The San Jose Sharks are buyers, but are they shooting for the big fish, and should they?

After acquiring Kiefer Sherwood from the Vancouver Canucks, Sharks GM Mike Grier has shown he’s willing to buy this season. The Sharks sit in 3rd place in the Pacific Division following their 4-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Monday.

But are the Sharks ready to go big game hunting? Truth is, probably not. They are in a playoff spot and could very well return to the playoffs for the first time since 2019, but they aren’t Stanley Cup contenders. Trading for New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin won’t make them one either.

On the latest edition of 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman says league chatter views Panarin as an excellent fit for the San Jose Sharks. On paper, that is true. Putting a player like Panarin on the left wing of Macklin Celebrini could be dynamite.

“This is my pure opinion, but someone said to me, one place they would really love to see him go, and the more I thought about it, the more I love the idea. Teal,” Friedman said. “I love the idea. Panarin right-shot, Celebrini left-shot, imagine those guys playing together.”

Friedman goes on to emphasize that he has no idea where Panarin might want to get traded to. The Rangers winger is in the final year of a seven-year contract with an AAV of $11,642,857. He has a full no-move clause, meaning he has total control over where he can be traded.

Panarin’s name will be at the top of trade deadline rumors, as the Rangers told the star he won’t receive a contract extension.

If the Sharks are players for Panarin, Grier will be smart with the return. Panarin’s trade value is high, and it could be more than what the Sharks are willing to pay.

Friedman believes Panarin wants to sign an extension with a trade destination

Here’s where the San Jose Sharks can get into murky water if they are interested in Panarin. While the team can fit his large cap hit, Friedman believes Panarin doesn’t want to change locations twice in a short period (i.e., trade then sign elsewhere as a UFA during the off-season).

“All these teams in the league are trying to figure out what does this mean for him? Where does he want to go? What does he want to do? How does he want to go about this?” Friedman said.

“The one thing I can say is that if you ask teams around the league what they believe, obviously, they don’t believe there are a lot of places that he wants to go. And secondly, his preference will be an extension. Maybe that’ll be wrong. Again, I admit I am taking some swings in the dark, but the early indication is that he would rather move once than twice. His preference is an extension over two moves.”

If Panarin wants to extend with whatever team potentially lands him, could the San Jose Sharks be a fit? Truth is, probably not. Panarin had been offered a discounted extension with the Rangers, similar to Anze Kopitar’s two-year $7 million AAV deal with the LA Kings, but he rejected it, per Friedman.

While Grier and the Sharks have the cap space to extend Panarin, they have in-house extensions to prioritize. Celebrini and Will Smith are both eligible for extensions on July 1. Those two are the Sharks’ top priority for long-term deals, especially Celebrini.

Now the young duo may not sign this summer, but conversations with their agents can be had throughout the final year of their entry-level contracts.

Adding Panarin, who has 56 points (19 goals, 37 assists), in 49 games would be must-see TV for the Sharks, even after the goalie fight. Extending him could be where the trouble is, as well as the price to get him from the Rangers.

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