Shark-Infested Blogger

NHL: Joe Thornton Leads San Jose Over New Jersey for First Home Win

2010-10-29T23:51:08Z

The San Jose Sharks and New Jersey Devils were both projected contenders before the season began. Yet both have struggled early in the season, with the Devils easily having the worst record in hockey (2-6-1) coming in and the Sharks just 3-3-1.

To make matters worse for the hosts, they were 0-2-1 as the home team and the Devils little success had come on the road (2-2-0). Their only two wins were shutouts by Martin Brodeur, and he was in net; with the Sharks struggling to score outside of the power play, and the Devils being about average on their penalty kill and near the bottom of the league in penalty minutes.

New Sharks captain Joe Thornton has said he wants to score more, and Wednesday did it three times

But new Sharks captain Joe Thornton struck early and often, with a goal less than half-way through the first. He assisted on another by Patrick Marleau fewer than two minutes later, and by the time the first period was over, had another goal to put the Sharks up 3-0.

A bad bounce gave the Devils a goal about three minutes into the second period, and they hung in the game until another bad bounce gave Thornton his fourth career hat trick (the teams first on the power play) with just over three minutes left in the period.

After the San Francisco Giants had won Game One of the World Series, I tuned to the NHL Network and caught the first of my San Jose Sharks action for the third period from my temporary Dallas residence. What I saw of the action included crisp passing and good defence.

Despite controlling the puck-in part from winning 35 of 54 faceoffs-they had only three more giveaways and the same number of takeaways and blocked shots. They also registered five more hits (23-18).

The Sharks top line registered another goal by Dany Heatley in the third period, giving all three forwards at least four points and a plus-four rating. They allowed a power play goal after an undisciplined string of penalties in the latter half of the third period. Anterro Niittymaki closed out a solid performance in net, stopping 27 of 29.

San Jose Sharks-Atlanta Thrashers Recap

2010-10-18T17:02:09Z

The San Jose Sharks had a long layoff from their long trip overseas. It looked like it was just what the doctor ordered when Dany Heatley and Ryane Clowe scored 21 seconds apart near the end of the first period to give the home team a 2-0 lead.

Dany Heatley scored the first goal of the new season at HP Pavilion

They out-shot the Atlanta Thrashers 30-13 through two periods. But they were unable to get any more shots past Chris Mason, and ran out of gas in the third period.

Atlanta held a 15-9 edge in shots on goal in the final stanza, thanks in part to a 2-1 penalty edge, and put home two of those shots to give them the game's margin of victory. Dustin Byfuglien once again killed the Sharks, putting the eventual game-winner past former teammate Annti Niemi on the power play with 6:20 to go.

Douglas Murray, Torrey Mitchell, and Clowe are the only Sharks in the plus after three games. San Jose has just two even strength goals, but remain 25 percent on the power play and almost 87 percent on the penalty kill. They have now out-shot their opponents in all three games, but have just one win to show for it.

The Sharks host the Carolina Hurricanes Tuesday at 7:30 pm PDT at the HP Pavilion. New Sharks captain Joe Thornton will be a guest on NHL Live (broadcast on Sirius Satellite radio as well as televised on the NHL Network) Monday morning at 11am PDT.

Sharks Get Three Points in Sweden

2010-10-11T16:25:37Z

The San Jose Sharks' historic trip to Sweden to take on the Columbus Blue Jackets in a home-and-home series resulted in three out of a four possible points in the standing. The Sharks took the first game, but lost the second in overtime.

While three out of four points is a pace for 123 on the regular season, easily good for the top record in the league, the Sharks are once again the favourites to win their division, while the Jackets will be lucky to finish at the .500 pace they set for the trip.

There were a several disturbing things from the Sharks over the weekend:

: Swedish Olympian Douglas Murray was treated like a rock star on this trip back home

The original goalie San Jose acquired to be the main man in net has still not been impressive wearing the Sharks logo. allowing three goals on 25 shots (.880 save percentage). It may take swallowing his pride, but the right thing for Doug Wilson to do is waive Niittymaki and give Thomas Greiss a chance to be the team's second goalie for far less money, perhaps giving the team more cap room for other moves.
San Jose struggled five-on-five, netting only one goal in two games. One cannot rely on opposition penalties to get scores.
Because of the above, nine players (half the skaters) are in the negative in plus/minus rating, while no one is in the positive.
Too many Sharks are making trips to the sin bin, with 14 penalties over the weekend (two fighting majors).
The Sharks lost in all three stats related to hustle: hits, blocked shots, and faceoffs, although the former two are partially because they did spend more time on the attack (see below).

On the other hand, there were several positives, as well:

Newly appointed captain Joe Thornton scored a goal in each game, and fans can hope the "C" on his sweater has something to do with less reluctance to shoot. While a better passer than shooter, he has a good shot that, when taken with more frequency, will keep defences and goalies honest and open up pass opportunities.
The Sharks drew eight minor penalties in both games, and scored four goals. That is a very impressive job putting the opposition in the box and still a 25 percent success rate on the power play.
San Jose only allowed one power play goal against, giving them a penalty kill percentage of 91.7.
They controlled the puck well, getting over 30 shots in each game and allowing under 30.
Annti Niemi played well, allowing two goals on 28 shots (.928 save percentage) and adding an assist.

Because of the strain of overseas travel, the Sharks do not play again until Saturday, October 16, when they host the revamped Atlanta Thrashers. Hopefully, the Bay Area will have the momentum of a baseball playoff victory over Atlanta to ride through that game.

Sharks Roster Set for Sweden

2010-10-07T03:38:13Z

The San Jose Sharks made their final roster moves, including cutting veteran defenceman Andreas Lilja to make room for young players at the position like Mike Moore. Rookie forwards Tommy Wingels and John McCarthy are also on the roster.

"With the Andreas Lilja situation, a couple of our younger players stepped up and played really well throughout training camp and they deserve to carry on," said coach Todd McLellan. "In fairness to (Lilja), if we kept him here longer he would lose out on some chances he has in the NHL or around the world. We did what was right for him and what was right for our team."

Unfortunately, this leaves the Sharks without much experience on the blueline, the one place where age still is often considered a good thing. Only Niclas Wallin (35), and Dan Boyle (34) are at least 24 years old and have more than three full years of experience in the league.

However, three other defencemen are hardly green: Kent Huskins (31) and Douglas Murray (30) have played parts of four seasons, and Marc-Edouard Vlasic (23) has nearly four full years of experience (309 games). The bigger issue on this unit is the lack of a true leader on the second pair, and unless someone steps up, the lack of a number two player on the back end will hurt against teams deep at the forward position.

There is a real battle for who willl back up Annti Niemi in net for the Sharks

The Sharks will have to trim one more player from their roster once they return to the United States, and the odd-man out appears to be Thomas Greiss. While he has outplayed Antero Niittymaki (six goals on 33 shots) this preseason, he can be sent to the minors without clearing waivers.

Since the Sharks signed Niittymaki this offseason to be the projected starter before Annti Niemi became available, and they are not likely to give him up so easily. Of course, applying the same logic they used on the blueline, sending Greiss down will only reduce the development of netminding prospects Alex Stalock and Harri Sateri.

Here are my choices for line and defence pairings:

Marleau-Pavelski-Clowe, Boyle and Murray. Marleau has been playing better than Thornton, and this line has a balance of size and speed as well as being responsible on both ends of the ice. However, it is more likely that Thornton will start between Clowe and Setoguchi, which does give the team a big body (two actually, but Joe plays a finesse game) and a scorer to go with a playmaker.
Heatley-Thornton-Setoguchi, Vlasic and Wallin. This would provide Thornton two targets to pass to and make it hard for teams to cover both. Vlasic and Wallin provide a skater and a banger to provide solid defensive presence. However, Pavelski is likely to center the second line between Marleau and Setoguchi, giving this line a lack of physicality.
Couture-Mitchell-Mayers, Huskins and Demers. Couture is a scoring threat and capable in front of the net, Mitchell provides speed, and Mayers a physical presence. Huskins and Demers not only provide the offence/defence combination you want on a third pair, they worked well together last spring in the playoffs.
McGinn-Nichol-McLaren, with Niemi and Greiss in net, although my guess is Niittymaki will get the backup role. This gives little Scotty two big bodies and provides the Sharks a hard-checking energy line. Nichol and McGinn do all the little things, and McLaren provides immense size (6'5″, 250 lbs.) to wear down opponents.

In other news, former Sharks Richard winner Jonathan Cheechoo has signed a tryout to play in Worcester, the Sharks minor-league affiliate. This gives the team the chance to bring in someone who has chemistry and experience with this team for a playoff push, and who might contribute on both ends of the ice.

The Sharks also have not officially settled on a captain. Expect Dan Boyle, a veteran who showed more leadership than most others, to be wearing the "C" this season, with Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski as alternates.

Sharks Hope Andreas Lilja Boosts Blueline

2010-09-21T17:09:53Z

Last week, the San Jose Sharks signed a Sweedish Stanley Cup champion veteran to their blueline. Earlier in the year, they went hard after Niklas Hjalmarsson, and the only good thing about not getting him is that those writing on the team are less likely to get carpal tunnel because his long name will be typed less frequently.

Instead, they had to settle for the much easier to type but also easier to face Andreas Lilja. At 35, Lilja's best days are behind him and he will not have the immediate impact nor future growth of Hjalmarsson.

However, on defense he brings a presence and poise that is so important to a defence and could be an effective penalty killer who might allow the Sharks to provide a break for Dan Boyle when someone is in the box. His role will probably be limited to the third pair, as he will not provide any offense, having just 74 points in 478 games--an average of about 12 points in an 82-game season--in an offensive system.

Nevertheless, he does know the system and head coach Todd McLellan knows him as a player from his days as an assistant coach in Detroit. If he plays well enough in the tryout, he could provide the Sharks some cap flexibility to move Niclas Wallin's $2.5 million contract to injured reserve if he is not ready at the start of the season, or if he is to assign him to the minors if he clears waivers.

However, Wallin has begun to practice again and the team most likely made that commitment in the offseason to Wallin because they believe he will play an important role this season. Thus, expect them to give him every chance to validate that faith...here is my projected blueline:

Douglas Murray and Dan Boyle
Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Wallin
Lilja and Jason Demers

That leaves Kent Huskins scratched or playing as a seventh defenceman, and Jay Leach and Derek Joslin assigned to the minors.

This would give the Sharks a deep unit with only one player who might be a liability at times (Demers), but also only one stud (Boyle) and just two other offensive threats (Demers and Vlasic). But an above average blueline combined with good goaltending and still one of the best group of forwards in the world makes the Sharks as good or better than anyone outside of Vancouver in the West.

Sharks Sign Antti Niemi

2010-09-02T15:10:15Z

Stanley Cup winning goalie Antti Niemi has agreed to a one-year contract with the San Jose Sharks. In keeping with team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed, but all reports have the contract valued at $2 million.

This puts the team in an awkward position, as they signed fellow Finn Antero Niittymaki presumably as the new starter in July for the same amount. Niittymaki is three years older and more proven (Niemi has fewer than 70 career games including the playoffs), but much of what he has proven is not good.

Including the three games he played before the lockout, Niittymaki has an 83-79-28 record with a .903 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average. Last season was his first as an even adequate starter, being the first time he played in more than 32 games with a save percentage of .900 (.909) and a goals against lower than 2.97 (2.85).

Niittymaki might not want to be a backup, but he could easily be convinced to buy time until Niemi either fails or proves himself for a second straight season and prices himself too high; in either case, the Sharks would probably not re-sign him. But the bigger problem is what to do with Thomas Greiss.

Sending him down to the minors will not only stunt his development but also that of minor league prospect Alex Stalock who would have to give up many starts to Greiss. It would also make the Sharks a less attractive team for Greiss to sign with in the near future when he might be needed. Finally, it would cost the Sharks more in the short-term on the salary cap for very little upgrade at the position that would be offered by Niittymaki being the backup over Greiss.

However, there are a few good options for the team; click here to read my suggestions.

NHLPA Looks to Hire Donald Fehr

2010-08-29T07:09:18Z

The NHL Player's Union took quite a beating in the last lockout that saw the 2004-2005 season canceled. The resulting collective bargaining agreement gave power to the owners and has resulted in a better product on the ice.

It appears the union wants to make sure they do not lose again. No player's union has more power than that of Major League Baseball, and Donald Fehr is a major reason why. Nevermind that because of his strong-arm tactics, the game does not have the competitive balance of other sports and became a league of steroid-induced behemoths whose privacy to cheat was protected over the rest of the players' rights to compete fairly.

If Fehr could take advantage of the worst commissioner baseball has ever seen (and he owned my childhood team, so I began with a pro-Bud Selig bias), what might he do to the worst commissioner sports has ever seen? Gary Bettman is in trouble, and the future of the sport is out of focus.

Despite all that he has done miserably, he did score a victory for the sport against the players. That will change when he faces Fehr.

I am a typical progressive San Franciscan, and am more on the side of players in the NFL squabble than I am owners. But it seems strange to me that baseball has the greatest gap between the rich and poor teams and it is the league that has the most player power; football has the least in both.

Hockey is a troubled sport with almost as much of a have/have-not issue as baseball, and the more power that goes to the players, the worse that will be. Donald Fehr's appointment may mean the end of teams like Nashville and Phoenix (perhaps forcing Bettman to let them move to where they are going to be more followed and better-funded, however) and a return to dominance from the Red Wings and Rangers of the hockey world...well, maybe not the Rangers--money is not a guarantee of success, but lack of it will guarantee failure in the Bettman-Fehr world.

Sharks Sign Jamal Mayers, Two RFA's

2010-08-09T00:07:34Z

By the end of last week, the Sharks made three moves that helped them solidify their roster. They added Jamal Mayers and re-signed Derek Joslin and Steven Zalewski, avoiding arbitration with the latter two.

By re-signing Zalewski, they assured themselves of having a centre with NHL experience, however limited, who could step onto the fourth linein the event of injury. Zalewski, 23, has played in just three games with the Sharks and went minus-two with no points. But for the Sharks minor league affiliate in Worcester, MA, he led all forwards with 62 points (22 goals) in 78 games, and added six points (one goal) in 11 playoff games.

Joslin, also 23, has played in part of two seasons on the blueline, including 24 games last season in which he accumulated all three of his career points while going plus-one (minus-two for his career). In Worcester last season, he had 32 points (five goals) in 55 games, and added five (four goals) in 11 playoff games.

He will likely compete with veteran journeyman Jay Leach for a roster space, but the franchise would be best served if he played so he could develop rather than sitting in the press box as a scratch. In contrast to Niclas Wallin, who signed to a $2.5 million contract this summer, Joslin's contract would allow the team to go after an upgrade in net such as Annti Niemi because of his lower cap number. He also offers a contrast to Wallin's stay-at-home skill-set as a potential puck-moving defenceman.

Meanwhile, the signing of Jamal Mayers, 35, is a major upgrade on the third line, but also for team enforcers. For most of the decade, the Sharks enforcers have been liabilities on the ice.

Scott Parker was one of the toughest guys in the league, but was deficient defensively and absolutely unnecessary to even defend against on the attack. Jody Shelley was an upgrade on both ends of the ice, but not enough to be a stout defender or an offensive asset in any way; meanwhile, he lost almost as many fights as he won.

Mayers, by contrast, can play on both ends of the ice, and is a leader on the bench. With Manny Malhotra leaving, he may well find time on the penalty kill.

He is a pretty good skater and a physical presence on both ends who wins most fights. He even can score, picking up 188 points in 737 games, although that ratio of about one point per four games fell off a bit last year (14 in 71, with only three goals).

Sharks Re-Sign Devin Setoguchi

2010-08-04T13:12:33Z

The San Jose Sharks avoided arbitration with Devin Setoguchi by reportedly signing him to a one-year, $1.8 million contract for next season. Considering Blake Wheeler (similar numbers, but has one more year putting them up) recently was awarded $2.5 million in arbitration, this figure seems about right.

Setoguchi's numbers understandably dropped last season when he was moved from the first to the second line. After posting 31 goals and 34 assists, he fell to 20 goals and 16 assists in 70 games. However, he recorded a career-high four game-winners, and had five goals and four assists in 15 playoff games despite it being later revealed he was in need of off-season surgery.

More than anything, what has improved is Seto's defence. He still misses assignments, but began throwing his body around and back-checking well by the end of the season. He provides the speed and hard shot the second line needs for success.

In other news around the league, two defencemen previously listed as alternatives in the wake of Chicago re-signing Niklas Hjalmarsson were signed to other teams Monday: Andy Sutton went to Anaheim and Shaone Morrison to Buffalo. The Sharks have more than enough depth on the blueline, but lack a true number two defender.

Aside from unrestricted free agent alternatives listed at the link, Marc Staal remains a possibility to go after as an restricted free agent: San Jose could likely land a solid two-way defenceman who would add skill to the blueline. He would rate just behind Marc-Edouard Vlasic as the team's third-best defenceman and cost under $2 million and a second-round pick.

Sharks Lose Hjalmarsson, Look to Alternatives

2010-07-15T00:41:18Z

The San Jose Sharks lost on the Niklas Hjalmarsson sweepstakes, but are not out of options. Aside from potential trades, there are are a couple of good unrestricted free agents who could be the answer. Unfortunately, most will likely make more than what the Sharks offered Hjalmarsson, provide fewer assets, or both.

Here are those options in order of value:

Willie Mitchell, if he can prove he is healthy after concussion symptoms kept him out for Vancouver's stretch run and playoffs last season, has only once scored more than 14 points in a season but is a fantastic, physical stay-at-home defender. It is possible his injury could make him available at a bargain, in which case the team would be wise to pursue him.
Kim Johnsson also missed Chicago's run with a concussion and could be available at a discount. Johnsson is a solid, veteran contributor on both ends of the ice who can be counted on for a point every two to three games.
Shaone Morrison is a former first-round pick but was the odd-man out in Washington. However, this does not mean he is not valuable; he is the model of consistency: In each of the last five seasons in the nation's capital, he has played in 68-80 games, scored 10-14 points, and finished plus-three to plus-eight. At 27, he also could be a solid fourth defenceman for years to come.
Mike Mattou has missed only 11 games in the last three years for New Jersey and scored 15-18 points all three times. He is plus-10 for his career and might well be cost-effective enough because the 32-year old is not flashy, but would likely battle Jason Demers for the fourth defenceman status in San Jose.
Andy Sutton may be willing to come back to San Jose for a price lower than his worth. While he offers almost nothing offensively, he uses his big body well for shot-blocking and checking, and likely would still be better than either Niclas Wallin or Kent Huskins.

Sharks Free Agency 2010: The Good

2010-07-08T20:35:01Z

The Sharks mountain to climb this off-season was as well-documented as it was high. The team had a dozen free agents who played at the NHL level last season with expiring contracts, and no cap room with which to operate.

To make matters worse, several of them were working off out-dated contracts and would be due substantial raises. More than half of them were unrestricted free agents, giving the team little negotiating power, especially given that money does not go as far in the Bay Area as it does in the rest of the country.

Yet General Manager Doug Wilson managed to re-sign enough of the team that made it to the Western Conference Finals to make them a contender to do so again. The theme of the series examining the moves is The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly; this piece focuses on the good, in order of the most to least important.

Joe Pavelski may not have signed the biggest contract of the group re-signed, and is not yet better than Patrick Marleau. Still, no player was a larger priority for the Sharks to re-sign than The Big Pavelski.

Pavelski emerged as a top penalty killer and power play asset while anchoring a good second line. He is young enough to be a cornerstone of this franchise for the remainder of the decade, and almost certainly will get better.

Oh, and he led the team in scoring in the playoffs.

Sure, he was a restricted free agent, and that helped get him re-signed. But he is only the fifth-highest paid Shark and is under contract through 2014--an accomplishment even considering the team's favourable negotiating position.

Scott Nichol is the team's next best signing. Yes, he is projected to be a fourth-line centre, and is good for maybe 20 points a season. But he is an essential penalty killer, especially in light of the loss of Manny Malhotra, is great in the faceoff circle, and offers both speed and experience otherwise missing on the checking lines.

All of that for $760,000 on a team that is financially strapped. Maybe beans and rice are not the most appetizing food, but they can give you sustenance when you have little money in your pocket and make a nice side dish when you can spend more.

Patrick Marleau was the face of the franchise, and long-speculating to be on his way out. But the reality is he was the team's only reliable scorer after the first round of the playoffs, has improved defensively enough to be a top-tier penalty killer and is huge on the power play. Getting him for under $7 million (making him the team's third-highest paid player) is a good value.

Jay Leach was just re-signed on Wednesday, July 7, reportedly for the league minimum of $500,000. He may have only played 35 games last season and only has three points in 63 games for his career. But he was solid defensively in limited action and having a veteran to add depth to a blueline that will have to rely on at least one player with fewer than 50 career games is vital.

The Sharks offered sufficient tenders to three other free agents. They were not included in this because their place on the roster is not official yet, but at the very least the compensation should a team sign them away would make losing them worthwhile, too...

Devin Setoguchi is becoming a more physical player and was quite effective before getting hurt in the playoffs; he can play a large role in the team for the foreseeable future. Derek Joslin is a capable reserve for the blueline who is affordable, and Steven Zalewski gives the team forward depth for little cost.

Evaluating the San Jose Sharks 2010 Draft, Part II

2010-06-29T19:05:07Z

After selecting Charlie Coyle in the first round, the San Jose Sharks did not select again until the third round of the draft. At this late stage, examining a player's accomplishments is rarely indicative of their potential: Anyone performing well did so against lesser competition or they would have been taken earlier, and anyone with little production would not have been selected at all unless they had played some of the best prospects.

Thus, one should focus only on the players' physical measurables and where they were ranked by NHL Central Scouting, almost universally recognized as the authority in evaluating prospects. Note that the stated ranking will be among North American skaters, not all players; thus, a skater taken 100th who was ranked 100th would actually be a slight reach with the likelihood that there would be ten or so goalies and dozens of players from other areas of the world projected in the top-100 picks.

With the 88th pick in the draft, the Sharks drafted right wing Max Gaede, a 6'2", 187 lb. Minnesota high school player committed to play at Minnesota State-Mankato. That may seem thin, but I was that exact size in high school, and 6'3" and 210 lbs. by my late 20's without a workout regiment. Nonetheless, he was ranked 104th among skaters, making him a slight reach.

San Jose did not select again until the fifth round, but they had three picks at that time. The first was Cody Ferriero at No. 127 (ranked 117th among skaters), the brother of Sharks prospect Benn Ferriero. The 5'11", 190 lb. Massachusetts native can play centre or wing; he is committed to doing that for Boston College in the near future.

Two picks later, the Sharks selected centre Freddie Hamilton. The 6'1", 187 lb. centre must have had deficiencies not seen by NHL Central Scouting, because he inexplicably fell more than two rounds beyond his ranking of 62nd. The Sharks finished the round picking defenceman Isaac MacLeod 136th overall. The 6'4", 205 lb. blueliner was ranked 133rd.

Doug Wilson then traded goalie prospect Henrik Karlsson (fourth in the organisational depth chart) to the Calgary Flames for a sixth round pick, which he used to select German defenceman Konrad Abeltshauser. The 6'5", 190 lb. product of Halifax of the QMJHL will certainly have to add weight to that frame, but Tyler Myers won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year with a similar frame (6'8", 222 lbs.).

Wilson used his seventh round selection (188th overall) on a bit more of a late-bloomer, 6'1", 200lb. defenceman Lee Moffie, who completed his freshman season for the University of Michigan. Then he traded away next year's seventh round pick to Pittsburgh for the 200th pick this year, selecting Chris Crane from Green Bay of the USHL. The 181st ranked North American skater has committed to play for Ohio State University next season.

Evaluating the San Jose Sharks 2010 Draft

2010-06-28T19:16:13Z

First and foremost, it is important to reveal that my knowledge of NHL prospect is limited to the top five or ten. Not being near any major juniors or college hockey teams and with the limited accuracy of even the so-called experts, I do not see the excursion of following them to be an efficient use of my time.

Secondly, I trust Doug Wilson in this endeavour. He may not be the best general manger at drafting talent, but despite being perennial contenders, the San Jose Sharks are generally pretty well-stocked with prospects.

With that disclaimer out of the way, I can still provide some insight on the draft through research and knowledge of the team's needs at varying positions in the system. In this article, I will give an assessment of their top pick, and follow with other rounds in a subsequent article.

Forward Charlie Coyle is the cousin of former NHL players Tony Amonte and Bobby Sheehan; hockey is the primary sport that seems to be in the genes, with far more family trees than the three major American sports combined. (That's right: I am not considering hockey a major sport in the U.S., although it is not far behind baseball these days.) He is 6'2" and 202 lbs., a good size for a drafted forward.

Coyle was one of a record 11 American players taken in the first round, and helped lead the U.S. to the 2009 Four Nations tournament title with a 3-0 record, netting the overtime game-winner against Switzerland. He also won the 2010 John Carlton award for outstanding Eastern Massachusetts student-athlete and will attend Boston University in the fall, so he would appear to be a character guy.

Coyle was ranked 24th among skaters by NHL Central Scouting, so he was not a reach. However, Coyle does not play the coveted centre position, and the Sharks have a glut of forwards in their system. Many are old enough that they will either be with the NHL team or no longer in the organisation by the time Coyle is ready, and most are projected role players.

This makes one wonder if there will be room for him, and if so, does it mean the team is not evaluating its forwards well? Could that be the case with Coyle?

The reality is no one really knows when and if Coyle will impact the NHL club, but there are no particularly strong indicators that this was either a great or poor pick for the franchise. Based on Wilson's track record, I have faith we will see him in a Sharks uniform by mid-decade.

Evgeni Nabokov: A Statistical Analysis

2010-06-24T02:20:22Z

The San Jose Sharks announced Tuesday that they would not be bringing goalie Evgeni Nabokov back.

On Bleacher Report, I examined the failures of his offensive support in the playoffs. Here I will look at Nabby's career in both the regular season and playoffs.

Over ten seasons with the Sharks, Nabby had a 293-178-66 record (a .607 point percentage) with a .912 save percentage and a 2.39 goals against average. He appeared in the playoffs after nine of those seasons, compiling a 40-38 record (.513) with a .913 save percentage and 2.29 GAA.

But statistics can be misleading, and must be further examined in context.

For instance, while a drop of 96 points in his record in the playoffs sounds bad, the most successful goalie of the modern era, Martin Brodeur, has a career record 88 points lower in the playoffs. A save percentage that is up just one point and a GAA just a tenth of a goal lower looks worse than Brodeur's five points and two-tenths of a goal, until you consider that Martin played much more in the era when scoring went down considerably in the playoffs.

The reality is that over the past four playoffs, both players suffered production drops from the regular season three times. The only year Brodeur did not was one in which he played only 31 regular season games.

Nabokov played in 62 or more games in five of his ten seasons in teal, and the Sharks made the playoffs in each of them. All five times, his save percentage went down and his goals against average went up in the playoffs.

In his other four seasons in which he made the playoffs, the only time this happened was when he faced four shots in relief of Vesa Toskala in 2006 and allowed a goal. All three other times the save percentage went up and GAA down from the regular season once the post-season started.

Nabokov failed to achieve a .910 save percentage and GAA under 2.50 in just two regular seasons: In 2002-03 (.907, 2.71), the Sharks missed the playoffs; in 2005-06 (.885, 3.10) we later found out he was battling through a sports hernia.

Statistically, his worst playoff performance was in 2009, when he had an .890 save percentage and a 2.82 GAA. However, his first two campaigns were worse considering the scoring average in those playoffs: He had a .903 and 2.75 in 2001 and a .904 and 2.61 in 2002 while going 8-6 collectively. Both were drops of at least 12 points and increases of at least three goals every ten games.

As for those who assert that Nabby never put the team on his back, I beg to differ: In 2004, he carried them to within two wins of the Stanley Cup Finals with an astonishing .935 save percentage, an increase of 14 points over the regular season. His 1.71 GAA was down over 20 percent from his regular season mark of 2.20, while the Sharks offence that year was over 15 percent below the regular season average.

But even that was not good enough to win the Stanley Cup. If and when that Cup is hoisted in San Jose, the name on it will not be the best goalie in franchise history.

On behalf of the fans who understand that hockey is the ultimate team sport, let me say that is a shame. Best of luck wherever you land, Nabby.

Manny Malhotra: Future in Teal?

2010-06-20T16:33:19Z

Last season, Manny Malhotra was a steal at $700,000. No player taking part in even half of the playoff games made less money than Manny Malhotra. Only one player who did not miss more than 30 regular season games (Jed Ortmeyer) made less.

He was a fantastic checking line centre, fantastic in the faceoff circle, and had a career year in goals and second in points scored. The only season in which he scored more points was 2008-09, making it clear Malhotra is peaking right now.

As an unrestricted free agent, you could have no better timing. The San Jose Sharks can expect to have to pay much more for his services if they want to keep him.

So how realistic is getting him back on the roster?

First and foremost, by all accounts Malhotra was happy here, not only with his teammates but the franchise and the Bay Area (but who doesn't like it here, right?). Since he was such an integral part of the team, the Sharks will want him back.

This means his re-signing is all a matter of numbers. It is well-known that the Sharks have a dozen significant free agents left to sign--players who had major roles in 2009-10 and ones in the system who have played at the NHL level and could be ready to step up.

Because many of them are coming off good seasons in which they helped the team reach the conference finals, many of them will get raises. While the salary cap is expected to nudge upward by as much as $2 million, this only raises the market value of each player--i.e. the Sharks will lose more than just Rob Blake from last season's roster.

Thus, each player will have to be evaluated not on whether they are worthy of being re-signed, but how much bang for the buck the team can get. The best thing to do is look at the kind of contract each is likely to get on the open-market and see if the Sharks can afford the cap space to come at least very close to that figure.

Taking a look at some recent contracts signed, Tomas Holmstrom is making less than $2 million per year. Obviously Malhotra is not the player Holmstrom is, even as the Swede's talents diminish. However, this contract represents a huge hometown discount from a player who wants to stay with the only team he's ever been with.

Last season, the Chicago Blackhawks signed Tomas Kopecky away from Detroit for $1.2 million. Kopecky has his name etched on the Stanley Cup (now twice), giving him a premium rate, but is not the player Malhotra is.

Thus, it is reasonable to think Manny would fall between the two players, and probably closer to Kopecky. In all likelihood, if the Sharks offer him a $1.25 million contract, he will be willing to stick around: That represents almost a 70 percent raise.

It is also a contract the Sharks can afford, as it leaves them with over $3 million in space from the departure of Blake to spread around. Expect Malhotra to be back in Teal next season.