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Sharks purge pending UFAs on
Deadline Day Sheppard, Desjardins and Kennedy
traded
The Sharks and General Manager Doug Wilson
completed a flurry of low end trades on Monday as clock on the NHL's trade
deadline struck zero. Wilson shipped a number of players destined for
unrestricted free agency this summer. James Sheppard, Andrew Desjardins and
Tyler Kennedy all now call themselves former Sharks after they received their
walking papers. In return, San Jose acquired a bevy of draft picks, a 4th line
forward and a prospect.
Not exactly the ground shaking moves on
Wilson's part, but he rids himself of role players that really contributed
little this season. It was unlikely that Wilson was going to re-sign any of the
regular roster players that were traded on Monday, so he got something for
nothing.
The moves (and lack of incoming support) essentially means
the Sharks are throwing in the towel this season. The players and coaches will
go through the customary lip service of saying they're not quitting, but
management has made it clear that San Jose will finish out the regular season
with what remains on the roster, along with some players that need to be
recalled from their development affiliate in Worcester.
San Jose got a
jump on deadline day by sending Sheppard to the New York Rangers on Sunday in
exchange for a 4th round pick this summer. Given New York's strength in the
standings, that pick will likely be late in the round.
Sheppard never
panned out after he was acquired from the Minnesota Wild back in 2011. The
forward was the 9th overall pick in 2006 by the Wild, but fell out of favor
after injuring his knee is an off-ice accident. The Sharks had him recuperate
for all of the 2011-12 season, only to have him play 4 games in Worcester that
year.
He appeared in 156 games for San Jose over the next three
seasons, scoring 10 goals across that span. It was a far cry from the potential
that teams had envisioned for him on draft day in 2006.
Desjardins was
sent to Chicago, in exchange for grinder Ben Smith and a conditional 7th round
pick in 2017. Desjardins made his NHL debut in 2011 for San Jose and went on to
play in 272 games for the club. His 15 goals and 33 assists in four full
seasons didn't equate to the offensive output that San Jose was looking for. He
centerman often found himself on a 3rd or 4th lines, which is where he will
skate in Chicago.
In Smith, the Sharks get a 4th line player who will
eat up minutes and kill penalties. The North Carolina native was the 169th
player taken in the 2008 NHL Draft, and has played in parts of five season for
Chicago. He became a regular in 2013, when he scored 14 goals and added 12
assists in 75 games.
The Sharks desperately need help on the penalty
kill where the team has fallen to 25th in the league.
Kennedy was
essentially given away for nothing. The Sharks will receive either Islanders
7th round pick in 2015 or, Tampa Bay's 7th round pick in 2015 (previously
acquired by Isles). If New York wins the Stanley Cup this season and Kennedy
plays in at least 50% of the games in the Final, the Islanders will instead
provide either their 3rd round pick in 2016 or Vancouver's 3rd round pick
(previously acquired) in 2016.
Anything is possible, so a 3rd round
pick is a possibility, but the odds suggest that San Jose will be utilizing the
long shot 7th rounder.
San Jose also swapped prospects with the
Colorado Avalanche, sending forward Freddie Hamilton to Denver for defenseman
Karl Stollery. Hamilton was Worcester's 3rd leading scorer this season.
In Stollery, the Sharks receive a small blueliner that has appeared in
7 NHL games.
Follow all the deadline day discussion in the
NHL Trade Deadline Thread
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