There isn’t much going on right now on the NHL trade market, but one name that keeps popping up in trade rumblings is San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported Saturday on Hockey Night in Canada.
However, it is a bit of a tricky situation.
Marleau, 36, has a no-movement clause in his contract, and Friedman says there is zero evidence that the Sharks have asked him to lift it.
“It is a complex one. It’s difficult to pin down because none of the particulars are talking,” Friedman told Damien Cox during the weekly Headlines segment. “So I can’t say who is pushing for it, but his name is out there.”
Marleau’s contract runs through the end of the 2016-17 season and carries an annual salary cap hit of $6.66 million.
The veteran forward has four goals and five assists in nine games this season. He is coming off one of the least productive seasons of his lengthy NHL career, scoring 57 points in 82 games with a minus-17 rating.
Entering Saturday, San Jose is 7-6-0 and are sitting third place in the Pacific Division.