Goalie Trade Incoming: Vitek Vanecek Held Out For 'Trade Related Purposes'

After Alexandar Georgiev tended goal for the San Jose Sharks in their surprising 3-2 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Monday night, Vitek Vanecek was expected to go between the pipes for Tuesday's game at Buffalo. But Vanecek is now being held out due to trade-related purposes.

Vanecek trade watch is on. He has a $3.4M cap hit. https://t.co/ICFLFb0R8H
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) March 4, 2025

Vanecek is a pending unrestricted free agent, with a $3.4 million cap hit. He'll still serve as the backup tonight.

There are a few teams that could be looking for a backup goalie who might be in on this, including the obvious names we've been hearing about all season, the Edmonton Oilers and Carolina Hurricanes.

But Jeff Marek of Daily Faceoff, speaking on the Jason Gregor show, has named the Florida Panthers as an option as well, following their trading away of their primary backup Spencer Knight in the Seth Jones deal this past weekend.

"As soon as that deal was made, my first thought was, 'Ok, who are they going out to get?' Now that Vanecek is being held out, I wonder if that's the play here. He knows the Eastern Conference well, too."

Vanecek spent the first four years of his career split between the Washington Capitals and the New Jersey Devils, posting a tremendous season in 2022-23 with the Devils, with a 33-11-4 record and a .911 save percentage along with a 2.45 goals-against average.

The five-year veteran has had an injury-racked season with the struggling Sharks, going 3-10-3 in 17 starts, with an .882 save percentage and a 3.88 GAA. He has a career 94-52-20 record with a .903 Sv% and 2.82 GAA in 169 starts.