“The Sharks, Ducks, and Kings have all recently been contenders, but they’ve begun to struggle as their cores have aged and deteriorated. I think the Sharks are definitely a playoff team, but beyond that, it’s hard to say anything confidently about those three.”

That’s what I recently wrote about California’s NHL teams in an article about the Arizona Coyotes’ potential this season. Before making that prediction, I had looked at Sean Tierney’s projection for the Sharks’ roster and I couldn’t get over the obvious strength of their top-six forward group.

Two days after I finished that article, the Sharks traded for the best defenseman ever to play.

I’m not joking – Erik Karlsson is the greatest ever. Nobody in NHL history has ever been capable of doing what he does. Perhaps your definition of sports greatness accounts for era – Orr was a revolutionary, and Lidstrom was peerless in his time – but Karlsson is the fastest, most skilled, and most creative defenseman ever. Put him on the ice with a d-man from any previous era, and I’d bet my life that he torches that guy. Put him on the ice with the defensemen of today, and he’s a cut above everyone else. Karlsson leads or nearly leads defensemen in points every season. He’s driven play on mediocre teams and on horrible teams. He came back from Matt Cooke’s assassination attempt. No matter the circumstances, Erik Karlsson is a force of nature that controls play at the NHL level for 22 to 25 minutes a night.

And, as I insinuated before, the team he’s joining was impressive already. The Sharks went 45-27-10 while controlling shot and goal rates at just above a league-average level. They made the playoffs and advanced to the second round. San Jose boasts one of the best forward groups in the league, especially considering that Evander Kane, Timo Meier, and Tomas Hertl may all be poised for breakout seasons. Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski are two dominant scorers in their primes, and the ageless Joe Thornton is still a lethal playmaker. Finally, the addition of Karlsson should either directly or obliquely improve both special teams units. That’s a frightening thought, considering that the Sharks boasted a solid power play and an elite penalty kill last season.

Finally, the Sharks play in the worst division in hockey. While Calgary, Vegas, and Arizona all added real firepower over the summer, the Pacific lacks another bona fide contender, and both Vancouver and Edmonton might be among the league’s worst teams this year. Barring a catastrophe, San Jose will make the playoffs easily. Then, their first two series will probably be against inferior teams. The road to the Conference Final seems clear for a team with this much high-end skill.

However, there are still some question marks on this roster. The loss of Chris Tierney leaves in dire straits what was already a bleak bottom six. Starter Martin Jones was a worse-than-average goaltender last season. While their blue line is perhaps the best in the NHL, the bottom pairing remains shaky.

I think the Sharks will find their answers, though. They have a very promising backup goalie in Aaron Dell; I’m not concerned about Jones possibly struggling. And, because Karlsson won’t receive an extension until next year, the Sharks have some cap space to seek depth options throughout a prospective Cup run.

Between this cap room, their elite skating corps, and the evident weakness of their division, the Sharks are poised for a breakthrough season. Their core is aging, and they’re not a sure thing, but San Jose should still be a top-tier contender in 2018-19.