Jamie McGinn, aka the only call-up that did decently last year

This summer, there hasn’t been really anything blockbuster going down – the closest thing was Ehrhoff and Lukowich being traded away. That’s it. However, there have been a lot of small, depth moves done that really strengthens the organization. Especially with the absence of high draft picks and prospects in the recent years.

While the Sharks failed to land the famed “Monster” Jonas Gustavsson, they nabbed another tall goalie in Henrik Karlsson to just add on to the already strong goalie depth the organization has. It is only a one year deal, but Karlsson will be an RFA at the end of it, so the Sharks will continue to have his rights. So, if Karlsson chooses not to re-sign with the Sharks, they will get compensatory draft picks. Not a bad pick-up.

The move that signed Jed Ortmeyer, Dwight Helminien, as well as two others was an early move in the scheme of things, but it helped bolster the depth down at the Worcester level as a bunch of under-performing prospects were let go. Ortmeyer especially was a good move, as he could potentially challenge for a spot on the NHL roster, and is signed near league minimum. He was once tabbed as the future captain of the Rangers if only he had a bit more scoring pop, and is great on the PK (considered by some the only reason he ever played at the NHL level). Same thing with the recent invite of Dan Hinote to training camp – a veteran known as a good locker room player who is also great on the penalty kill. The cost to the organization from those players will be minimum, and yet the Sharks now have some great defensive depth just in case the injury bug strikes. Even Scott Nichol, the agitator signed earlier this summer, is proficient on the PK.

There were also a bunch of college and minor free agent signings, one of the most prolific being that of Benn Ferriero, a former draft pick of Phoenix who failed to sign with them and has now joined the Sharks. He has hovered around a little less than a PPG pace while at Boston College, going 64-75-139 in 165 games. So not extremely impressive, but still a good pick-up for the Sharks.

But to get back to the whole PK thing – that’s what I’m most excited about. Last year, the Sharks had three main PK units – Marleau-Grier, Pavelski-Michalek, and Goc-Plihal. Unfortunately, the injury bug struck and there were units that had Thornton and Cheechoo playing the PK at one point. While they managed to kill the penalty, those two aren’t exactly known for their defensive prowess, and thus the healthy regular PKers had to take on a larger role. With the addition of Ortmeyer, Nichol, and potentially Hinote, as well as the return of Mitchell and a possible expanded role of McGinn, all of a sudden there is less of a reliance on the big-minute forwards and the time in high pressure situations is more spread out.

And as there is more competition in camp for the lower level spots – as Ortmeyer, Hinote, Staubitz, and even McGinn aren’t guaranteed spots (although McGinn is practically a shoe-in), a lot of rookies as well as those aforementioned veterans have to really play well to earn their spot, and then continue to play well or else they might get sent down (like Setoguchi competing for that first line spot). Last year, the roster was pretty much set with all the veterans signed to one-way, multi-year deals and little cap space to maneuver. This year, there are two spots on defense open, as well as three spots on offense, if the Sharks choose to fill out the full 23 man roster. Hell, even the choice of Greiss as backup isn’t set in stone, although it is highly unlikely.

Basically, this summer did not deliver any major moves, but was quietly a good off-season for San Jose.