‘SAD DAY FOR ME’
Full rebuild begins in earnest as Senators trade captain and franchise player Erik Karlsson to San Jose Sharks
OTTAWA — The captain’s ship has sailed.
As the Ottawa Senators officially opened training camp on Thursday at the Canadian Tire Centre, twotime Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson showed up to pack his bags after months of speculation ended when he was shown the way to San Jose in a massive deal with the Sharks that could bring the club as many as eight assets.
While talks to deal Karlsson first started before last February’s trade deadline and heated up around free agency on July 1, general manager Pierre Dorion took action before the Senators could hit the ice on Friday by trading Karlsson and minorleague forward Francis Perron to the Sharks at approximately 2:30 p.m.
In return, the Senators get a first-round pick in 2019 or 2020, centre Chris Tierney, a second-round pick in 2019 (the best of the two San Jose currently has), prospect centre Josh Morris, prospect Rudolfs Balcers, and defenceman Dylan DeMelo.
The Senators also receive a second-round pick in 2021 or a first-round pick. If the Sharks sign Karlsson or if the club reaches the Stanley Cup final, it will automatically become a first-rounder. The club is also protected if Karlsson is dealt at the deadline this year by receiving San Jose’s top pick in 2021 or 2022.
In the end, the Senators felt this was the right move at the right time. With the club in a full rebuild, Dorion felt he could get good return for Karlsson. After he turned down an eight-year deal believed to be worth $88 million on July 1, the reality was this was going to happen.
“These things are never easy,” Dorion said. “We know we’re in a rebuild now and we know this is the best thing in the plan and the rebuild for us to have success In the
rebuild. We felt that now is the time to trade Erik Karlsson.”
Karlsson didn’t take part in the medicals and wasn’t at the rink until the afternoon when he got word the deal was done with the Sharks. He likely knew this day was coming with all the talk that has been going on for months, but when he met with the media he was emotional at the microphone.
“I’m just going to speak from the heart,” said Karlsson, who was taken No. 15 overall in the 2008 draft held in Ottawa. “I wish we were standing here during different circumstances. It’s a very emotional and sad day for me and my family. It’s an unfortunate part of the business.”
Karlsson said Ottawa will be his home “forever” and thanked the organization, along with the late Bryan Murray and former captain Daniel Alfredsson.
“It’s very unfortunate that I’m going to have to move on professionally,” Karlsson said. “I don’t think I ever, in my wildest imagination, I ever thought that I would leave this place, but unfortunately we’re here under these circumstances.”
Dorion said he had been working on this deal for a long time and felt the timing was right. The Senators also held serious talks with the Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning, while there’s talk in league circles the Columbus Blue Jackets also kicked tires along with several other teams.
“This has been in the works for a while. We talked to multiple teams around draft time and after (July 1) trade talks heated up,” he said.
“We didn’t feel (in July) we were getting the return for an Erik Karlsson-type of player. At this point, we definitely feel we got a very good return and six pieces that could end up being eight.”
Dorion told reporters in June “the dressing room was broken,” but he wasn’t pointing the finger at Karlsson for those issues.
“It wasn’t just about the captain, it was about everyone,” Dorion said. “We spoke about it (on Tuesday) in our rebuild plan, we definitely know the room was broken and that’s not always on one individual. We talked about that when I said that (in June), it was about the whole room being broken and we didn’t want to point fingers at one person.”
The decision to deal Karlsson isn’t going over well in Ottawa — not only was he the club’s best player, he was also one of the most popular to ever pull on the jersey, second only to Alfredsson. Nine years ago on Sept. 12, 2009, the Senators dealt winger Dany Heatley to the Sharks on the first day of camp.
“I don’t think that I could have ever prepared for this,” Karlsson said. “I’ve still got to wrap my around what’s going on. It’s been happening really fast. Even though there’s been a lot of noise for almost a year now, I never thought in my wildest imagination I was going to leave this place.”
Less than a year away from unrestricted free agency, Karlsson, 28, isn’t coming off his best season since being drafted by Ottawa No. 15 overall in 2008, but he’s arguably still one the NHL’s best defenceman with 126 goals and 518 points in 627 games.
Karlsson added, “I was prepared to come here and work hard for this team. I still have a year on my deal and, unfortunately, I couldn’t follow through.”
The decision to trade Karlsson signals that the organization is entering a full rebuild, and the captain may not be the last player out the door before the work here is completed.
“In our discussion with the Sharks, they were the first team that stepped up to what we were looking for,” Dorion said.
“We knew. There was no time constraint and we knew we were going to do the best deal for the organization and, with training camp (starting), we just felt now was the right time to move forward with this team.”
The Senators decided Thursday it was time to turn the page and start a new chapter.