Would Tomas Hertl take a hometown discount? Maybe, but the Sharks have to win first

SAN JOSE – Tomes Hertl came to the South Bay eight years ago as a wide-eyed, round-faced teenager, possessing an elite skill set to go with an infectious smile and personality, and quickly developed a close bond with his Sharks teammates and a love affair with the organization’s fanbase.

But now it’s time for business.

Hertl, 27, is entering the final season of a four-year, $22.8 million contract he signed in 2018 and is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next summer if he doesn’t agree to a new deal from the Sharks and general manager Doug Wilson.

From Hertl’s perspective, this might be his last chance to sign a long-term contract, and while he loves the city, he said Friday one of his biggest priorities is being able to win on a consistent basis.

Can he do that in San Jose?

“(Joe Thornton) was one of the guys, he could take way more money but he takes less because he wants a really good team,” Hertl said. “I like that idea. You can go somewhere else, sign the maximum, maybe even too much, but you’re losing for the next eight years. I don’t want to be in this position.”

Hertl has 199 points over the last four seasons, behind only Brent Burns (224) and Logan Couture (201) among Sharks players in that same time frame. He’s clearly the Sharks’ best player in the faceoff circle, and he’s among the top forwards in average time on ice.

So the big-bodied Hertl should receive an attractive contract offer, whether it be from the Sharks or another team, commensurate with his ability.

“He’s an amazing player, one of the hardest guys in the league to take the puck off of,” new Sharks center Nick Bonino said of Hertl. “He’s going to find success. He’ll get his deal.”

The question now is whether the Sharks can afford to sign another player to a long-term contract.

They already have five players, all in their thirties — including forward Evander Kane — signed for at least three more years after this one. According to capfriendly.com, the Sharks already have $64.1 million tied up in 14 players for next season, leaving less than $20 million available to ice a 23-man roster.

Wilson awarded massive contracts to Burns, Couture, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Martin Jones, Kane, and Erik Karlsson all within a two-year span. With the salary cap expected to remain mostly flat for the next two years, those deals could cost the Sharks a chance to keep Hertl, although Kane’s future with the team remains murky.

The salary cap, now at $81.5 million, is only expected to grow $1 million for next season, and perhaps the season after that, as the league and the players’ association start to come out of last season’s pandemic that caused over $1 billion in losses league-wide.

Can Wilson put another long-term deal on the books?

“I don’t think anybody forecasts that a pandemic would come into play, impact the cap the way it has,” Wilson said. “Every team has to deal with it, every team has to explore options to become compliant, whether it be buying players out or making decisions, and I think that’s what makes this time unique.

“It impacted the cap in many ways and the cap may stay flat. Yes, you try to be proactive and give guys contracts that satisfy their needs. But now you’re in a window now that, it’s just different. And I think you try and explain that and say, ‘let’s try and find a solution.’ And that’s what we’re trying to do.”

Hertl remembers the good times he had with the Sharks in his first few years in the organization. It was a close-knit group, led by Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski, that went to the playoffs in five of Hertl’s first six years with the team from 2013 to 2019, including two conference finals one Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2016.

But the last two years have been difficult for all involved.

Pavelski, and then Thornton, all left the Sharks as free agents to chase the Stanley Cup elsewhere. Pavelski and his Dallas Stars reached the final last September before losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games.

One couldn’t blame Hertl, or Sharks fans, for thinking he might be like Pavelski and wind up as the next great homegrown player to walk out the door.

“After the end of the season, when I talked with Doug, he likes my game, he wants me to stay here longer,” Hertl said. “Even my agent said he wants me to stay. So I feel like he likes me and he wants me to stay here.

“But we’ll see, end of the day for him, it’s business. He has to make the best decision for his team.”

Wilson said he has had discussions with Hertl’s agent, Craig Oster, and said he plans to speak with Hertl “in the next little while.”

So it would appear he hasn’t closed the door on signing Hertl to another contract. The question is whether it makes sense to do so.

“Free agency is a two-way street, and that’s why you try and find something that works for everybody,” Wilson said, “But it’s just a unique time that you’re trying to negotiate — completely different than it was two, three or four years ago. That makes it a bit of a challenge for everybody. That doesn’t mean you can’t explore those solutions.”