Shortly after the San Jose Sharks acquired 30-year-old forward Kiefer Sherwood from the Vancouver Canucks on Monday, he met with Vancouver media to speak about the trade.
“I was obviously a little caught off guard,” Sherwood shared. “I just was bag skating, got off and was told [about the trade].”
The news came through late on Monday morning, as the San Jose Sharks announced they acquired Sherwood from the Canucks in exchange for two second-round draft picks and 25-year-old defenseman Cole Clayton. Sherwood is currently in the final year of his two-year contract which carries a cap hit of $1.5 million.
Although Sherwood spent many years splitting time between the NHL and the American Hockey League as a member of the Anaheim Ducks and Colorado Avalanche organizations, he didn’t get his first full-time opportunity at the NHL level until the 2023-24 season with the Nashville Predators. That summer, he signed with the Canucks as an unrestricted free agent and found his game. In 122 games with the Canucks, he’s scored 36 goals and tallied a total of 63 points while playing a physical brand of hockey. He set an NHL record with 462 hits in 2024-25.
“First and foremost, I’m really thankful for everything that the city and this organization has given me,” Sherwood said about his time in Vancouver. “I know they say you earn it, but you got to have the opportunity. As a guy that has been a late bloomer, [they gave] everything I could have hoped for, and more. This is really a special place to play. They do things the right way. They really live and breathe hockey.”
The San Jose Sharks will be in Vancouver next week, but Sherwood, who is currently on IR with an upper-body injury, doesn’t know if he’ll be ready to go by then or not.
“I need to make sure this [injury] is right, and we’ll see,” he said.
The attention then turned to Sherwood’s new team, just for a moment.
“Their rebuild has probably happened quicker than they thought, and I know they have some special players coming up in their system,” Sherwood said of the Sharks. “It’s pretty exciting, but I’m just trying to be in the present right now and process everything. I’m looking forward to the new start.”
San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky told San Jose Hockey Now that Sherwood would be arriving in San Jose on Wednesday. Warsofsky should offer a better timeline for Sherwood’s return on Thursday.
Sherwood, an undrafted player with a winding road to the NHL, closed out his availability by saying, “I just try to put my work boots on every day. I hope that [my success] opens up some pathways for other late bloomers one day, whether it’s here or other places. There are a lot of guys that are good players in the [AHL] that sometimes need some time to figure it out.”
“I’m really thankful for everything the city and this organization has given me… This is really a special place to play in.”
🗣️ Kiefer Sherwood shares what this city and team has meant to him.#Canucks | @theprovince pic.twitter.com/zvLotU96CE
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) January 19, 2026