The San Jose Sharks are actively trying to reshape their blue line, and the search has already taken them into trade talks with the Detroit Red Wings.
At the center of the discussion is restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson, with Sharks GM Mike Grier also casting a wider net for a puck-moving defenseman. The conversations with Detroit have reportedly involved center Michael Misa, but the price tag may be climbing beyond a simple one-for-one swap.
On Wednesday’s edition of “ DFO Insider ” with David Pagnotta and Jeff Marek, Pagnotta said the talks have been building for more than a week.
“It’s certainly percolating and has been over the last 7 or 8 days, give or take. The interest is always there, but it’s really picked up steam,” Pagnotta explained.
“Now, the name we keep hearing tied to all of this from San Jose is Michael Misa. Depending on who you talk to, Detroit asked for Misa.
Others will say San Jose offered up Michael Misa. We still don’t know definitively.
What I do know is it would take more from Detroit’s perspective than just Michael Misa to part with Simon Edvinsson. That seems to be the situation right now between these two clubs that Detroit is looking for more than Misa in exchange for Edmonton.
“I think the Sharks would be comfortable one-for-one. It doesn’t sound, right now coming into (Wednesday), and we talked about this before the show, that Detroit would do that straight up, that they would look for more.”
Other names have surfaced in the Sharks’ discussions as well. Reports out of San Jose say forwards Igor Chernyshov and Filip Bystedt, along with 2026 ninth-overall selection Keaton Verhoeff, have also come up in trade talks.
For now, it’s not clear how far along the negotiations are. What is clear is that San Jose is still hunting for a mobile, puck-moving defenseman, according to sources cited by TFP.
The Sharks have just over $2.8 million in cap space, according to Puck Pedia, so any meaningful addition would likely require at least one roster player going out to keep the team cap compliant.
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Filip Bystedt will sit as a healthy scratch, and Yaroslav Askarov is set to get the start in goal as San Jose leans on a different look in hopes of changing the mood. The players-only meeting after the recent losses underscored the frustration inside the room, but Ryan Warsofsky remains under contract and there are no plans to move on from him, leaving the focus on whether these adjustments can buy the Sharks some immediate relief. [Read more 🡒]
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For San Jose, the wrinkle is less about the players availability than the pace of the conversations. The Sharks have shown interest, but talks with Detroit have not moved far enough to suggest a deal is close, even as Ryan Warsofsky remains behind the bench amid the teams own struggles. With Chicago still trying to patch its scoring issues and the market taking shape around it, this is the kind of name that could matter if the discussion ever gets serious. [Read more 🡒]