The Tampa Bay Lightning have acquired forward Anthony Duclair and a 2025 seventh-round pick from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for defenseman Jack Thompson and a 2024 third-round draft pick.
This news comes late Thursday night after the Sharks announced that Duclair would sit out of the team’s matchup against the New York Islanders for trade-related reasons.
Duclair has been in trade rumors for a while now, even hiring Paul Theofanous as his agent in preparation for a move, per The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta, after previously representing himself in contract negotiations.
Theofanous represents a handful of other NHL veterans, including Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky and Kirill Kaprizov.
Duclair has fallen victim to a very low-scoring Sharks roster, scoring at his lowest point-per-game pace since his 2018-19 season with the Columbus Blue Jackets — excluding last year, when Duclair missed all but 20 games after suffering a torn Achille’s tendon.
But Duclair has found ways to be productive despite his decreased scoring, still leading San Jose in goals with 16 and ranking fifth on the team in points with 27.
Duclair established himself as a strong goal-scorer as soon as he entered the league, netting 20 goals and 44 points as a rookie in the 2015-16 season. He’s since topped the 20-goal mark two other times, including when he scored a career-high 31 goals and 58 points in 74 games during the 2021-22 season.
Duclair hasn’t seen much of the postseason in his 10-year career in the league, though he did manage 11 points in 20 playoff games with the Florida Panthers last season. He’ll need to quickly adjust to summertime hockey, with Tampa Bay vying for one of the two Eastern Conference wild-cards.
In exchange for their best goal-scorer, San Jose receives 21-year-old defenseman Jack Thompson, a third-round draft pick in the 2020 NHL Draft who received his NHL debut earlier in the year but failed to score a point. Thompson has otherwise spent his season in the AHL, leading Syracuse Crunch defensemen in scoring with 32 points in 46 games.
He’s developed a strong ability to work with his forwards, boasting strong puck-handling that allows him to control breakouts and contribute from the offensive blue-line. While his decisions could afford to be a little quicker, Thompson’s strong passing and off-puck movements help him boost his team’s offense from the back-end.
He will look to continue adding strength and poise on the defensive side of the puck as he now fights to climb San Jose’s depth chart.
Thompson’s right-handedness gives him a slight advantage on some of his new teammates, though, as San Jose is currently carrying just three righties on their NHL lineup
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