SAN JOSE – Three days after it happened, San Jose Sharks forward William Eklund was still unable to hide his emotions as he talked about his best friend, Fabian Zetterlund, getting traded to the Ottawa Senators.
“Obviously, one of the toughest days in my life,” a glassy-eyed Eklund said Monday of Friday’s trade. “That’s a privilege, I would say, too, if that’s one of the toughest days. But it was for sure.”
Fair to say this is the last time the 22-year-old Eklund, presumably a Sharks cornerstone, wants to experience a day like that again.
“Now it’s just time to start building here,” said Eklund, who did speak with general manager Mike Grier after the Zetterlund trade. “Me, personally. I think it’s time to stop losing. I want to win, and I’m sick of losing.”
Eklund’s not alone.
A sixth straight year out of the playoff picture, a spot in last place again, and another season in which a handful of quality players were shipped to contending teams have Sharks fans and players wondering when things will start to turn around.
Veteran forward Tyler Toffoli knew some patience would be required when he signed a four-year, $24 million contract with the rebuilding Sharks on the first day of free agency last summer.
But Toffoli also knows he doesn’t have many more prime years left to wait for the Sharks to become a contender again.
“Myself, personally, time is kind of running out in that sense,” Toffoli said over the weekend after seeing a handful of veteran teammates shipped to other teams. “I’m kind of hoping to be back in the mix here next year, if not the year after.”
Grier said Friday that the decision to trade Zetterlund was not easy. Perhaps sensing some growing frustration among the fan base and his players about dealing a scoring winger like Zetterlund in his prime, Grier added that he wants this to be the last trade deadline where “we’re kind of shipping everyone out.”
Time will tell, since Alexander Wennberg, Mario Ferraro and Timothy Liljegren, among others, are set to become unrestricted free agents in 2026, and the Sharks, now in 32nd and last place in the NHL’s overall standings, have a long way to go before they reach contender status.
Considering all of his recent trades, Grier has a lot of holes to fill.
Jake Walman, sent to the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday, roughly two weeks after his 29th birthday, gave the Sharks a veteran offensive defenseman who usually logged between 22 and 26 minutes per game. Zetterlund, 25, scored 24 goals last year and was nearly on the same pace this season.
“We lost a great teammate. We lost a couple great teammates, for sure,” Eklund said. “With Zetts, we lost a competitor and never seen anything like it. We lost a guy who wants to be here every day, wants to work hard every day. He was buying in on everything. But it’s part of the business.”
Other needs include upgrading the defense corps, acquiring a veteran goalie to potentially pair with Yaroslav Askarov, bringing in another scoring winger, and adding some size and sandpaper to help the Sharks become a more difficult team to play against, which has been Grier’s goal since day one.
But the Sharks’ front office does have options, flexibility, and a good foundation.
The Sharks have a host of young players to build around in Eklund, Askarov, Macklin Celebrini, and Will Smith — all players Grier wants to see take a step next season.
“We expect those guys to keep getting better internally, for sure,” Grier said.
Grier also hinted that he might start to dip into the prospect pool or use some of his numerous draft picks to get better sooner rather than later.
The Sharks have a combined eight picks – four this year and four next year – in the first two rounds. They also have a pipeline hailed as one of the NHL’s best, which is understandable considering how many veterans they’ve jettisoned in recent seasons.
The Sharks will also have tens of millions of dollars in available cap space to tap into. While Grier will be reluctant to sign many free agents to pricey contracts, he knows he has to spend wisely and “see what’s out there and start surrounding these guys.
“That’s kind of the idea that this phase, hopefully for the most part, is over of just sell, sell,” Grier said. “Now it’s time to start building.”
After this year’s trades, the Sharks have 12 picks between the second and seventh rounds this season and next. If Sharks draft players with those picks, instead of using them for more immediate help, those individuals will likely not be NHL ready for four or five more years, if ever.
Toffoli’s time in San Jose might be over by then, and this certainly is the last year he and his teammates want to finish at or near the bottom of the standings. They need some help from management to make that happen.
“When I came here, I knew it was going to be an adjustment,” Toffoli said. “At the same time, I was kind of told that it’s going to start going the other way. (Grier) said that’s kind of the last year (a selloff) like that will happen.
“That’s a lot of picks. And for myself, personally, I hope they’re used to get some players and make us better. Because in my opinion, second, third, fourth, fifth round picks don’t end up turning pro until four years later.”
“We’re all sick of losing here,” Eklund said, “and I hope this was a move in the right direction.”