Which Goalies Could Be Available to Sharks Via Waivers? (+)

Could the San Jose Sharks find their No. 3 goalie via waivers this fall?

It’s possible, but far from a guarantee — and it’s in part because of some very particular waiver rules.

Regardless, there should be some intriguing goaltending prospects who will need waivers this fall. And there are ways for the San Jose Sharks to acquire one of them to fill that critical No. 3 spot, Barracuda starter and go-to Sharks’ call-up.

“That No. 3 goaltender, somebody that we would be looking at, would have more of a prospect flavor to them,” Cuda GM Joe Will told the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast last week. “Probably a little bit younger and you could grow with for a little while, as opposed to somebody maybe for one year.”

Here are some of the more interesting netminding prospects who might be available via waivers this fall, and some of the hoops that the Sharks will have to navigate to acquire them.

First, here’s the full list of currently-signed goalies who are subject to waivers this fall. Most, of course, will be on final opening night NHL rosters, each team will have two to three goalies, so you’ll never actually see them on waivers.

A few names stand out who could hit waivers before opening night.

Olivier Rodrigue

The Edmonton Oilers will need to make a decision on their 2018 second-rounder, who’s played some solid hockey for the Bakersfield Condors for the last two seasons, to the tune of a .914 Save %.

Stuart Skinner is their clear No. 1, so it looks like Rodrigue and Calvin Pickard will be battling it out for No. 2 in camp.

If Edmonton waives Rodrigue, last place last year San Jose is first in line to claim the 24-year-old. In fact, the Sharks will get first claim off waivers, because of their 2023-24 finish, until Nov. 1.

Here’s the problem though: Players who are claimed off waivers are expected to remain on the NHL roster all year — and the Sharks, like most teams, aren’t likely to carry a third goalie all season along with Mackenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek.

If San Jose claimed Rodrigue, they could try to sneak him back through waivers to the Cuda, but waiver order still applies, so another team interested in Rodrigue can claim him, with the same stipulation that he must remain on the NHL roster all season.

Here’s the wrinkle: If Rodrigue reaches his original team Edmonton on waivers, they could re-claim him and assign him directly to the AHL without repeating the waiver process.

In this scenario, chances are, the Oilers take him back.

So how can the San Jose Sharks acquire Rodrigue, or another goalie with the same waiver status, and send him to the AHL without exposing him to waivers?

Let’s use another goalie prospect that the Sharks could claim as an example.

Kevin Mandolese

Alexandar Georgiev and Justus Annunen are clearly ahead of recently-signed Mandolese on the Colorado Avalanche depth chart.

It appears that Mandolese, who’s bounced around between the AHL and ECHL in the Ottawa Senators organization for the last four years, should compete with Trent Miner for playing time on the Colorado Eagles.

Anyway, like Rodrigue, the San Jose Sharks aren’t likely to keep Mandolese on the NHL roster for a full season. So claiming him off waivers doesn’t make much sense.

Once again, chances are, the Avs just take Mandolese back if possible.

But here’s how the Sharks could acquire a Mandolese and stash him in the minors.

Once Mandolese clears waivers, San Jose could trade for him.

Why trade for a player when you could’ve just claimed him off waivers?

Jack Studnicka was an example of this last year.

In November, the Vancouver Canucks waived Studnicka, and he cleared.

Once a player clears waivers during the season, if you trade for him, you can automatically assign him to the AHL.

So when the San Jose Sharks traded for Studnicka in December, they gained the ability to assign him directly to the Barracuda without waivers, which they did after a brief stint on the NHL club.

So the Sharks could trade for Rodrigue or Mandolese after they clear waivers, then send them to the Cuda without repeating the waiver process.

Jakub Skarek

Rodrigue would be the ideal get for the San Jose Sharks, a true No. 3 with some upside — but by the same token, there’s no reason for the Oilers to deal him, unless the Sharks overpay. He’s also an ideal No. 3 for them too.

Mandolese may not have the same upside, but the Avalanche don’t have a ton of options past him and Miner, so they probably wouldn’t be inclined to trade him for anything less than an overpayment either.

So if you’re the Sharks, you’re looking for a goalie prospect who doesn’t necessarily have a spot next year.

Jakub Skarek, 24, New York Islanders’ 2018 third-round pick, has played five unremarkable campaigns for the Bridgeport Islanders, never cracking a .900 Save %.

Skarek’s got one year left on his contract, and on the surface, it looks like the Isles have moved on, with newly-signed veteran Marcus Hogberg and prospect Henrik Tikkanen likely ahead of him.

While Skarek’s career .891 AHL Save % is nothing to write home about, he’s got 139 AHL games under his belt, far more experience than second-year Barracuda goalies Magnus Chrona or Georgi Romanov. He could at least provide some solid competition and mentorship for the less experienced netminders.

So the Sharks could claim him off waivers, without much worry that the Islanders would reclaim him. Or should San Jose let him clear waivers, the cost in trade wouldn’t be high.

Question here is if San Jose likes the 24-year-old’s upside at all. If they do, he’s a cheap roll of the dice.

If they don’t, maybe the San Jose Sharks will have to look beyond waivers for their No. 3 goalie.

Ales Stezka

Here’s one more intriguing goalie who might be available via waivers this fall.

Stezka, 27, is too old to be a prospect. A veteran of the Czech league, he excelled in his first pro North American campaign, backing up Chris Driedger during the Coachella Valley Firebirds’ run to the Calder Cup Final.

Driedger is gone, leaving the Firebirds’ crease to Stezka and AHL rookie Victor Ostman.

That is, if Stezka clears waivers — Joey Daccord and Philipp Grubauer appear to be ahead of him on the Seattle Kraken depth chart.

But once again, like Rodrigue and Mandolese, unless San Jose is prepared to give Stezka an NHL job, this isn’t a likely option for them.