The Sharks have several areas that need fixing
Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News: The San Jose Sharks have lost five in a row and are 4-10-1 on the season. They’ve been outscored 22-8 in their past five games.
Defenseman Radim Simek could return on Tuesday which will help with their depth but he won’t solve all their problems.
In the past, the Sharks have made some moves to help turn things around when they’ve been struggling and on the verge of missing the playoffs.
Many of their top players need to start scoring and they need better goaltending.
The Blackhawks could make Gustafsson available
Jimmy Greenfield of the Chicago Tribune: If Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Adam Boqvist shows he is ready for the NHL, the Blackhawks should look at trading defenseman Erik Gustafsson.
Gustavsson is a pending unrestricted free agent and there is little chance that he would be re-signed. The Blackhawks have Calvin de Haan, Olli Maatta and Connor Murphy on reasonable deals and Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook have no-movement clauses on their long-term contracts.
Gustafsson is coming off a 60 point season but is only average defensively. His offense is down this season and has been made a healthy scratch for a game.
At the trade deadline in February could yield a better return. GM Stan Bowman may have looked at offseason options and didn’t find much of a market for Gustavsson.
Staal’s days in New York could be nearing an end
Rick Carpiniello of The Athletic: The New York Rangers have made 32-year old defenseman Marc Staal a healthy scratch last week. The Rangers have several young left-handed defensemen ready to show they can play, with more on the way for next season.
Staal has another year left at a $5.7 million cap hit and there won’t be room for him. To move him he would need to agree to waive his no-trade clause and the Rangers would have to retain salary. A move may not happen until the offseason. The Rangers may have to take back a bad contract as well.
A buyout next offseason would cost them cap hits of $3.5667 and $1.067 million for the next two seasons.
Henrik Lundqvist has one year left on his contract an $8.5 million cap hit.