Patrick Marleau’s Return to the San Jose Sharks in Question

Reports indicate that the San Jose Sharks are no longer interested in bringing back former forward Patrick Marleau to the Bay Area.

Rumors began swirling midweek regarding Patrick Marleau’s possible future with the San Jose Sharks. The 39-year-old was recently bought out by the Carolina Hurricanes making him a free agent heading into the 2019 – 2020 season.

The rumor stems from a report written in the Toronto Sun by Steve Simmons where he claims..

"After being traded by the Leafs and bought out by Carolina, Patrick Marleau figured he would go home and return to the San Jose Sharks. Well, that’s not happening. Sharks don’t want him. Apparently, Arizona does, but Marleau may not want to play there. This off-season isn’t turning out the way he hoped it would …"

This is unfortunate news for fans of Team Teal that were hoping for Patrick Marleau triumphantly returning to the Tank. However does a simple statement buried within an article with no implication of sourcing actually carry much weight when it comes to reporting? It’s difficult to say taking into account Simmons track record of misfires.

Now the report might actually be true and the Sharks have absolutely no interest in bringing Marleau back, which really isn’t much of a problem. The 2nd overall pick in the 1997 NHL draft hasn’t really played that well since leaving San Jose. In his two season on the Leafs he struggled to find his footing only compiling 84 points in 164 games.

The 21 year veteran was eventually relegated the bottom six where at times he struggled to keep up with the responsibilities of a checking winger in today’s NHL. So it’s likely that the Sharks noticed this and feel that he can no longer contribute to their team during the 2019 – 2020 campaign.

With all of this energy focused on the questions surrounding Marleau’s return. It’s odd that the Sharks have remained this suspiciously quiet about resigning Joe Thornton. The 39-year-old center revealed that he would be open to a return to San Jose. Which isn’t a surprise bearing in mind that Jumbo’s taken a few hefty one year deals over the past couple seasons to help Doug Wilson navigate the cap. These “handshake agreements” kept the grizzled veteran around to help guide the younger members of Team Teal through the ups and downs of a professional hockey career.

There is no way I am the only one adjusting their tin foil caps when it comes to the radio silence pertaining the resigning  of Thornton. The Sharks have the cap space, Thornton has committed to returning, and his presence makes the team better especially with their lack of depth at forward. So what exactly is holding the two parties up from agreeing to terms on a deal?

The hesitation definitely raises the question of whether the Sharks are up to something bigger than just signing veteran skaters. They obviously have serious holes entering next season with the loss of Joe Pavelski and other top six caliber wingers to free agency. Could the lack of commitment to players like Joe Thornton and to a lesser extend Patrick Marleau signal that San Jose might be shopping around for an improvement at right-wing entering the training camp.

It’s difficult to say considering San Jose’s front office is notoriously one of the most tight lip groups around the league. Which is just another reason why it’s difficult to feel certain about this report surrounding Marleau’s future status as a Shark.

All this being said the sole purpose of this article was to give fans of Team Teal perspective on a report that really didn’t provide much context pertaining to who might think this way within the San Jose Sharks organization. We should all take these rumors with a grain of salt, even though Marleau’s return really wouldn’t impact the Sharks all that much on the ice.

San Jose has more than few glaring holes on their roster that really will not filled by a skater entering his age 40 season. This sentiment goes for both Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau. While the Sharks do have a few promising prospects that can potentially play big minutes for them next season. It’s difficult to picture a team who’s traditionally relied on veteran talent to go into next season leaning on a 20-year-old with little to no experience at the pro level.

A Marleau reunion would be amazing to see especially with the recent loss of Pavelski to free agency. Nevertheless, it’s reached that point of the off-season where it’s time to wonder what exactly are the Sharks planning to do in 2019 – 2020. If Marleau is out of the mix and Thornton remains unsigned could there be something it works? It’s all speculation but the longer it takes San Jose to commit to Jumbo the more suspicion rises about the Team Teal’s true intentions this off-season.

Stay tuned folks.