Eight defensemen Sharks could target in free agency or via trades originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The Sharks probably still could use another defenseman.
Last year’s cellar dwellers did add Jake Walman, who along with fellow left-hander Mario Ferraro, should form the beginning of the Sharks’ top-four backend.
After that? It’s hard to say.
Right-handed Matt Benning did a credible job as San Jose’s No. 3 blueliner in 2022-23, but he’s coming off a serious hip injury. Righty Jan Rutta is a solid veteran, but he’s probably best suited for a bottom-pairing role. Lefty Marc-Edouard Vlasic was in and out of the lineup last year, and projects for off-and-on usage again this season.
Left-handers Shakir Mukhamadullin and Henry Thrun, and right-hander Ty Emberson are talented youngsters, but are they ready for top-four minutes on a more competitive NHL squad? That’s an open question.
“Maybe there’s a potential add, something on the backend?” GM Mike Grier mused recently.
Multiple sources have told San Jose Hockey Now that the Sharks could be seeking a veteran right-handed defenseman.
If that’s the case, which blueliners are left on the market, via free agency or trade? And can they play at least passable top-four minutes for San Jose?
Here are eight experienced right-handers with thoughts about them from various league sources. Team 33, a third-party scouting group comprised entirely of ex-NHL scouts, also contributed.
Let’s start with the free agents, the easiest to acquire, then discuss trade targets, in order of most to least available.
Barrie, 32, is just a year removed from a 55-point campaign split between the Edmonton Oilers and Nashville Predators in 2022-23. From 2014 to 2023, the 5-foot-11 UFA was seventh among NHL defensemen with 439 points. He was a real power-play weapon — his 189 PP points tied for third among all blueliners.
The Sharks could use that: Outside of Walman and the unproven Mukhamadullin, they don’t have a lot of offensive firepower from the backend.
Barrie, however, battling injuries and healthy scratches, struggled last season for the Predators, finishing with just 15 points, his lowest since his 2012-13.
Team 33 isn’t convinced that Barrie will bounce back as a top-four skater. He’s an offense-first defenseman who isn’t doing a ton for you defensively if he’s not scoring.
An NHL scout opined to San Jose Hockey Now that at this stage in his career, Barrie might be better suited for a PTO.
Klingberg, like…