The San Jose Sharks have announced that there are no plans to bring back veterans Scott Nichol and Jamal Mayers for the 2010-2011 season. Both Nichol and Mayers are free agents and don't fit into the future plans on San Jose's fourth line, where they played just a season ago. Doug Wilson said that Andrew Desjardins could be one of the players to step in and replace Nichol, as he did in three games in the third round of the playoffs. This news comes just after finding out that Niclas Wallin would not be returning to the team after deciding to play in Sweden. Make the jump for more.
According to David Pollak of the Mercury News, Nichol is disappointed that he is not going to return to San Jose next season, but he was happy with his body of work, or rather, happy with the effort he put forth. Nichol was with the team for 135 games, but only 56 in 2010-2011 (not counting the playoffs) with injuries and suspensions. His presence will be missed on the fan level, but the Sharks can afford to let him walk.
The same goes for Mayers, who was an aggressor and accrued quite a few penalty minutes. The Sharks don't need to make moves to sign somebody to immediately replace either of these two, but they did get playing time and will eventually need to be replaced. The Sharks have depth at both positions, but with the draft right around the corner (this Friday) they could certainly be looking to add some wing or center help with that 28th overall pick.
Assistant coach Trent Yawney is also departing the team, as he hopes to get back into a head coaching spot in the NHL.