So how will the San Jose Sharks improve this offseason?
Good news. It can't get any worse than this…right? The 2023-24 Sharks are the second-worst team in the salary cap era, with a .287 scoring percentage just behind the 2019-20 Detroit Red Wings' .275. It was better than that.
More good news: The San Jose Sharks are moving forward with projects such as trades and free agency to ensure they have enough cap space to add existing players.
Combined with the salary cap rising to a projected $87.7 million in 2024-25, the Sharks could play for more than $30 million to add four or more forwards and make significant changes to their defense. .
Here's how we arrived at this number:
| forward | 2024-25 |
|---|---|
| Couture, Logan | 8 million dollars |
| Michael Granlund | 5 million dollars |
| Kunin, Luke | 3 million dollars |
| Nico Sturm | 2 million dollars |
| krim costin | 2 million dollars |
| Fabian Zetterlund | $1,450,000 |
| thomas bordeaux | $874,125 |
| William Eklund | $863,333 |
| Smith, Givani | $800,000 |
| total | $23,987,458 |
| defense | 2024-25 |
| Vlasic, Marc-Edouard | 7 million dollars |
| Ferraro, Mario | $3,250,000 |
| Jean Rutta | $2,750,000 |
| Matthew Benning | $1,250,000 |
| Kyle Burrows | $1,100,000 |
| Muhamadullin, Shakir Province | $894,167 |
| henry thrun | $874,125 |
| Ty Emberson | $813,750 |
| total | $17,932,042 |
| goalkeeper | 2024-25 |
| Vanecek, Vitek | $3,400,000 |
| mackenzie blackwood | $2,350,000 |
| total | $5,750,000 |
| buried penalty | 2024-25 |
| Nikolai Knizhov | $100,000 |
| total | $100,000 |
| Retained salary | 2024-25 |
| brent burns | $2.72 million |
| eric carlson | $1,500,000 |
| Thomas Hertl | $1,387,500 |
| total | $5,607,500 |
| buyout | 2024-25 |
| Martin Jones | $1,666,667 |
| total | $1,666,667 |
| 2024-25 total | $55,043,667 |
The Sharks will have a lot of flexibility even if Logan Couture's health is in question.
My guess is that RFAs Luke Kunin and Ty Emberson and 10.2(c) free agents Thomas Bordeaux and Henry Thrun are safe bets to return. For their cap hit, just enter the qualifying offer. Their new contract shouldn't be far off from that, even if it's more than just a QO.
For depth, San Jose could also bring back RFAs Filip Zadina, Jack Studnitska and Karen Addison, or UFAs Justin Bailey, Ryan Carpenter and Jacob McDonald. No one will go bankrupt if they come back.
They also added top prospect Shaquille Mukamadulin to the NHL Opening Day roster.
So, with so much space, who can the San Jose Sharks add this summer?
That's another story, but Daily Faceoff's Top 50 free agent rankings released today might give you a hint.
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