{"id":2888,"date":"2026-06-23T20:40:46","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T20:40:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2888"},"modified":"2026-06-23T20:40:46","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T20:40:46","slug":"nhl-draft-sharks-mike-grier-explains-what-he-would-need-to-trade-no-2-pick","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2888","title":{"rendered":"NHL draft: Sharks’ Mike Grier explains what he would need to trade No. 2 pick"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SAN JOSE \u2013 San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier said Tuesday that despite there being significant interest from other organizations, it would take quite a package for him to trade the No. 2 overall selection the team holds for this week\u2019s NHL Draft in Buffalo.<\/p>\n

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The Sharks fortuitously won the second drawing of last month\u2019s draft lottery, moving up from the possible ninth or 10th overall selection to No. 2. Since then, Grier said roughly five teams \u201chave been very consistently serious\u201d about acquiring the selection, including what he said were \u201ca couple legitimate offers that we\u2019ve had to really think through and have conversations about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grier said he expects those conversations to continue until Friday, when the first round of the draft is held, but added he\u2019s excited about potentially adding another elite player to a prospect pool already considered one of the best in the NHL.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would have to make sense for us to move off the second overall pick and potentially get a new player like that who can be on our roster for a long time,\u201d Grier said. \u201cIt (has) to be a very good young player, or young players who are maybe a little bit further along than an 18-year-old (who) could step in and do the same thing, (and) be part of our lineup for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

If the Toronto Maple Leafs, as projected, take Penn State winger Gavin McKenna at first overall, the Sharks\u2019 decision \u2013 if they keep the No. 2 pick \u2014 will come down to taking Swedish-born winger Ivar Stenberg or one of the best defensemen available.<\/p>\n

Competing against men in the Swedish Hockey League, Stenberg, 18, put up impressive numbers this past season with 33 points in 43 games for Frolunda HC, and also made an impact at the IIHF World Championship with eight points in eight games.<\/p>\n

Stenberg possesses tremendous passing and stickhandling ability, along with elite hockey sense, and projects to be a future top-line winger, maybe even as soon as this fall.<\/p>\n

But the Sharks could also use the pick to bolster the blue line, with the top three defenseman available largely believed to be Michigan-born Chase Reid and Canadians Keaton Verhoeff and Carson Carels.<\/p>\n

Read more Opinion: California is about to get a windfall. Let\u2019s not blow it.<\/a><\/p>\n

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Although projected to fill first or second pair roles in the NHL, it is unclear whether any of the three would be ready for the NHL in 2026-27. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Reid, who had 48 points in 45 games with the OHL\u2019s Soo Greyhounds, has committed to Michigan State but is considered by many to be the best of the three.<\/p>\n

Asked why he thinks he\u2019s received so much interest in the No. 2 pick, Grier said other teams realize that the Sharks are eager to take a step forward this season and make the playoffs for the first time since 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, teams probably feel a little bit more open to making offers to us,\u201d Grier said. \u201cAt the same time, the possibility of a team going up to get a player that can really help them \u2014 a really good forward or really good (defenseman) \u2014 is enticing for teams. There\u2019s a right-shot (defenseman like Reid) who skates, has the size and athleticism, and the offense. I think every team really could use someone like that.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you\u2019ve got (Stenberg), who had one of the historically great seasons in the SHL. Then you\u2019ve got McKenna, who held his own and had a really good second half (of his freshman season), and had an unbelievable (WHL season) the year prior. These types of players are guys that make other franchises excited about adding, so I think if you put those two things together, it just probably made it a situation where teams want to try and move up and see how willing we are to move off it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Grier would not say whether he thinks there might be a big gap between the second- and third-best players available, but reiterated that teams can get into trouble by drafting for need early in the first round.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike I\u2019ve kind of said all along, I don\u2019t believe in drafting for need when you\u2019re at the top of the draft. I think it\u2019s a dangerous game to play to leave talent on the table,\u201d Grier said. \u201cSo, our pick will strictly come down to who we think is the best player and who will be the best NHL player down the road.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Please check back for updates to this story.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

General manager Mike Grier said he’s received significant interest in the San Jose Sharks’ No. 2 pick<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2887,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nNHL draft: Sharks’ Mike Grier explains what he would need to trade No. 2 pick - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2888\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NHL draft: Sharks’ Mike Grier explains what he would need to trade No. 2 pick - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"General manager Mike Grier said he's received significant interest in the San Jose Sharks' No. 2 pick\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2888\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-23T20:40:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"NHL draft: Sharks’ Mike Grier explains what he would need to trade No. 2 pick\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-23T20:40:46+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888\"},\"wordCount\":806,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/57eeaab993f6a292c93a078223b1bc55.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=2888\",\"name\":\"NHL draft: Sharks’ Mike Grier explains what he would need to trade No. 2 pick - 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