The San Jose Sharks have had an eventful offseason so far. Many of their additions during the draft and free agency period are easy to overlook, but there’s a lot of potential on the board for a few players to take a massive step forward in the near future. MacKenzie Blackwood is a goaltender who was highly regarded in his draft year and first few seasons in the NHL. Unfortunately, he was never able to reach his potential with the New Jersey Devils and they traded him to the Sharks shortly before the draft for a sixth-round pick. Now the former top prospect gets a chance to start over, and with how unpredictable goalies have been historically, it could end up being a major win for San Jose.
How Blackwood Ended Up in San Jose
When Blackwood was drafted by the Devils, many felt that they were getting their goaltender of the future. There was even belief by some that he may someday be a future Vezina Trophy candidate. He seemed on the right track to live up to those expectations in his first two seasons at the NHL level. He had a save percentage (SV%) of .918 and a goals-against average (GAA) of 2.61 during his first season, in which he split time between New Jersey and their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate the Binghamton Devils. He followed it up with an equally impressive performance during the 2019-20 season, which was his first full season at the NHL level.
From there, things slowly started to taper off. Statistically, Blackwood started to decline rapidly and as a result, his opportunities began to disappear as well. Last season, he spent a couple of games back in the AHL with the Utica Comets for a conditioning stint; however, he didn’t perform well at that level either. Overall, he had a large amount of chances to prove that he belonged with the Devils and unfortunately, he wasn’t able to make any of them stick. As we’ve seen in the past though, a change of scenery can do wonders for a player, especially goaltenders.
It’s well-known that goaltending is heavily influenced by the mental side of the game. Confidence can do wonders for a player and being in a new organization can certainly bring confidence. He’s essentially getting a brand new start, he’s in a room with guys that he barely knows who have no expectations of him. As a result, he has a chance to erase his past which takes off quite a bit of pressure. Another thing to note is although they only gave up a sixth-round pick for him, the Sharks going out and trading for him shows Blackwood that they want him and believe in him. Lastly, he’s on a team with low expectations for the upcoming season. He doesn’t need to put the team on his back and lead them to the playoffs, as long as he has a decent season; he can continue to build off of it.
The Risk vs the Reward
The two-year term on Blackwood’s contract with the Sharks is a perfect time frame for both the team and the player. From management’s perspective, if the player struggles then they’ll be able to get it off of the books fairly quickly. However, if he plays at the level they believe he can reach, then they’ll have him on a cheap contract for two seasons with the ability to ensure it’s not a fluke. For Blackwood, he has a level of security that will allow him to relax and focus on his game rather than the future of his career. If he has two strong seasons, then he’ll be able to set himself up for a strong payday with his next contract. However, if he struggles with the new system, then he still has another chance to bounce back and prove that he belongs after he has time to adjust.
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Overall, Mike Grier has made a low-risk high-reward move that has essentially zero chance of impacting the organization in a negative way. The worst-case scenario would be that Blackwood continues to play at his recent level and becomes a below-average backup who can be waived or buried in the minors. Best case, he finally reaches the potential that has been expected of him for years and he becomes a legitimate starting goaltender. There will also be some competition between him and Kaapo Kahkonen as both have a chance to carve themselves out as the starter. As a result, that should bring out the best in both of them.