Sharks trade Justin Braun; Joe Thornton wants to return

SAN JOSE - To help clear some space under NHL's salary cap for next season, the Sharks traded defenseman Justin Braun to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday for a second-round selection (41st overall) in this weekend's NHL Draft and a third-round pick next season.

Braun is set to make $3.8 million next season, the final one of a five-year, $19 million deal he signed in Sept. 2014.

The trade leaves the Sharks with roughly $16.3 million in projected salary cap space for the 2019-2020 season, according to CapFriendly.com, with 15 players under contract. Monday, the Sharks made Erik Karlsson the highest paid defenseman in the NHL, inking him to a eight-year, $92 million deal that could take up over 13% of San Jose's salary cap space for next season if the upper limit remains at a estimated $83 million.

Four Sharks players are slated to become restricted free agents this summer, with Timo Meier topping the list and likely due a significant raise after he finished his entry level contract that carried a salary cap hit of just under $900,000. Meier had 30 goals and was fourth on the Sharks with 66 points this past regular season.

Six players, including Joe Pavelski, Gus Nyquist and Joonas Donskoi, can become unrestricted free agents July 1.

Braun, 32, was a seventh-round pick by the Sharks in 2007 and had become one of the team's most reliable defensemen, even though his plus-minus rating this season dipped to a career-worst minus-14.

In 607 NHL games with San Jose, he had 154 points and 226 penalty minutes.

Braun, who is ranked sixth on the Sharks' all-time list in games played amongst defensemen, told reporters in Philadelphia he was surprised by the deal.

“I've been with the Sharks for a long time. First time getting traded, so it was a little shocking,” he said. “Had to make some phone calls to the wife and get everything in order. At the same time, it's exciting. It's something new, something different.”

For years, Braun and Marc-Edouard Vlasic formed the Sharks' top shutdown pair, regularly skating against the top lines of opposing teams. This past season, though, after Karlsson was acquired from Ottawa in Sept. 2018, Braun was regularly paired with Brenden Dillon and averaged 20 minutes and 18 seconds of ice time per game, slightly more than his career average of 19:56.

“Justin has been an important part of our organization since we drafted him in 2007 and over that time, we have seen him develop not only as a player on the ice but as a man,” Sharks general manager Doug Wilson said in a statement. “He has played a large role in our team's success since joining the Sharks roster, including appearing in three Conference Finals and competing for the Stanley Cup in 2016.”

Braun played in 84 playoff games with San Jose (second in franchise history amongst defensemen), with 13 points (three goals, 10 assists) and 40 penalty minutes.

The Sharks now have five picks both for this weekend's and next season's draft.

Thornton wants to return

Joe Thornton wants to play at least another year.

“Yeah, and longer,” Thornton told reporters with a laugh Tuesday at the NHL Awards' media availability in Las Vegas.

“Probably play another 10 years,” he added. “We'll wait and see, but I'm thinking five to 10 right now. I got nothing else going on.”

Thornton, slated to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, said he plans to meet with Wilson, majority owner Hasso Plattner and coach Pete DeBoer and “figure something out” for next year, which would be his 22nd.