New Jersey Devils Trade Deadline Profile: San Jose Sharks

The New Jersey Devils are looking to sell off some assets before the NHL Trade Deadline. One team that could fit with their assets is the San Jose Sharks.

The New Jersey Devils continue to fall further and further away from relevance with each passing loss. As the end of February approaches, that means they need to evaluate their assets and try to get the best return for them. One team looking to add to their already stacked roster is the San Jose Sharks.

The Sharks really went for it in the offseason, acquiring Erik Karlsson from the Ottawa Senators, on top of re-signing Joe Thornton and giving a long-term deal to Evander Kane. With the roster they have, one would think they’d be running away with the President’s Trophy.

They’ve been really good, but are still in a dog fight with the Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets for the top of the Western Conference. They all have 74 or 75 points as of the time of writing. This despite the Sharks being in the top three of the league in many major categories, including goals and shot differential.

There is one stat the Sharks are terrible in, save percentage. Martin Jones has taken a major step backwards this season. Maybe it’s because he’s not facing that many shots and that’s throwing off his game, or because he’s comfortable knowing his team can always outscore the opponent. The backup Aaron Dell has been even worse.

Meanwhile, the Devils happen to have a goalie that’s available. Keith Kinkaid has also been bad this season, but this is the clear anomaly of his career. Never before has Kinkaid had a season where his save percentage was under .900. In fact, the past two seasons he had a save percentage of .916 and .913. There’s clearly something not right this season, and it likely has to do with the team around Kinkaid.

If you put a team like the Sharks around Kinkaid, and there’s a good chance he could go on a run similar to the one he went on last season. Kinkaid is playing like he doesn’t trust the team in front of him, and he prepares every night like he has to win the game by himself. Ironically, that makes him play worse.

One can’t blame him for that line of thinking. Right now, Damon Severson is the best defenseman playing in front of him. He’s a nice piece, but should never be the top guy. Who’s number two? Is it Will Butcher? Andy Greene? Think about this for a second, the Devils have been riddled with injuries, and it’s forcing them to put out a defensive lineup that looks like this:

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Andy Greene-Damon Severson
Will Butcher-Ben Lovejoy
Mirco Mueller–Eric Gryba

Yeah, that’s not great. Obviously, Kinkaid is partially to blame for his woes, but the defense in front of him is the major problem.

Now, there could be better goalie options on the market right now. The issue for the Sharks is their asset cupboard is bare. Between the Kane and Karlsson trades, they only have a third-round pick, then their fifth, sixth and seventh-round picks in this year’s NHL Draft. That’s not much capital to get a deal done.

With how Kinkaid is playing, and his impending free agency, he’s not going to cost much. With how Ray Shero has drafted in the later rounds, he’s be happy to accept one of those later picks.

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There’s a possibility the Sharks and Devils could talk about a deal that would free up cap space next season for the Sharks to re-sign Karlsson, but that would likely happen in the offseason.

This is what the trade could look like. The Sharks get Keith Kinkaid, the Devils get a sixth-round draft pick. The Devils have drafted Jesper Bratt, Brett Seney and Aarne Talvitie in the sixth round of the draft since Shero arrived (with the help of Lou Lamoriello when it comes to Seney), so clearly he likes that round. Getting a second pick there will only help. This also gives Kinkaid a chance to prove himself before hitting free agency. It seems like a win-win.

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