
San Jose Sharks’ Billionaire Owner Reveals Circumstances Behind $61.5 Million Star’s Exit
The San Jose Sharks stumbled out of the gate to start their 2025-26 campaign. After dropping preseason contests to Anaheim and Utah, the Sharks opened the regular season with a heartbreaking overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
The defeat stung even more when a former Sharks center assisted on Vegas’ game-tying goal with under two minutes remaining in regulation. And owner Hasso Plattner recently addressed the circumstances of the forward’s sudden departure from the franchise.
What was the Real Reason for the Sharks’ Center Departure?
For over a decade, Czech center Tomas Hertl anchored San Jose’s forward group before requesting a trade midway through the 2023-24 season. The move shocked the Sharks faithful, as the forward had become synonymous with the franchise.
Many assumed that Hertl simply wanted to join the defending Stanley Cup champions to chase a championship. However, the Sharks owner recently revealed the full story behind the veteran’s departure.
According to Plattner, Hertl expressed that he had already given a decade to the Sharks. Despite the team’s run to a Stanley Cup Final and two Conference Finals during his tenure, the franchise ultimately fell short of winning a championship.
Plattner revealed that Hertl felt his championship window was closing, noting Hertl had already suffered three significant knee injuries and feared another could end his career. As a result, Hertl wanted to join a team with a stronger chance to win a championship before his window closed.
In response, the Sharks’ owner felt a sense of obligation to grant his longtime center’s wish. “I said, ‘Tomas, we’ll let you go…’ which I regret, because I really liked him and we always had fun together and joked. He always had a smile on his face. He was a good guy,” Plattner said.
When questioned about the decision to sign Hertl to an eight-year, $65.1 million contract in 2022 despite his long-term intentions, Plattner explained the organization’s belief in a competitive retool.
“We still had the hope, or [Doug] Wilson still had the hope, that he could turn it around with Couture and Hertl,” the owner stated. Plattner revealed Wilson’s previous philosophy had opposed long-term contracts.
“All these years we worked together, he told me he doesn’t like long-term contracts, and this is wrong, what the other ones do.” He believes Wilson feared losing his core would end the franchise’s competitive window.
That shift in approach led to multiple significant extensions. “Then all of a sudden, we made long-term Vlasic, long-term Hertl, long-term EK65… I don’t know what happened. Probably, he was afraid of the future,” Plattner said Thursday. The owner believes Wilson wanted to maintain success with his established core. “If we lose these players, he will go down with a losing team, which he finally did after I don’t know how many years, 12 years of being top of the league, in the top five, at least.”
Despite Wilson’s efforts to preserve the core, San Jose missed the playoffs in his final three seasons. The franchise has now failed to reach the postseason for six consecutive years.
Despite subsequent leadership changes, including current GM Mike Grier, the Sharks remain a shell of their former selves, culminating in Hertl’s trade to Vegas during the 2023-24 season.