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Nate Thompson: “Another team, I look at David, it’s the San Jose Sharks, and you see their 19-year-old leader and what he’s doing (and did) now in the Olympics for Team Canada. And I wonder, is this a situation where they see what he’s doing and where their team is and they’re in the mix for a playoff spot? Do they do nothing, or do they go out and add? If Mike Grier said, “Okay, we’ve got Macklin here. He’s having a season, so we have to take advantage of it. ”
Dave Pagnotta: “I think this is done with caution. I think this is what the Sharks are doing. Because it seems like they are still doing both of those things. I don’t think they want to deviate from their plan. Like the Montreal Canadiens, they have a plan in place, and they are doing well. Something falls in their lap, they would obviously rush at it. But other than that, they don’t want to force the issue.”
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And I think San Jose is in a similar position where Macklin looked great in Milan (looked great), which is great to see if you’re a Sharks fan or just a hockey fan in general. They brought in Kiefer Sherwood a few weeks ago. So well before the freeze. He will be healthy in every respect and then ready to go for the club. So you want to see how he does that.
But at the same time, because of the short period between the end of the freeze and the deadline, they want to both add and subtract, and by subtract I mean they have assets, especially on the back end, with guys like (Timothy) Liljegren and (Mario) Ferraro and (John) Klingberg and so on, who are awaiting unrestricted free agents that they can get a solid return for.
That’s what they tried to do. These guys have been available for much of the season. They were ready to call on them. At the same time, they have also tried to strengthen that rear. But they want someone who fits the type of early to mid-twenties and who can grow with the development of this group. And that’s what they were looking for.
And I think this model also kind of follows where they were in the mid-20s. You just want to insulate. You don’t just want to have the club, with young twenty-somethings rolling all the way. You want to insulate that with some veteran presence. That’s why they have (Tyler) Toffoli and (Alex) Wennberg and others.
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But they also want to make sure they have a good core and can add to it, especially at the back. So I think the Sharks are willing to do both, but I don’t think they’ll force it and suddenly go after a big player if they don’t think it’s the right move.
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