Sharks star Tomas Hertl is entering the final season of his four-year, $22.5 million contract. The question now is, what does his future look like in San Jose?
The 27-year-old raised some eyebrows when he said, "I wonder if San Jose will want to re-sign me, and if I’ll want to stay there" to iDNES.cz in the Czech Republic.
Losing Hertl, of course, would be a big blow to the Sharks. But it sounds like general manager Doug Wilson certainly doesn't want to see that happen.
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Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported Thursday that "word is [Wilson's] told other teams that it is San Jose’s desire to make this work, and that message will be delivered once Hertl arrives."
Hertl scored 43 points -- 19 goals and 24 assists -- in 50 games for the Sharks last season. His 17 percent shooting percentage was much higher than his 13.4 percent shooting percentage for his career.
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The Sharks have missed the playoffs the past two seasons after reaching the Western Conference Final in 2018-19. They went just 21-28-7 in last season's shortened slate.
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Wilson has seen a handful of big names leave recently, and while the Sharks are becoming younger and leaning towards the future, they expect to be much better this season and must figure out their Hertl situation sooner than later.