SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks and Vegas Golden Knights completed a stunning blockbuster deal Friday just minutes before the NHL trade deadline, with center Tomas Hertl going to the defending Stanley Cup champions for a package of draft picks and one prospect.
Bob McKenzie of TSN first reported that the deal was underway.
Per Darren Dreger of TSN, the Sharks are receiving the Golden Knights’ first-round draft pick in 2025, center David Edstrom — Vegas’ first-round selection last year, and third-round selections in 2025 and 2027.
The Sharks are retaining 17% of Hertl’s contract, so his cap hit as a member of the Golden Knights is $6.75 million.
Hertl is in the second year of an eight-year, $65.1 million contract he signed with the Sharks in 2022. The deal carried an average annual value of $8.137 million and a full no-movement clause, which means that Hertl had to approve the trade.
BREAKING, as per @TSNBobMcKenzie … Vegas is working on a Tomas Hertl deal with San Jose.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) March 8, 2024
The deal means the Sharks do not have any more salary retention spots left until the summer of 2025.
The Sharks are already retaining salary in the trades that saw Brent Burns go to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2022 and Erik Karlsson to the Pittsburgh Penguins last summer. NHL teams are only allowed to keep salary on three players on their books.
With the Hertl and Karlsson deals, the Sharks will have two of their three retention spots tied up until the summer of 2027 when Karlsson’s deal expires.
Earlier this week, Sharks coach David Quinn said that Hertl is “ahead of schedule” as he continues to recover from surgery he had on Feb. 12 to clean out loose cartilage in his left knee, adding that it was possible the Czech-born forward would be able to return before the Sharks’ season ends on April 18.
Edstrom, 19, is listed at 6-foot-2 and 181 pounds and is presently playing for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League. In 42 games for the team this season, Edstrom had six goals and 17 points and earlier this year, helped Sweden capture the silver medal at the U20 World Junior championships.
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