Ben Shelley: Sharks shouldn’t re-sign Melker Karlsson

I wouldn't be so quick to jettison Melker just yet...When he first came up, he did what Tomas Hertl did in his rookie season (until the knee injury) and that was to fearlessly go to the net for tip-ins, rebounds, set screens etc..both of them absorbed a lot of punishment and head shots.
As the Sharks added talent up front (Donskoii, Joel Ward, Chris Tierney, and later Timo Meier and later still EK9 etc Melkers role was filled by more skilled players and he moved down the lineup and got less minutes as Bottom 6 guys are going to do...hence less scoring. He is still a valuable PK guy, and can play up and down the lineup if need be. His Corsi is also part of a team wide issue of defense (or lack thereof) that has plagued the Sharks this season and the 1st half of last season.
With a new cap, probably lower than $81.5mm, he would have to take a pay cut but there isn't an NHL ready guy on the Barracuda that the staff would trust more. Letunov and True held their own while they were up but can they do it with consistency for 82 games? It took Goodrow and Tierney 2-3 years of experience before they were regulars on the Sharks so I think having Melker for the next 2 years is not as bad as you think.

I'm on the fence with Melker. If he's willing to come back on a steep discount, I'd definitely lobby for him. He's been great on the PK. Also depends on who the Sharks would look to fill his roster spot with.

I don’t think the team should. The team will have $17 mil available and there are other FA options and possible players to bring up, Dahlén is an RFA and I’d rather we invest in him and bring him back stateside.
Labanc will need a bump, we also need to resign Kellman, younger and doesn’t seem to let the play die on his stick.

The problem isn't what Melker is being paid, it's what Erik is being paid.