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In the summer of 2017, Joe Thornton was presented with several options as he was about to become an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his NHL career.
Thornton was courted by over half of the teams in the league, which surprised him to some degree. Ultimately, though, Thornton chose to return to the Sharks, signing a one-year, $8 million contract — famously while he was sitting on his lawn mower — to come back to the team he helped make one of the NHL’s best for well over a decade.
“It was nice getting courted by all these teams and I felt bad saying, ‘Hey, I’m going back to San Jose,'” Thornton said at the time. “But that’s where my heart is and that’s where I’m happy.”
Less than three years later, Thornton, now 40, is again at something of a crossroads.
Between now and Monday at noon (PT), Thornton will have to decide — if he hasn’t already — whether he wants to remain with the Sharks for the rest of the regular season or waive the “no move” clause in his contract and allow a trade for a shot at the Stanley Cup, the only thing missing from his 22-year Hall of Fame career. The Sharks play the New York Rangers on Saturday and the New York Islanders on Sunday.
Thornton has certainly earned the right to chart his own path, and no one’s going to change their opinion of the future Hockey Hall of Fame member regardless of what he decides to do.
Still, the idea of Thornton playing for another team for the rest of the season and into the playoffs makes sense for a number of reasons.
First, Thornton would get to play meaningful hockey well into April and perhaps beyond, instead of playing out the string with the Sharks, who entered Friday 12 points out of a playoff spot with 22 games to go.
He’d only be with another team for a few months, and wouldn’t necessarily have to uproot his family to another city. He’d be free to return to San Jose and perhaps re-sign with the Sharks this summer if that’s what he wanted, hopefully, for his sake, after he’s hoisted Lord Stanley.
Thornton would not only lend a respected veteran presence to any team, but also be a valuable contributor. Some of his best hockey this season came after the Sharks’ coaching change, when Bob Boughner placed Thornton on the second line with Tomas Hertl on his wing.
Thornton, who has spent a lot of time as the Sharks’ second line center in recent weeks for various reasons, could easily slide into a third or fourth line center role for any team and play on a second power play unit.
Recent reports suggest he would be a fit for either the Boston Bruins or Colorado Avalanche, teams with deep rosters. The Bruins did make a trade Friday, though, sending forward David Backes, defenseman Axel Andersson and a first round draft pick to the Anaheim Ducks for forward Ondrej Kase.
Surely if Thornton decides he’d like to join a Cup contender this season, general manager Doug Wilson will try to make that happen. We just saw earlier this week how the respected Brenden Dillon was treated, as he was traded to the contending Washington Capitals for two draft picks.
Maybe Wilson can land a second- or a third-round draft pick in return, or perhaps a prospect that can challenge for a roster spot next season. He won’t give him away for free. But the bigger priority for Wilson might be to do right by Thornton, who has given everything he’s got to the organization for close to 15 years.
As of now, Thornton hasn’t given any indication one way or another whether he would waive the no move clause. A Stanley Cup, of course, is the one major item missing from his resume.
Thornton has said before and told this newspaper again Sunday he hasn’t thought about the trade deadline or whether he would accept a deal to a contending team. He hasn’t necessarily dismissed the idea out of hand, either.
But the Sharks are where they are right now: a team that entered Friday with five rookies on their 23-man roster. All of these young players, and perhaps others in the organization, will continue to get shots with the big club over the final seven weeks of the season to see where they are in their development.
Then after April 4, the season will likely be over.
One way or another, it figures to be a tough decision for Thornton, to stay with the team he loves until the end, or allow a trade to another club. We know he has a lot of hockey left to play.
