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The San Jose Sharks were active in the trade market last week and also agreed to contract extensions with several players. Here are the notable updates:
DUBNYK AND DONATO ACQUIRED FROM WILD
San Jose’s biggest trades in a while came last week, when the team acquired forward Ryan Donato and goaltender Devan Dubnyk from Minnesota. Both players will hopefully be able to help strengthen areas of weakness, being forward depth and goaltending.
SHARKS SELECT NINE PLAYERS IN NHL DRAFT
San Jose selected nine players in this year’s NHL Draft, including forward Ozzy Wiesblatt with the final pick of the first round. You can read more about the selections
here.
THORNTON, DELL AND KARLSSON REMAIN UNSIGNED
The Sharks’ most notable unrestricted free agents, Joe Thornton, Aaron Dell and Melker Karlsson, remain unsigned at this point. While the Sharks may bring back Joe Thornton and maybe even Melker Karlsson, a deal with Dell seems extremely unlikely, given the acquisition of Devan Dubnyk.
SHARKS RE-SIGN LABANC AND OTHERS
San Jose’s most notable signings last week were re-signings, as they brought back Kevin Labanc and Stefan Noesen, as well as Jayden Halbgewachs, Maxim Letunov, Nicolas Meloche, Jacob Middleton and Antti Suomela.
As for last week’s polls, here are the results and my thoughts on how they turned out:
QUESTION: Do you like the Ryan Donato trade for the Sharks?
(Votes: 175)
Yes: 91%
No: 9%
Even in this market, a third-round pick isn’t much to pay for a middle-six forward. Donato is still quite young, has a year remaining on his contract at under $2 million and will get a great opportunity with the Sharks.
QUESTION: Do you like the Devan Dubnyk trade for the Sharks?
(Votes: 150)
Yes: 71%
No: 29%
Despite readers being a bit less favourable towards the Dubnyk trade, I think it was a good move. The Sharks got a goalie who’s a couple years removed from being a quality starter at half price for basically nothing in return.
QUESTION: Do you like the decision to take Ozzy Wiesblatt at 31st overall?
(Votes: 96)
Yes: 80%
No: 20%
Wiesblatt is a well-rounded player who put up good numbers in the WHL last season. Given who was available, I really like this pick for the Sharks.
QUESTION: Are you happy with San Jose's picks in rounds 2-7?
(Votes 56)
Yes: 80%
No: 20%
The Sharks went with an interesting strategy in the draft, using every pick to select a forward. They’ve started to build a decent base of prospects up front, it’s a matter of how many will turn out.
QUESTION: Are you happy to see Stefan Noesen brought back?
(Votes: 55)
Yes: 91%
No: 9%
I don’t think many fans would have a huge reaction either way but Noesen was a solid member of San Jose’s bottom-six and it’s good to see him back. It’s a no-risk deal and hopefully, Noesen will be able to succeed in a full season with the Sharks.
QUESTION: Are you happy with Kevin Labanc's four-year deal at a $4.725M AAV?
(Votes: 137)
No: 54%
Yes: 38%
Don’t feel strongly either way: 8%
While I think the deal was a bit expensive, I’m not as upset about it as it seems some readers may be. Labanc’s production should bounce back and it’s a reasonable term to give out to a middle-six forward.
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OTHER SHARKS ARTICLES FROM OCTOBER
Sharks reportedly working on potential trade with Wild for Dubnyk/Donato
Weekly Recap: Sharks Edition (October 4)
Sharks acquire Ryan Donato from Wild
Sharks acquire Devan Dubnyk from Wild
Sharks select Ozzy Wiesblatt at 31st overall
Recapping all of San Jose's picks in the 2020 NHL Draft
Sharks re-sign Stefan Noesen, Antti Suomela and others
Sharks re-sign Kevin Labanc 
San Jose Sharks Blogger • 
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