San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier announced today that the team has re-signed defenseman Mario Ferraro to a four-year contract. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports the contract carries a $3.25M cap hit, which will take him directly to unrestricted free agency in 2027.
Grier gave the following statement with regard to Ferraro’s signing:
"Mario has shown that he is a dynamic and reliable defenseman for our club, skating top-level minutes against the best competition every night and delivering solid results. His energy and work ethic are the reason why he has achieved so much in his early part of his career, and we look forward to watching him continue to grow and elevate his role on the team."
Ferraro had a rough season in 2021-22 by most metrics, but the 23-year-old defenseman was deployed against the other team’s top competition on a nightly basis. Ferraro’s offensive output dipped to 14 points in 63 games compared to 17 points in 56 games in 2020-21, and he posted a career-low Corsi for percentage at even strength of 44.8%.
There’s no question that Ferraro still carries legitimate, long-term top-four potential in the Sharks organization, and a four-year term is evidence that the team believes the same. Under a new head coach in David Quinn, look for Ferraro’s two-way game to get back on track to where it was in 2020-21.
For a defenseman who was only drafted five years ago, though, he’s already got a lot of ground covered in terms of NHL games. He ranks third in games played among defensemen from the 2017 draft class, with his 180 games slotting in behind Henri Jokiharju’s 213 and Miro Heiskanen’s 275.
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