The Sharks pulled off a big trade this afternoon, sending forwards William Eklund, Kasper Halttunen, and Brandon Svoboda to the Ottawa Senators for the 9th overall pick in Friday's NHL Draft.
The biggest piece in this deal that is departing the Sharks is William Eklund, who has been a great forward for San Jose the past few seasons. Most recently during the 2025-26 campaign, Eklund compiled 15 goals, 38 assists, and 53 points, which were good for seventh, second, and fourth on the team in each respective category. His Sharks tenure concludes with a total of 50 goals, 113 assists, and 163 points in 252 games. As for the prospects involved in this trade, Kasper Halttunen completed his first full season in the AHL with the Barracuda last season, recording 16 goals, 19 assists, and 35 points in 69 games, along with one assist in two Calder Cup playoff games. Brandon Svoboda appeared in 35 games for Boston University last season, scoring six goals, nine assists, and 15 points. The Sharks now have three picks (2, 9, 27) in the first round of Friday's draft.
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In other news, earlier today, the Sharks re-signed defenseman Nolan Allan to a two-year contract. It carries a cap hit of $875k at the NHL level next season and then becomes a one-way deal worth $900k in year 2 of the contract. Ever since he was acquired by the Sharks from the Blackhawks in the midst of last season, Allan recorded two goals, 12 assists, and 14 points in 35 AHL games for the Barracuda. He is aiming to compete for a spot on the Sharks' NHL roster next season and potentially slot into a bottom-pairing role on the blue line.
Overall, William Eklund has been one of my favorite Sharks players during his five-year tenure in San Jose, and I am sad to see him leave to join another team. However, on the flip side, Eklund gets to reunite with his best friend Fabian Zetterlund in Ottawa, and this trade all but guarantees that the Sharks will select Ivar Stenberg with the second pick and a top defenseman with the ninth pick on Friday. Another aspect worth mentioning here is that since William Eklund was originally a draft pick made by previous Sharks GM Doug Wilson, Mike Grier was more willing to part ways with Eklund in order to make further improvements to his roster. By letting go of William Eklund now, and if their draft strategy on Friday goes to plan, the Sharks should be better off in the long run regarding their top six forward core and blue line.
Sources: Sharks + SAP Center App, Locked on Sharks
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