The San Jose Sharks acquired Ben Smith from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Andrew Desjardins early Monday afternoon, as reported by Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and confirmed shortly thereafter by ESPN's Pierre Lebrun.
The Sharks then moved Tyler Kennedy to the New York Islanders for a conditional third-round pick in the NHL draft, per TSN's Darren Dreger.
Add in the trade of James Sheppard to the New York Rangers Sunday and it's clear that Sharks GM Doug Wilson is engaging in that "on the fly" rebuild he has long touted. While most of the moves thus far have been of the depth variety, another larger, more interesting trade could become possible.
According to a report from The Fourth Period, Wilson is fielding calls on forward Patrick Marleau.
"Multiple league sources have told TFP on Sunday that the San Jose Sharks have received interest from other teams in star forward Patrick Marleau," writes TFP.
Of course, interest from other teams means nothing if the Sharks don't want to move him and the report also notes that as of Sunday afternoon Marleau, who has a no-movement clause in his contract, had not been approached by San Jose about either waiving it or submitting a list of teams he would accept a trade to.
That being said, Wilson is listening.
"While a trade involving Marleau is not imminent, and not expected by Monday's 3pm ET trade deadline, according to a league source, another source close to the organization suggested to TFP that if the right offer came across Wilson's desk, Marleau would "seriously consider" waiving his no-trade clause."
A worthwhile offer would be massive, even for a 35-year-old, and might never, in fact, materialize. But the Sharks, as TFP notes, would like to "retool" their roster and have already begun the process, shipping out Desjardins, Sheppard and now Kennedy.
Seeing a guy as revered as Marleau leave is unlikely, but in this NHL world, not impossible.
