When Lafreniere was selected he was coming off one of the best draft-eligible seasons in the QMJHL since Sidney Crosby.
Fast forward to today and he is fighting for third-line minutes on the consistent but not Stanley Cup favorite New York Rangers. This has left many fans wondering if he would be better off elsewhere.
Alexis Lafreniere is currently a restricted free agent and without a contract for the 2023-24 season. The Rangers are also relatively tight to the salary cap with only $2,278,417 in projected space. This allows potential teams with cap space and draft capital to make an offer sheet to Lafreniere.
The San Jose Sharks are a team at the early stages of their rebuild and expected to shed the salary of star defenseman Erik Karlsson sooner rather than later. They also have the necessary draft picks, in this case, a second-round pick, to offer sheet Lafreniere at a contract that New York couldn't currently match.
This deal would allow San Jose to acquire an incredibly talented forward whose age would fit in with their newly constructed core. This would also give Lafreniere the ice time and opportunity to flourish and reach that potential so many saw.
For the Rangers, they would receive a second-round pick to use to improve their win-now roster while getting away from the constant media storm that their handling of Lafreniere has become.
As Read On - The Hockey News
The Sharks Should Offer Sheet Alexis Lafreniere
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Do you believe the San Jose Sharks should offer sheet Alexis Lafreniere? | ||
Yes | 614 | 46.2 % |
No | 714 | 53.8 % |
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