SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky has extolled the virtues of Mikael Granlund this week, mentioning the veteran forward’s value to the team both on the ice and in the locker room.
“He kind of does it all,” Warsofsky said of Granlund before the Sharks’ season opener Thursday against the St. Louis Blues. “He’s a smart player. He can create offense, but he’s also really good defensively. He’s on the penalty kill and the power play and plays in all situations.”
Now it’s a matter of whether the Sharks want to keep Granlund in San Jose or if this is his final season in a teal uniform.
The versatile forward is one of eight pending unrestricted free agents the Sharks have on their active roster right now, as he’s in the final year of a four-year, $20 million deal he signed with the Nashville Predators in July 2021.
Granlund was the Sharks’ leading scorer last season with 60 points, including 48 assists, in 69 games. He also led all of the team’s forwards in average time on ice (20:58) during a dismal 19-54-9 year.
Granlund’s value is clear, but what remains unclear is whether the Sharks would want to sign him past this season — perhaps to a deal with some term — or see what the market is for him as the NHL’s trade deadline in March starts to approach. Granlund, who came to San Jose as part of the deal that sent Erik Karlsson to Pittsburgh in Aug. 2023, has no trade protection in his contract.
Still, trading Granlund, now in his 13th NHL season, could be tricky considering his $5 million cap hit and the fact that the Sharks do not have any salary retention spots remaining, having used all three in the deals that shipped Brent Burns, Karlsson, and Tomas Hertl out of San Jose.
For next season, the Sharks have centers Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, Alexander Wennberg, Barclay Goodrow, and Ty Dellandrea under contract. They project to have tens of millions in cap space to spend and address areas of need.
Is there a long-term fit between Granlund, who turns 33 in February, and the still-rebuilding Sharks?
“Honestly, I haven’t really thought about it,” Granlund told Bay Area News Group before Thursday’s game. “We haven’t talked with (the Sharks). It’s something I’m not really even thinking about.
“We’ll see as time goes on, but all I can say is I really love my time here. This organization has a great future, and I’m glad to be part of it right now. I’m just trying to do my best and help everyone out there.”
Granlund started Thursday’s game as the left wing on a line with rookie center Smith and right-wing Fabian Zetterlund. Granlund assisted on 12 of Zetterlund’s 24 goals last season, more than any other player, and the Sharks hope that he can ease Smith’s transition into a top-six NHL centerman.
“A lot of times it just comes down to playing with your instincts and Will, he’s such a smart kid, smart player, he’s going to figure them out,” Granlund said. “He’s going to figure out the right play to (make) and his linemates’ tendencies.
“Talking is one thing that helps, but at the same time, you can’t go there and think anything. You’ve got to go out there and play with your instincts, and that’s when the best results will come.”
SMITH’S MOVE: As planned, Smith recently moved in with Patrick Marleau’s family, and the knee hockey games have already begun.
When Marleau played with the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2017 to 2019, Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner would occasionally come over and play knee hockey in the basement with Marleau and his four sons. Now, Smith and Macklin Celebrini have been subbed in.
“Oh, we dominate them,” Smith said with a smile. “They’ve got about 1,000 sticks down there.”
Smith said he’d have about 20 friends and family members in attendance Thursday, including his father, who is celebrating his birthday.
THURSDAY’S LINEUP: The Sharks, still with 15 forwards on their roster, had Klim Kostin, Carl Grundstrom, and Givani Smith as their scratches for Thursday’s game.
It’s unclear how long the Sharks will have a 15-forward, six-defensemen arrangement. The Sharks play Saturday at home against Anaheim, then head on a road trip next week with three games in four nights.
It’s creating some internal competition among the forwards for ice time.
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“That was (Grier’s) goal … to bring more competition, not just in our games tonight, but inner competition from our older guys to our younger guys to guys that were here last year that aren’t here now,” Warsofsky said. “Inner competition with guys trying to fight for who’s the next guy in the lineup if someone goes down.
“So that’s good. That’s all positive stuff that we need to get in this organization. It’s a step in the right direction.”
INJURY UPDATE: Warsofsky said defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic (upper body), Shakir Mukhamadulin (lower body), and forward Thomas Bordeleau (lower body) all skated Thursday morning, although there appears to be no timeframe for a return to practice for any of them. Vlasic and Mukhamadullin are considered non-roster players, and Bordeleau, with Logan Couture, is on injured reserve. Couture is still only doing off-ice workouts.