UPDATE (2:43 p.m. ET): The trade now is official. Erik Karlsson is going to the San Jose Sharks.
Here’s the full deal.
San Jose acquires: Erik Karlsson, Francis Perron
Ottawa acquires: forwards Chris Tierney, Rudolfs Balcers, Josh Norris, defenseman Dylan DeMelo, 2019 second-round pick (conditional), 2020 first-round pick (conditional), 2021 second-round pick (if Karlsson re-signs)
ORIGINAL STORY: Erik Karlsson is on the move. Finally.
The Ottawa Senators have agreed to trade the All-Star defenseman to the San Jose Sharks, TSN’s Pierre Le Brun reported Thursday. We still don’t know the entire return, but unsurprisingly, the package will center around prospects and picks. Included in the deal are forward Chris Tierney and defenseman Dylan Demelo, according to longtime reporter Elliotte Friedman.
And the draft picks, according to Friedman, are good ones.
https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/1040308509965840384
Sportsnet reporter and NESN contributor John Shannon mentioned Thursday that the two teams have had discussions about Karlsson before. In fact, Shannon says they agreed to a deal during the season, but that ultimately fell apart due to owner intervention, but it’s unclear who nixed the deal.
Karlsson is coming off arguably the worst season of his career, but given the tire fire that was the Senators, it’s hard to blame him. At his best, though, he’s an elite NHL defenseman capable of brillianty handling the puck in all three zones. Karlsson is a two-time Norris Trophy winner and has finished in the top 10 of Hart Trophy voting for MVP three times.
Karlsson has one more season left on his current contract, carrying a $6.5 million salary cap hit in 2018-19.
