a big deal, it’s only Hasso’s couch cushion money
agree completely with Zeke on this Al G. If they put Skinner in, it won’t be on the top line. If they can trade Skinner for anything, great. Helps Skinner. He will very likely accept a trade anywhere, bc his best chance to get an NHL contract next year is to finish this year strong. And he can’t do that from the press box. If they can’t trade him and end up waiving him, so be it. The league has spoken, his value is obviously limited given how the last two seasons have gone for him. It does matter how… Read more »
Good video on nominal trade value of various players rumored on the trade block
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kfPc9k0kC4
Mario is the lone Shark in this, the debate was between a rd 2 pick and and 3 pick.
Interesting placement for Troceck — probably the most comparable guy to Wennberg — in the ‘1st rd + something’ category. His value rising because Wennberg is off the market.