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Vegas Golden Knights should haunt Sharks by trading for Jumbo Joe

By Andrew Steele-Davis

NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - FEBRUARY 20: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks skates against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center on February 20, 2020 in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Sharks 2-1. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - FEBRUARY 20: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks skates against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center on February 20, 2020 in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Sharks 2-1. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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VANCOUVER, BC – JANUARY 18: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks skates with the puck during NHL action against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on January 18, 2020 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, BC – JANUARY 18: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks skates with the puck during NHL action against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on January 18, 2020 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images) /

Pros to trading for Joe Thornton

As already mentioned, Joe Thornton has yet to get his hands on the Stanley Cup and it is believed that he is keen on being dealt to a contender today.

The Vegas Golden Knights are very much a contender and they could give Thornton the best possible chance of ending his career with a championship, which has so far proved elusive.

This would also be a good trade for the Golden Knights given that they have a real need when it comes to addressing their lack of secondary scoring.

They have struggled to generate much offense from their bottom six all year and, with Cody Glass and Alex Tuch both out, coupled with the trade that sent Cody Eakin to the Winnipeg Jets, they could do with some forward depth.

Thornton would tick that box.

Although he’s nearer the end of his career than he is to the beginning of it, Thornton could slot in as the third-line center for Vegas and provide secondary scoring from the third-line.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 22: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks skates against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on February 22, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 22: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks skates against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on February 22, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Through 62 games this year, the forward has four goals and 23 assists for 27 points on a bad Sharks team, while he has amassed 1505 points (417 goals, 1088 assists) in 1,628 career games.

He has averaged 15:18 minutes of total ice time this year, while the 40-year-old has a career winning percentage of 54.3 in the faceoff circle.

Thornton could be a key faceoff man for the Knights while providing much-needed depth down the middle heading into the postseason.

He could slot in on the second power play unit and could also be used up and down the lineup when needed to provide an offensive punch.

Also, if Joe Thornton was to win a Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights, that would act as a major slap in the face to the San Jose Sharks.

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