Marleau would do a trade to team headed to playoffs
Patrick Marleau’s stance on being dealt to a Stanley Cup contender before the April 12 trade deadline hasn’t changed.
Marleau reiterated Monday that he would have to consider a trade to a playoff-bound team should the opportunity arise over the next two weeks.
Marleau, 41, played in his 1,757th game Monday night against the Minnesota Wild at SAP Center, passing Mark Messier for second place on the NHL’S all-time games played list. Messier, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, played 1,756 games over 25 NHL seasons from 1979 to 2004.
Marleau, should he remain healthy and with San Jose, will play his 1,768th game on April 19 when the Sharks are in Las Vegas to play the Golden Knights, passing Gordie Howe to become the NHL’S leader in career regular-season games played.
With the league’s trade deadline looming and his team well out of a playoff spot, Sharks general manager Doug Wilson will likely be a seller, with Marleau one of the players that could possibly be moved.
Other Sharks that could be traded include forward Matt Nieto and Marcus Sorensen and goalie Devan Dubnyk.
Last week, the Canadian government waived its mandatory 14-day quarantine period for NHL players acquired by Canadian NHL teams from those based in the U.S. Players will now need to quarantine for seven days, with daily COVID-19 testing as part of the requirement, making it more likely for teams on both sides of the border to deal with each other.
Marleau and Joe Thornton, who had played 1,658 NHL regular-season games before Monday, are the only players in the NHL’S top 10 for games played to not have won a Stanley Cup. Thornton, who signed a one-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs in October, is sixth on the NHL’S all-time games played list.
“I think it’s something you have to consider, obviously, if something comes up,” said Marleau, who told The Athletic earlier this month that he would examine a move to another team. “But it’s something that we’ll have to think about and see if it’s the right situation.”
Last year, the Sharks traded Marleau to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a similar situation as they found themselves outside the playoff hunt. Marleau returned as a free agent in the offseason.
Marleau also said that he would like to keep playing beyond this season. Now in his 23rd NHL season, Marleau has six points in 33 games, averaging 13:25 seconds of ice time. Still an exceptional skater, Marleau has recently spent time in the Sharks’ middle-six forward group.
“I definitely want to keep playing,” Marleau said. “And I still think I have a lot left to give and left in the tank.”
This season, Marleau has already passed Ron Francis (1,731) and Jaromir Jagr (1,733) on the all-time games played list.
“I kind of pinch myself every now and then seeing these names that you’re being mentioned with,” Marleau said. “Pretty amazing to be mentioned with these great players, and I don’t take that lightly.”
NIETO STILL OUT >> Matt Nieto’s lower-body injury will likely keep him out of the San Jose Sharks’ lineup for at least another week, coach Bob Boughner said Monday. Nieto, initially described as being day-to-day, has not played since March 19 when the Sharks faced the St. Louis Blues.
Nieto was placed on injured reserve last weekend, opening a roster spot for forward Jeffrey Viel, who is expected to make his NHL debut Monday night against the Wild.
Boughner said Nieto has been skating recently but “there’s not a lot of improvement. So we had to make that decision to open up a spot and I wouldn’t expect him to be in for this week at least. Hopefully next week. It hasn’t improved as much as we thought it would.” GABRIEL SITS >> Kurtis Gabriel, who was given a fiveminute major for interference and a game misconduct for a hit on Johan Larsson of the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday, will be a healthy scratch Monday. Boughner disagreed that Gabriel’s hit, which he felt was a little late but shoulder-to-shoulder, warranted a game misconduct, although Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet said the hit also caught Larsson in the head. Gabriel also did not receive any supplementary discipline from the NHL’S Department of Player Safety.