San Jose Sharks
REPORT: Friedman Squashes Meier Trade Rumor, Says Sharks “Like” Dvorak
Elliotte Friedman squashed one San Jose Sharks trade rumor and started another in today’s 31 Thoughts podcast.
“I heard some rumblings about Timo Meier and New Jersey,” Friedman shared. “Those were flatly denied to me. Someone said you’re way off, don’t go down that road.”
Per San Jose Hockey Now’s sources, other NHL teams aren’t generally enamored with Meier’s contract. The 24-year-old winger has two years left at a $6 million dollar AAV and is coming off consecutive disappointing campaigns.
What would a potential Meier trade look like? What are #SJSharks looking for in a 3C? Will we see Eklund in teal sooner rather than later? @Sheng_Peng joins the @lockedonsharks guys to talk about all this & free agency: https://t.co/XTrusfCByn
— San Jose Hockey Now (@sjhockeynow) July 27, 2021
Instead, Friedman connected the San Jose Sharks with another young forward.
25-year-old Christian Dvorak is two years into a six-year, $26.7 million contract. That’s a $4.45 million cap hit.
The Arizona Coyotes are rebuilding: In just the last two weeks, they’ve sent out stars Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Conor Garland, and Darcy Kuemper for mostly expiring contracts and draft picks.
“I’ve heard Dvorak [talked about] a ton,” Friedman said. “He’s a physical, banging center who can get points. Those guys are hard to find. There’s a lot of teams out there that really like him.”
Friedman named San Jose, Calgary, Minnesota, Montreal, and the Rangers as among those teams.
That said, Friedman did not indicate that the Sharks were engaged in active trade discussions with the Coyotes regarding Dvorak. At the moment, the San Jose Sharks are three deep in top-nine pivots with Tomas Hertl, Logan Couture, and recently-signed Nick Bonino. Acquiring Dvorak would probably mean shifting one of those centers to wing.
Maybe acquiring Dvorak made more sense for San Jose — in terms of roster construction and salary cap allocation — before free agency? I wonder if the Sharks checked in on Dvorak in lieu of Bonino?
On the other hand, Dvorak is a young, accomplished forward on a reasonable contract. He’s the kind of player, if he’s available, that you’re always interested in. Young centermen who consistently average a point every two games, win more than half their faceoffs, and can be used in all situations aren’t a dime a dozen.
Either way, Dvorak isn’t coming cheap. But good news for the resetting San Jose Sharks, or whichever club nabs him — based on Arizona’s M.O. so far this off-season, they’re motivated to move him, and a combination of picks or prospects should do the trick.
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I like Dvorak, especially if the price is right (Labanc?). Personally, it has seemed like a wise move for a while now to push Couture over to wing at this point in his career. He could also take Kane’s spot if/when his contract is terminated.
Couture-Hertl-Barabanov
Meier-Dvorak-Balcers
Dahlen-Bonino-Leonard
Cogliano-Gambrell/Pederson-Nieto
That doesn’t look too terrible to me.
Great job as always, Sheng!
Moving Couture to wing isn’t a terrible idea, but not seeing why Arizona would want Labanc. Close term for a more expensive, less valuable player.
[…] Elliotte Friedman squashed one San Jose Sharks trade rumor and started another in today’s 31 Thoughts podcast. “I heard some rumblings about Timo Meier and New Jersey,” Friedman shared. “Those were flatly denied to me. Someone said you’re way off, don’t go down that road.” (San Jose Hockey Now) […]
[…] San Jose: Sheng Peng’s sources say the Timo Meier trade talk has dried up because of his hefty contract. […]
[…] REPORT: Friedman Squashes Meier Trade Rumor, Says Sharks “Like” Dvorak […]
[…] San Jose: Sheng Peng’s sources say the NHL commerce chatter round Timo Meier has gone south because of his hefty contract. […]
Hey DW, make it happen. Trade Meier and a draft pick. It is worth it.
Arizona might consider that. Timo has a shorter contract and could pay off big for Arizona — if he reaches potential in desert, they can re-route him for a handsome package. On San Jose’s side, I’d think about it — but probably not. Timo’s potential is still too enticing to trade for just a safe 15-20 goal guy like Dvorak
[…] San Jose: Sheng Peng’s sources say the NHL trade chatter around Timo Meier has gone south because of his hefty contract. […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] jose hockey now Sheng Peng cites Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet dismissed rumors that the Sharks might consider trading Timo May to […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking […]
Dvorak would look good in teal. If he’s gettable, get him. It won’t cost what Eichel’s price tag is. Thank t would help our center issue for a long time.
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking about […]
[…] Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman squashing a rumor that the Sharks were potentially thinking […]
[…] SAN JOSE HOCKEY NOW: Sheng Peng cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman quashing a rumor linking Sharks winger Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils. “Those were flatly denied to me,” said Friedman. “Someone said you’re way off, don’t go down that road.” […]
[…] Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey NOW: As far as Timo Meier, San Jose killed this quickly. […]
[…] Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey NOW: So far as Timo Meier, San Jose killed this rapidly. […]
[…] Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey NOW: As far as Timo Meier, San Jose killed this quickly. […]
[…] Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey NOW: As far as Timo Meier, San Jose killed this quickly. […]
[…] first discusses the Adin Hill contract then is joined by Erik to determine if the San Jose Sharks should try and acquire Christian Dvorak. We look at what type of player Dvorak is, how he could contribute (5:00), and whether or not he […]