Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
With the release of Antti Niemi, the San Jose Sharks were desperate for a starting goaltender. The Sharks solved this problem by trading for Martin Jones but not without risk. With 34 games of NHL experience, Jones isn’t a proven starter. Also by trading their 2016 first-round pick, the Sharks are putting all of their eggs in this basket.
But this isn’t a unique situation. Several NHL teams have traded their first-round pick for a starting goaltender. Let’s see how these teams fared.
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2015: Robin Lehner for Colin White
The Buffalo Sabres are the other NHL team to trade a first-round pick for a goalie. With that in mind, this situation is an interesting one to follow for Sharks fans. Like Jones, Lehner has limited NHL experience and is being thrust into the spotlight on a rebuilding Sabres team.
2013: Cory Schneider for Bo Horvat
Stuck behind Roberto Luongo, Schneider didn’t receive much ice time for the Vancouver Canucks. Seeing this, the New Jersey Devils sent the ninth overall pick to the Canucks to give him more ice time. In 2013-14, the same problems persisted as the Devils continued to start Martin Brodeur and missed the playoffs despite being a top-five possession team.
But 2014-15 was a different story as the Devils made use of their acquisition by playing Schneider in 69 games. Schneider achieved a .925 save percentage in those games and proved he is one of the top goalies in the NHL. If the Sharks stumble upon a similar situation, this trade will become one of the biggest success stories of 2015-16.
As for Horvat, there isn’t much to say since he just finished his rookie season. At 19 years of age, he struggled to keep up in the NHL. But his dominant play with the London Knights shows promise. Time will tell how Horvat develops in the future.
2012: Semyon Varlamov for Filip Forsberg
Like Schneider, Varlamov wasn’t able to keep the starting job for the Washington Capitals. As a result, the Colorado Avalanche gave him an opportunity and he ran away with it. Varlamov had his troubles his first season but he was exceptional these last two seasons.
With a .927 save percentage, Varlamov was the only reason why the Avalanche made the playoffs in 2013-14. He followed that performance up with a .921 save percentage last year. Although the Avalanche missed the playoffs last year, they should be satisfied with Varlamov’s performance.
While they will regret trading away Forsberg for a goalie, the Avalanche won this trade as we don’t need to remind Capitals fans about what they did with him.
2008: Tomas Vokoun for Josh Bailey
In need of a starting goalie, the Florida Panthers took a chance on Vokoun to take them to the playoffs. While Vokoun was a solid goalie for the Panthers, the team failed to surround him with talent and never made the playoffs during his tenure. He later played for the Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins before retiring from the NHL.
2007: Vesa Toskala for Lars Eller
We arrive at one of Doug Wilson‘s best trades. To give the starting job to Evgeni Nabokov, the Sharks received a first-round pick for Toskala. With the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toskala didn’t pan out and was out of the NHL in three years. Meanwhile, the Sharks used that return to trade up for Logan Couture.
This is one of the few examples I found where the team trading the goalie won this type of trade. The other example was the Andrew Raycroft for Tuukka Rask trade, also involving Toronto.
But the point stands, teams receiving the goalie in these types of trades usually win. Since Jones comes from a similar situation as Schneider and Varlamov, there is reason for optimism in San Jose.
Next: Sharks Get Fresh Start Under Peter DeBoer