According to ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun, the San Jose Sharks have signed free agent forward Mikkel Boedker to a four-year, $16MM deal. The 26-year old was one of the youngest free agents available this season, and represented a chance to sign a top-six player through his prime seasons.
Boedker has always been regarded as one of the fastest players in the league, and the Sharks realized they were lacking in that area when they were out-skated handily in the Stanley Cup finals by the team speed of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Now, with the addition of Boedker and the re-signing of Tomas Hertl, the Sharks have locked up two speedsters to play on the top two lines for the immediate future.
San Jose is looking ahead to 2017, when long-time superstars Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau are both set to hit free agency. Boedker’s age lines up well with captain Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture to keep the Sharks relevant through 2020. With a solid, deep defense corps – that added underrated David Schlemko earlier today – they’ll be able to continue their regular season dominance for at least another few seasons.