Sharks’ Grier getting several calls on No. 9 pick, and one on No. 2 that was ‘real interesting’

SAN JOSE – It wasn’t long after the San Jose Sharks acquired the ninth overall pick from the Ottawa Senators that general manager Mike Grier started to receive calls from his counterparts regarding the availability of that selection ahead of this week’s NHL Draft.

The Sharks traded winger William Eklund and forward prospects Kasper Halttunen and Brandon Svoboda to the Senators on Tuesday for the ninth overall pick, giving Grier three selections in Friday’s first round.

Now it’s a matter of what the Sharks might do with the No. 9 pick. If Grier takes either Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg, both wingers, at No. 2, that would seemingly increase the chances of the Sharks taking a defenseman ninth overall.

But considering that the player at No. 9 will likely not be NHL-ready for another year or two, the Sharks, who have designs on making the playoffs next season, could also opt to trade the pick for a younger player who could help the team right away.

Regardless, Grier has no shortage of options and will have no shortage of discussions with opposing general managers before Friday afternoon, as he said there also remains robust interest in the No. 2 pick.

“There were lots more calls on nine, and probably two more on two, (including) one that’s real interesting,” Grier said Wednesday. “It’s picked up. Teams are curious what our plan was with nine, so we had a few teams reach out and express some interest in it, and what we’d be looking for (in a trade).”

Grier said Tuesday that roughly five teams showed interest in the No. 2 pick the Sharks won in last month’s draft lottery, including a couple of offers that grabbed his attention. The Chicago Blackhawks were reportedly among the teams that reached out to Grier, looking for a winger like Stenberg or McKenna to play with Connor Bedard.

Grier said he’s open to listening on the No. 2 pick, but opposing teams would likely have to put together quite a package to pry it out of San Jose. The Sharks would likely need to receive a young top-line forward or first-pair defenseman to get the ball rolling.

“A couple of teams reached out on two again, so, all stuff for us to consider,” Grier said. “We still have a couple of days to get our board ready and then see what the day brings as we go along here this week.”

Grier said he didn’t come into this week looking to trade Eklund, who was the Sharks’ fourth-leading scorer this past season with 53 points in 78 games. While Svoboda is at least another year away from turning pro, Halttunen might be ready to make his NHL debut sometime during the 2026-27 season.

Grier said the deal with Senators GM Steve Staios “came together fairly quickly” after Ottawa moved Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers on Sunday for four draft picks, including the ninth overall selection.

“Stevie got put in a tough situation there in Ottawa, and I thought he did a great job of navigating it and doing the best he could in a difficult situation,” Grier said of the Senators trading Tkachuk, the team’s captain, who wanted to join his older brother Matthew and indicated he wasn’t going to re-sign with the Senators after his contract expired in 2028.

“Once that happened, (Staios) was looking for a good player to fill a top-six role for his team, and we had some discussions, and it came together fairly quickly. I think it’s a good opportunity for (Eklund) and for us, it was a good opportunity to add potentially another top 10 pick.”

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