Sharks acquire Christian Jaros from Senators

After making two trades this morning, the San Jose Sharks have ultimately acquired 24-year-old defender Christian Jaros from the Ottawa Senators.

First, the Sharks traded Trevor Carrick to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Jack Kopacka. Carrick, a 26-year-old defender, was drafted in the fourth round (112 overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes. He largely played in the AHL when the Sharks acquired him in 2019, in exchange for another AHL defender, Kyle Wood.

Kopacka, a 22-year-old forward, was a fourth-round selection as well, going 93rd overall to the Ducks in 2016. Over two regular seasons with the San Diego Gulls, Kopacka has played in 69 (nice) games, putting up 13 goals and 16 assists. He also played five games in the ECHL last season, scoring four goals and four assists with the Tulsa Oilers.

The Sharks then sent Kopacka, along with their seventh-round selection in 2022, to Ottawa in exchange for Jaros.

The Senators drafted the 6-foot-4 Slovakian in the fifth round (139 overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft, after he had made his debut in the SHL, Sweden’s top men’s hockey league that year. He made his NHL debut in 2017 and was a regular the following season, playing in 61 contests. Over 76 NHL games, he’s totaled one goal, 12 assists, and 33 penalty minutes, while skating a minus-16. In the AHL, he’s played 76 games with five goals, 26 assists, 57 penalty minutes, and surprisingly, a plus-10.

Jaros is on a one-year contract worth $750,000. He will require waivers to be assigned to the taxi squad or San Jose Barracuda, where his salary drops to $250,000.

“Christian is a big right-shot defenseman who plays a physical game,” said Sharks general manager Doug Wilson. “He is a young player with 76 games of NHL experience so far and has the ability to grow his game.”

The Sharks swapped a left-handed depth defender for a right-handed depth defender, while playing middle man to get Ottawa a depth forward.