San Jose Sharks Best Contracts (2005-2020)

The following is a condensed preview of the San Jose Sharks chapter of my new book, Hunting Bargains in a Salary Cap World. If you purchase the book, you will receive a much more in-depth analysis of all these contracts, including year-by-year statistics, a customized “basket of comparables”, and memorable quotes from players, GMs, and coaches. There is a chapter about how to calculate Expected Free Agent Value, which is used to determine precisely how much any given player was over/under paid each season; breaking down the econometrics of each deal in addition to discussing how each treaty came to pass.

Below is just a tiny sample of what’s in the book, with a few sentences clipped from the summaries. These are the graphics that appear in the book.

San Jose Sharks

There’s a case to be made that the San Jose Sharks have been the most successful team in the salary cap era to never win a Stanley Cup. In 15 years, they have made the playoffs 13 times, advancing past the first round 9 times. Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, and eventually Brent Burns, Logan Couture, and Joe Pavelski have been the key cogs of that success, driving the team’s impressive performance (those 5 players inked 9 of the team’s best 15 deals).

Brent Burns started this contract playing forward. When he was moved back to the blueline, he suddenly evolved into one of the league’s best offensive defensemen. Brent celebrated his 30th birthday at the end of year three and rather than start a downward trend, he got even better in year four, earning his first Norris trophy nomination after scoring 74 PTS (plus an addition 24 PTS in the playoffs helping the Sharks to the Stanley Cup final). He would win the Norris trophy in year five. Any money he might have left on the table from this deal got thrown in the pile for his next jackpot.

Pavelski scored 237 PTS in 286 GP (68-point pace) with a +53, including a career high 41 goals and 79 PTS in year four (which for 2014 was the 2nd lowest non-entry level AAV of players with over 75 PTS). The Sharks ostensibly got an $8M center for $5.2M. This was a bit risky from Pavelski’s perspective, as he sold 2 UFA years at a discount and expired when he was 29-years-old. Fortunately he aged well and earned another big pay day.

Year one proved to be Tomas Hertl's break-out year, scoring 35 goals and 74 PTS (helping me win a fantasy hockey championship). Year two was derailed by injury, but he still managed an impressive 36 PTS in 48 GP while the Sharks season was in a tailspin. If the Sharks decide their championship window has slammed shut after their disastrous 2020, this contract would absolutely fetch a big return if Wilson put him on the market, 2 years away from UFA.

Joe Thornton had already begun a downward trend from his 127-point apex in 2006, but the slope was gradual enough that the Sharks still received 83 PTS per 82 GP over this span. He was among the highest paid forwards in the league throughout, so this wasn’t exactly a bargain, but he was still among the league’s most dominant centers. 

It’s entire plausible that Pavelski was more concerned with staying in San Jose than he was with maximizing career earnings. Joe produced 164 Goals and 346 PTS in 402 GP, plus an additional 44 PTS in 53 playoff games. The center even received Selke Trophy votes throughout these years, though never won. 

This proved to be an incredible bargain for the Sharks, as Logan Couture would score 32 goals and 66 PTS per 82 GP for 50 cents on the dollar. Had the Sharks given their young pivot the same 11-year contract as Jeff Carter, they would have ultimately saved some money in the long-term, as Couture would collect 13 years and $94M on his next 2 contracts.

In August 2009 Doug Wilson was under pressure to shed salary in order to get his payroll under the cap. He decided to ship off Ehrhoff and Brad Lukowich to the Canucks for 2 busted prospects (it was becoming clear by that point that Patrick White was a bust). It proved to be a terrible transaction for the Sharks, as Ehrhoff had considerable success with the Canucks, scoring 50 PTS in 2011, with 12 more PTS in the playoffs helping them to the Stanley Cup final. 

Marleau’s production quickly jumped to a higher level when Joe Thornton came to town, scoring a career high 86 PTS in year one. That output dipped down to 48 PTS by year three, when he could have been UFA but chose to stay in San Jose on a 2-year deal. His agent couldn’t have liked that, bypassing a potentially giant pay day. 

 This was signed on July 1st, and many of his peers went unsigned into September before everyone realized that some variation of the front dive was the best compromise. It guarantees a much higher minimum salary on the next deal. Timo did have a disappointing year one with 49 PTS in 70 GP (down from 66 PTS in 2019), but so did the rest of the team. Expect him to bounce back.

The salary proved to be a bargain, with Martin Jones providing 60+ games per season of slightly above average goaltending for the price of a #2 guy. Jones played 190 games with 102 wins, 68 losses and a .915 SV%; also playing 40 playoff games with a .926 SV%, coming 2 wins short of the 2016 Stanley Cup. You can read about his next treaty on the Sharks worst contracts list.

Joe Thornton’s production had been trending downwards for a few years, but it leveled off into a respectable plateau in the 70-point range for 6 seasons after his 30th birthday. Jumbo repeatedly bet on himself throughout his 30s, and there was always another pot of gold at the end of each rainbow. There are not too many examples of “bet on yourself” that have unfolded this positively for players over the age of 30. 

Logan Couture scored at a rate of 32 goals and 66 PTS per 82 GP, and inked a 5-year extension at a very reasonable price. Over the 5 years of this contract, Logan averaged 29 goals and 64 PTS per 82 GP in the regular season, but posted far more spectacular numbers in the playoffs, where he popped 65 PTS in 60 GP.

Doug Wilson was great at convincing players to accept his terms in order to “help” the team win, and Marleau certainly made a significant contribution to the team’s success, scoring 154 PTS in 158 GP, plus an additional 16 PTS in 20 playoff GP. Patty signed another bridge at age 30 when this expired. San Jose sure sounds like a great place to live.

 

Once Vlasic was signed, the scoring rate started to climb, thanks in part to an increase in PP time. Marc produced a career high 39 PTS in 67 GP in year three (a 48-point pace). In total, he averaged 32 PTS per 82 GP, posting an incredible +71 over this span. Any money he left on the table was added to his next deal, which you can read about on the Sharks worst contracts list.

It’s incredibly rare for a player with 50+ PTS to get paid a salary this low, the nearest being Reilly Smith accepting $1.7M (adjusted for cap inflation) from the Bruins in 2014 after scoring 51 PTS. The Sharks had a disastrous season, and Labanc personally dropped from 56 PTS down to 33 PTS. Arguably this may not belong here as Labanc experienced a scoring regression, but it was included due to the rarity of the Wilson’s accomplishment.