Sharks acquire Erik Karlsson from Senators

Sure, but if you're trading one of the best defensemen of all time, you need to see a high-end prospect coming back the other way. We know they want the Ottawa Senators to win. Karlsson said the deal still came as a shock but he is eager to begin work on a team that made the Stanley Cup Final in 2016 and lost to Vegas in the second round past year. "I think when you quantify the number of years it could take, then expectations could fall short". They were recently in the Stanley Cup Final and they've been making the playoffs year after year. "I am going to be extremely excited once I get there and I am looking forward to whatever is ahead of me". In return, the Senators receive forwards Chris Tierney and Rudolfs Balcers, defenceman Dylan DeMelo, prospect Josh Norris, a 2020 first-round pick, a 2019 second-round pick, and two conditional picks.

"I hold this place above anything else", offered Karlsson, who also mentioned that he'd remain "an Ottawa resident forever". Tierney and DeMelo were on the Sharks' roster last season, recording 40 and 20 points respectively (17 goals, 23 assists for Tierney, no goals and 20 assists for DeMelo), while Norris was a first-round pick (19th overall) last season and Balcers was the 142nd overall pick in 2015.

And rumors about a Karlsson trade have been circling for much of the summer, especially with the Senators' comments about rebuilding around younger players, which they stated earlier this week in the most hilariously awkward video ever. "This trade represents the best opportunity for the Ottawa Senators to rebuild towards a consistent excellence that we are striving for".

Karlsson, a two-time victor of the Norris Trophy as the NHL's top defenseman, has one year at a $6.5 million cap hit remaining on his contract before he's eligible to hit unrestricted free agency in 2019.

It's just the latest big trade made by Wilson, who has also acquired Joe Thornton, Burns and Evander Kane in trades over the years.

The Sharks now boast the best blueline in the league, with Karlsson joining Brent Burns and Marc-Edouard Vlasic in San Jose. "It's a statement I think".

Karlsson had 62 points (nine goals, 53 assists) in 71 games last season.

The Sharks made the addition without giving up a top-six forward or top-four defenseman.

"We're going to get him in here", DeBoer said. You bring in a player like that, you look around the room, the type of players we have, our younger players getting better, bringing in a guy like Erik Karlsson, who's a (two-time) Norris Trophy victor, having another Norris Trophy victor in Brent Burns in the back end, there's really no excuses. "So the fact that Doug got it done, obviously we're ecstatic and can't wait to get to work with him". Ottawa gets a second-round choice in the 2019 draft from San Jose (which will be the higher of the two picks the Sharks now own - the Florida Panthers' and their own).

Karlsson put the Senators on his shoulders in the 2017 playoffs, leading them in scoring with 18 points - including two game-winning goals - in 19 contests, averaging more 28 minutes of ice time despite having torn tendons in his left foot, which required off-season surgery. Fantasy hockey owners will surely be circling around San Jose with two of the game's most productive defenders playing on the same team.