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Mikael Granlund, San Jose Sharks (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

San Jose Sharks Have a Mikael Granlund Problem

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Alex Hutton | Last updated Feb 1, 2025 11:30 AM ET

The 2025 NHL Trade Deadline is just over a month away, and the San Jose Sharks have a lot of decisions to make as sellers. General manager Mike Grier didn’t tip his hand too much during his midseason availability, but he did make it clear he will at least gauge the market for his team’s veterans who are on expiring contracts.

Of the players who fall into that category, none present a more interesting challenge for the front office than center Mikael Granlund. Arriving in San Jose during the 2023 offseason, the 32-year-old has become a valued part of the team on and off the ice and could serve a crucial role in upcoming seasons. At the same time, he will command the highest asking price of any Shark on the trading block, and Grier might receive an offer too good to decline. The Sharks don’t have an easy solution, and their choice will hold massive consequences whether they get it right or wrong.

Granlund Is Sharks’ Most Important Veteran

Over the last two seasons, Granlund has been the Sharks’ most essential player with substantial NHL experience, and arguably San Jose’s best and most important player overall. He led the team in points and assists in 2023-24 and is doing the same this season. As the Sharks lean more and more into their youth movement, they still need a few veterans to balance out the roster, and Granlund has been crucial as a team leader. He rose to the rank of alternate captain, a title made all the more important by captain Logan Couture’s absence, and made a case for himself to be next in line to wear the C.

The 32-year-old veteran’s presence has had a clear on-ice impact on the young players as well. Will Smith, for instance, has had some of his best games of the season while playing on Granlund’s wing. He has been playing with Granlund recently and is in the midst of a six-game point streak.

While promising rookies and prospects will always be the stars of a rebuild, it can’t succeed without experienced players. They help guide the team through difficult stretches. They provide tutelage to the up-and-comers experiencing their first NHL seasons, or perhaps their first time enduring a significant period of losing hockey in years. Granlund offers all of this in addition to his play, and the Sharks might have a difficult time parting ways with someone like him.

Granlund Is Sharks’ Best Trade Chip

Although the Sharks would get a lot of benefits by holding onto and re-signing Granlund, they shouldn’t be overly picky when it comes to potential trades. As a skilled center on an expiring contract, he could fetch a first-round pick or a good prospect, and the front office would have a tough time turning either of those down, especially considering they can’t move any of their other major trade candidates for that kind of haul. He’ll turn 33 before the deadline comes, and his future production as he ages might not match up with the production of the potential return in a trade.

Furthermore, keeping Granlund would hinge on retaining him this offseason, which isn’t a guarantee. He’s never made it out of the second round of the playoffs and could look to sign with a contender, knowing he’ll only have so many more chances to chase a Stanley Cup. The Sharks may also simply be priced out of his market, as they have plenty of other contracts to juggle with younger players commanding large contract extensions before long.

Given Granlund’s age and future, he might not quite fit into the Sharks’ timeline as much as they’d like him to. A trade could work better for all parties involved, even if Grier would have a tough time pulling the trigger.

Sharks Have Several Options to Consider

For the Sharks, either trading or keeping Granlund would carry benefits and risks. Both decisions would need more things to happen subsequently in order to pay off. A trade would mean that the Sharks have to get a lot of use out of whatever picks or prospects they received in the transaction. If they held on to him, they would have to re-sign him over the summer. Losing him for nothing would obviously be the worst result.

The ideal outcome would be to trade Granlund and then bring him back as a free agent during the offseason, allowing San Jose to get the benefits of both choices. However, this would be difficult to pull off. A player opting to return to a team in that manner is extremely rare, and separating Granlund from the Sharks would make a reunion more difficult.

The Sharks have about a month more to decide on a course of action for Granlund. Whatever they choose will have a massive impact on the direction of the franchise.