Givani Smith was placed on waivers by the San Jose Sharks on Sunday, indicating that the forward won’t be back with the team unless there are a string of injuries that handcuff the Sharks from playing younger players. Smith has played just six games this season with the Sharks and averaged 6:17 total ice time per game. He has shifted further and further down the Sharks depth chart as the young players make more of a case to move up.
This seemed to come to a head in late November when forwards Barclay Goodrow and Nico Sturm suffered injuries. The team’s management decided to call Ethan Cardwell up from the San Jose Barracuda and slot him into the lineup instead of putting in Smith. Cardwell, who has averaged 11:32 of total ice time per game this season with the Sharks, has proven to be a better alternate than Smith, giving the Sharks a reliable forward who can play more minutes per game.
With Goodrow back skating with the team and about to come off injured reserve, as well as a reliable Cardwell to share the 13th-player role with one of the team’s other veterans, the writing is on the wall for Smith. However, I would argue that the impetus to place Smith on waivers can also be attributed to the semi-resurgence of another player, Klim Kostin.
Why the Kostin vs. Smith battle matters
Kostin and Smith alternated in the 13th-man role for the Sharks for the first 15-20 games of the season. While the coaching staff preferred to go with the younger player in Kostin, Smith was an option on any given night. That was due, in large part, to how Kostin had played through the first 10-15 games of the season.
This was Kostin’s regularized-adjusted plus-minus (RAPM) chart from Evolving Hockey on Nov. 27, 2024.
It was around the time of the game against the Ottawa Senators that I started toying with the idea of writing an article comparing Smith and Kostin. Prior to the game against the Senators, Kostin had zero points in 12 games and had breached the 12-minute mark in ice time just once.
Smith, on the other hand, had played fewer games than Kostin. While neither player was scoring, Smith was drastically more responsible than Kostin in the expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60) category. Below is Smith’s RAPM chart as of Nov. 27. He hasn’t played a game since.
As you can see, on Nov. 27, both players were close together in the offensive categories, but Smith was immensely more responsible on the defensive side of the puck. His expected goals against 60 minutes were closer to the league average. Admittedly, Smith was receiving sheltered minutes, but so was Kostin.
That said, starting with the Ottawa game, Kostin seemed to find his footing. He went on a three-game point streak where he scored a goal and three assists. The added offense, even slightly, is what gave Kostin the edge and helped management decide he is the better option for the Sharks’ 13th-man.
If you look at Kostin’s RAPM for the season, with the games post-Nov. 27 included, you can see that Kostin is a much more offensively impactful player at even strength now than he was prior to that date.
While offensively, Kostin is showing a marked improvement, defensively, he’s still lacking.
What does this mean for Givani Smith in the long run?
Kostin’s ability to drive offense where Smith could not does not bode well for Smith.
Placing a player like the veteran forward on waivers is a definitive statement, especially on a team like the Sharks that’s trying to integrate more youth into its lineup. Smith is not the kind of player you move up and down with ease, especially when there are younger players like Cardwell and defenseman Jack Thompson who are waivers exempt and can be moved between the Sharks and the Barracuda without the required waivers transactions.
To place a player like Smith on waivers means the Sharks believe he no longer offers value to the rebuilding team. Smith was expected to sit for most of the season, but the fact that the team thinks he cannot even fill that role shows that his time with the Sharks at the NHL level is through.
What does this mean for the San Jose Sharks rebuild?
For Sharks fans, placing Smith on waivers is good news. It means that management believes players like Cardwell and maybe even Collin Graf or Danil Gushchin are ready to be moved into the lineup permanently. Remember, Thomas Bordeleau is still with the Barracuda, and he has NHL experience.
The Sharks have younger, more skilled options than Smith. These players have shown enough improvement or preparation at the AHL level that they appear to be ready for the highest level of hockey.
This is the next step of the rebuild, where less-skilled veteran players get pushed out for younger, more-skilled players. It’s coming in right on schedule, and that should make Sharks fans happy.
