San Jose Sharks: Trade Granlund Or Extend Him?

3 weeks ago  /  NHL Trade Rumors  /  Read Time: 2 minutes 14 seconds

Mikael Granlund has gone from a salary cap dump by the Pittsburgh Penguins to a top line center carrying the offense of the worst team in the league, the San Jose Sharks, in just over a year.Granlund came over to the Sharks in the 2023 offseason and had a career resurgence in San Jose, scoring 12 goals and 60 points in 69 games. With Macklin Celebrini coming in after being drafted first overall and Logan Couture expected to be ready to play this season, Granlund's role was expected to decrease. That hasn't been the case at all.After leading the Sharks last season, Granlund is right back at it, scoring four goals and recording 10 points in the team's first nine games. Despite being winless, the veteran is logging close to 22 minutes a night as a forward and doing what he can, but the Sharks are quickly approaching a crossroads with him.Granlund is at an age where he should be past the prime of his career at 32 years old. He is in the final year of his contract at an AAV of $5 million. Should the Sharks trade him or try to re-sign him? This is a question both sides need to ponder.With how he's played this season and last, the return for Granlund will be pretty good. The unfortunate part for the team is that options will be very limited without taking on a bad contract in return because San Jose is already using all three retention spots they have available. One is freed up after the season with Brent Burns' contract ending, but that doesn't help the Sharks this season.Not many contenders will have $5 million to spare, and since the Sharks can't retain money, the price will drop. Granlund doesn't have a say which team he gets traded to, so that makes trading him a bit easier. I don't think it would have mattered though as the Sharks will very likely be last place and any contending team gives him a better chance to win. Granlund is without a Stanley Cup and has only made it to the second round two times of the nine years he's appeared in the playoffs.Now the Sharks have a lot of assets already, but what is needed to improve are players that can play. Having Granlund around takes pressure off of Celebrini and doesn't thrust him into the number one role immediately. If the Sharks want to use Will Smith at center in the top-6 as well, Granlund is capable of playing the wing.Does Granlund want to stay if offered a contract? Every player who's made money and been around a while without a championship wants to win and the Sharks won't be able to offer that to him for a handful more years. They are clearly still deep in a rebuild. Granlund doesn't have the time. Being traded to a contender gives him another chance this season and he can then choose which team he wants to join in free agency.Granlund has played some of his best hockey in San Jose, but who knows how much longer he can keep playing at this high level. Sometimes players fall off pretty quickly. Even with some obstacles, there is more suggesting that Granlund will be moving on from the Sharks this season after turning his career back around.Photo credit: © Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images...

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