The Vancouver Canucks stole the day by dominating headlines and the Nashville Predators (arguably) acquired the best player that was readily available in James Neal.
While they didn't make any monster moves—Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau remain in town... for now—the Sharks still managed to have a quietly productive and savvy day. The first news centered around the boys in teal broke this afternoon when it became clear that Martin Havlat would be bought out.
After trying and failing to move the aging and nearly useless winger throughout the summer, Doug Wilson finally pulled the trigger and released one of the most disappointing acquisitions in team history. No one was particularly surprised by this maneuver.
Not a big surprise to see reports of the Sharks buying out winger Martin Havlat
— Yahoo Sports NHL (@YahooSportsNHL) June 27, 2014Then at the draft, the Sharks traded down seven spots, moving from the 20th-overall selection to No. 27. They swapped with the Chicago Blackhawks, who used their higher pick to add Nick Schmaltz. San Jose clearly was eyeing someone that they thought they could nab a bit later, and they appeared to have picked up their guy in Nikolay Goldobin.
With the 27th selection in the #NHLDraft, the #SharksDraft forward Nikolay Goldobin from the Sarnia Sting of the OHL.
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) June 28, 2014San Jose selects Nikolay Goldobin. Creative and quick offensive Russian. He can put up big points and embarrass defenders one on one.
— ISS Hockey (@ISShockey) June 28, 2014Again, nothing earth shattering here. Wilson doesn't need to kick up much dust at the draft though. He quietly pieced together a solid day for the organization, and avoided making any emotional choices concerning his two biggest trade chips in Thornton and Marleau. The next week is going to be an interesting one in San Jose, but day one of the NHL draft went off without a hitch for the Sharks.