Sharks Not Eager To Pay What Sherwood Wants For Next Contract

The San Jose Sharks' move to acquire Kiefer Sherwood may end up being solely a rental move, which may or may not work out in favour of them. Sherwood was a highly sought after forward that was acquired for two second-round picks and a defensive prospect. The Sharks avoided paying a first-round pick, which was a win to start.

Sherwood has scored 36 goals over his last two seasons (112 games) and hit a ton of players. He can also play on the power play and kill penalties. He is a strong Swiss army knife and the Sharks really needed upgrades at forward. But they aren't necessarily in a position to really compete for a Stanley Cup just yet. Extending Sherwood or acquiring him with a contract in place would have made a lot more sense for where they are and the talent in their organization.

Elliotte Friedman said, "I think at this point in time, San Jose is not eager to pay like a $5x5, but we'll see. Mike Grier (GM) has time here, he's going to sit there and say, how's the fit."

Sherwood has never had a contract longer than two years (outside of his entry-level deal) and no cap hit higher than $1.5 million AAV, both coming from his current deal. For what he has done, he finally deserves higher pay and a longer term to be able to be comfortable and settle somewhere. The 30-year-old has proven it with his play the past two years, but he is currently injured and there is some time for the Sharks to decide before free agency at the start of July.

Ideally, the Sharks want Sherwood back soon, have him play regular season and playoff games to see how he fits and where, see what they can get the contract to, and just not let him walk in free agency for nothing. While it's bold and a solid move for a team with plenty of assets to make a move like this to get themselves into the playoffs, there is so much cap space available to keep a middle-6 piece that does everything Sherwood does around for a few years.