San Jose Sharks: 3 Offseason Trade Candidates

The San Jose Sharks traded a few players during the season, and as a rebuilder, more will be coming. It doesn't look like the rebuild is going to take just a few short years, but could be sped up if they were to free up cap space and get back assets for the players that they can move.

Three players that top the list that haven't been moved yet are Erik Karlsson, Kevin Labanc, and Alexander Barabanov.

Karlsson was heavily discussed as a trade candidate throughout the season, but it was very tough for a deal to be stuck mid-season. The best and most likely time for him to move is the offseason when teams aren't playing games and teams are trying to construct rosters. There are definitely a few destinations where he is likely to end up and the Sharks won't be afraid to retain some cap to move the likely 2022-23 Norris Trophy winner this season. His cap hit is $11.5 million AAV for four more years, but I wouldn't be surprised if $2-3 million is retained for a bit of a better return.

Kevin Labanc hasn't been the player he was when the Sharks were a better team. He is inconsistent, but despite that, has also been in the rumor mill as a decent middle-six winger. What will come into play when trying to move him is his cap hit for the final year of his deal ($4.75 million AAV). As a player who put up 17 goals and 56 points in 2018-19, he hasn't come close to that since, topping out at 33 points the following season and this season. He won't be a problem to be moved if a team acquiring him can get his cap hit down to $3-3.5 million since he will likely be able to put up more points with better linemates and a change in scenery.

The potentially most sought-after player on the Sharks this offseason may be Barabanov as he is a value winger who has spent the past two seasons in San Jose's top-six. Coming to the NHL a little late, he put up 10 goals and 39 points in 70 games at age 27 last season before improving upon that on a worse Sharks team with 15 goals and 47 points this season. At a $2.5 million cap hit for one more season, a team in need of scoring but with little cap space to spare will have him on their radar.