Pashelka: Give Sharks' Grier his flowers; his latest trade might be his best yet

By gqlshare on August 26, 2024

SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier made the bold but deeply unpopular decision last season to trade stalwart center Tomas Hertl, plus two third-round draft choices, to the Vegas Golden Knights for prospect forward David Edstrom and an unprotected 2025 first-round draft pick.

From the perspective of Sharks fans, it wasn't just that Grier was trading Hertl — one of the faces of the franchise. It was that Grier traded him to the defending Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights, the team Teal Nation has arguably come to hate the most.

How do I know it was unpopular? Well, there was no scientific poll, but the messages I received on social media, the emails that arrived in my inbox, and, frankly, the conversations I had with fans shortly after the trade all struck the same disappointed and mildly angry tone.

What were Grier and the Sharks doing, and where was this all going? (that's the G-rated version).

Now we know.

We know that the Sharks had their eye on goalie Yaroslav Askarov for about a year, and that Grier and Nashville Predators GM Barry Trotz stayed in contact, off and on, during that time.

It's fair to say that the Sharks didn't want to part ways with top prospects like Will Smith, Quentin Musty, Filip Bystedt, or Shakir Mukhamadullin to get the highly touted Askarov.

That said, some other players in San Jose's pipeline might not have been enticing enough for the Predators to part with Askarov, who was named to the AHL Top Prospects Team in 2023-24 after finishing second in the league in wins (30) and shutouts (6) with a standout 2.39 goals against average.

But it turned out that having Edstrom, who projects to be a solid middle-six forward, and an extra first-round pick next year in what might be a deep draft, was the right combination for the Sharks to land the goalie they coveted.

Could the Sharks have foreseen Askarov asking for a trade? Maybe not. But when it happened, Grier and his staff had the necessary assets and put forth the best package of any of the would-be suitors. And, reportedly, there were several.

But here's why having someone with Askarov's potential is vital to the Sharks.

Grier and his staff have built up one of the better prospect pools in the NHL. Then, during June's draft, they added wunderkind center Macklin Celebrini, an 18-year-old on the doorstep of stardom, and defenseman Sam Dickinson, projected to be a future top-pair defenseman, to the mix. Other young forwards and defensemen in the system might also make it to the NHL.

That's all well and good.

But if the Sharks didn't have a top-end prospect goalie to grow alongside them — and potentially be a true No. 1 netminder once Celebrini and company started to gain some more experience – then how good could Grier's team really be?

From the Sharks' perspective, this isn't just about building a team that can merely contend for a playoff spot. It's about assembling a core group of players that can legitimately and annually compete for the Stanley Cup.

Nashville Predators goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) grabs a shot by the Washington Capitals during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

It's also about avoiding the same issues that have haunted other rebuilding teams. These teams have amassed several young, talented skaters over the years but mysteriously still had difficulty breaking through, spending years out of the playoffs.

The Buffalo Sabres, who have missed the playoffs 13 straight years, have drafted inside the first round's top 16 a staggering 17 times, selecting solid players like Zemgus Girgensons, Rasmus Ristolainen, Casey Mittelstadt, Dylan Cozens, and stars like Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart, and Rasmus Dahlin.

But since trading Ryan Miller in 2014, the Sabres have used 12 other goalies who have played at least 25 games.

The Ottawa Senators have used 17 goalies since their last playoff appearance in 2017.

The Detroit Red Wings have used 14 goalies since their last playoff appearance in 2016.

The Arizona Coyotes-now-Utah Hockey Club has missed the postseason in 11 of the last 12 years, with the exception of one brief appearance in the playoff bubble in 2020. From 2012 to 2023, the Coyotes drafted inside the top 12 eleven times and accumulated several skilled forwards and defensemen. But beyond Mike Smith and two standout seasons from Darcy Kuemper, the Coyotes never really had a franchise goalie during that time.

Neither did the Sharks. Now they have someone in Askarov who at least has that kind of potential.

"The goalie was a little bit of a missing piece in that age group," Grier said Friday. "To get somebody who can grow with this team, move along with them, and give them that security. I know from my own personal experience, when you have a guy back there who you really believe in and can win games for you, it makes you play a lot freer and be willing to go out there and not have to worry about things so much.

"I think it'll help our whole group. It's a really big day for our franchise."

Does Askarov, 22, need to mature a bit? Probably. Will he have success right away? Nothing is guaranteed, and that will also depend on how well everyone in front of him plays, too.

But acquiring Askarov was a shot Grier needed to take for the long-term health of his franchise, so they didn't spend years spinning their wheels looking for the right goalie, like other rebuilding teams have.

Grier has spent the last 25 months completely reshaping the Sharks franchise, moving on from some bad contracts, freeing up cap space, and re-filling the cupboard. Not every move has panned out, but several have, and Grier's latest trade might turn out to be his best work yet.