While Sharks center Tomas Hertl is a highly-speculated candidate to be traded this season, San Jose GM Doug Wilson has other plans. Speaking with reporters including Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now, Wilson indicated that extension talks are well underway:
However, as Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News points out, the Sharks may not be able to afford to carry another long-term deal on their books with over $48MM tied up in just seven players for 2023-24 and a salary cap that’s not expected to go up much in the next few years. Hertl has said he’s open to the idea of taking a bit less to stay in a winning environment but San Jose will have to quickly turn things around to have a chance at him signing a slightly lower deal.