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Analyzing the Adin Hill trade

July 19, 2021, 3:13 PM ET [3 Comments]
Ben Shelley
San Jose Sharks Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Follow me on Twitter: @BenShelley_20
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The San Jose Sharks made a notable trade ahead of the expansion draft, sending goaltender Josef Korenar and a 2022 second-round pick to the Arizona Coyotes, in exchange for goaltender Adin Hill and a 2022 seventh-round pick.

Hill was likely to be left exposed for the expansion draft, as the Coyotes chose to protect Darcy Kuemper. As a result, the Sharks were able to make a deal to acquire Hill, before the Coyotes risked losing him to Seattle for nothing.

Hill is 25 years old and is currently a restricted free agent. This season, he posted a .913 save percentage in 19 games and has managed a .909 save percentage in 49 career NHL games over the past four seasons.



To me, this trade is a gamble.

While he’s been strong in a limited sample size over the last two seasons, Hill doesn’t really have a ton of NHL experience and hasn’t even hit the 20-game mark in a single season yet. In fact, this past season was the first time he didn’t spend the majority of his season in the AHL.

I should make it clear that I’m not against the addition of Hill because he doesn’t have a proven track record. On the contrary, adding a fairly young goalie with high upside, rather than just going after a temporary fix in free agency, was a good call.

I’m more concerned about what the Sharks gave up for him. While Josef Korenar showed potential, signs didn’t necessarily point to him becoming a long-term starter for the Sharks and my issue with the deal revolves more around the pick the Sharks traded away.

A second-round pick isn’t usually a huge price to pay but when the Sharks are a team with a severe lack of depth and cap space, they need to build through the draft to be competitive again. Factor in that San Jose is also missing their second-round pick in this year’s draft and the team is now without two of their top four picks in the next two drafts. Again, for a contending team, not really a problem, but it’s a different story for the Sharks, who are sacrificing key future assets to gamble on a goalie working out.

On another note, even provided Hill does improve San Jose’s situation in net, I also really question whether a better goalie will make much of a difference. The Sharks are so bad defensively that I’m not sure they'd get back into the playoffs even with a pretty decent starter.

So we’ll see how this goes. Hill could definitely end up taking over the starting role and remaining with the Sharks long-term, making general manager Doug Wilson look good in this trade in the process. But there’s also the chance that Hill isn’t a difference-maker and the Sharks gave up a key draft pick, without really improving their situation.



Check back tomorrow for an updated look at the Sharks' expansion draft situation and who they may lose to Seattle.



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OTHER ARTICLES FROM JULY

Should the Sharks look to trade Tomas Hertl?
Who will the Sharks lose in the Expansion Draft?
Breaking down the Sharks’ cap situation
Looking into a potential rebuild for the Sharks
Revisiting the Erik Karlsson trade three years later
Should the Sharks look to take Jesper Wallstedt at seventh overall?
Sharks are reportedly shopping Kevin Labanc and others
Should the Sharks buy out Martin Jones’ contract?
Sharks re-sign Josef Korenar
Sharks re-sign Dylan Gambrell
Sharks are reportedly looking to add a third-line center
Sharks acquire goaltender Adin Hill from Coyotes
Sharks’ protected list revealed, Ryan Donato left exposed
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