The NHL could experience a second-straight summer that will be dominated by the prospective future of star defenseman Erik Karlsson.
After he was dealt by the Ottawa Senators to the San Jose Sharks prior to the 2018-19 season, the two-time Norris Trophy-winning blueliner is set to hit free agency on Jul. 1 where defensively-needy teams are going to throw their checkbooks at him.
Yet Karlsson basically OK’d the move to San Jose as the Western Conference franchise would likely have no issue securing the 28-year-old with a long-term contract.
His arrival made the Sharks one of the favorites in the West, making them the pick of many to win the Stanley Cup this season as he bolstered a defense that already features fellow Norris Trophy winner Brent Burns.
Things haven’t necessarily gone to plan though as the Sharks have had a mediocre start to the season. In a tightly-packed Pacific Division, the Sharks sit in fourth place with 29 points (12-10-5 record), though they are just three points out of the top spot.
Karlsson hasn’t been the same kind of explosive two-way defenseman that the league was used to seeing in Ottawa. Through 27 games, he has two goals and 13 assists for 15 points and a minus-11 rating. That’s on pace for his worst full season in the NHL since the 2010-11 campaign when he was just 20.
On Friday, Karlsson told NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger that he hasn’t even thought about signing that long-term extension, which he’ll be eligible for on Jan. 1.
“Right now I’m worried about today,” Karlsson said. “That’s the mindset I’ve had all year. I’m trying to stay as focused as I can in the dressing room. The future is something I can’t control.”
It’s the professional answer but it isn’t necessarily the kind of response Sharks fans might have been searching for. In fact, he didn’t even express his desire to stay in San Jose.
And if the season takes a nosedive and goes South for the Sharks, then Karlsson might test the waters in free agency this summer rather than settle down in California.
That would be good news for two New York franchises in the Islanders and Rangers. Both were initially linked to Karlsson during trade rumors last summer with the Islanders capable of putting together one of the best returns possible among suitors.
Now neither would have to give up a bevy of prospects or young talents but instead just open their wallets and try to outbid the rest of the league should Karlsson indeed hit the open market.
Obviously, there’s a long way to go before that.
