Sharks 2009 Wrap Up

Every once in a while I leave the diamond for the ice, and as we get ready to flip the old page on the calendar once again, I thought now would be a great time to review how my hometown team San Jose Sharks, are doing so far in 2009.

Overall, the Sharks are leading the Pacific Division with 47 points, the second best total in the Western Conference (the Blackhawks lead the way with 49 points). However, the club is just 4-3-3 in their last 10 games as they have struggled to win at home for the first time since Todd McLellan took over the club at the start of last season (they have still lost only two of 16 home games in regulation going 9-2-5 despite the recent rough stretch).

Now on to the player report cards.

Joe Thornton – Grade A: Leads the NHL with 39 assists and 48 points. He could shoot the puck more frequently, but why quibble with greatness?

Dany Heatley – A: Tied for fourth in the NHL with 21 goals, he is second with 10 on the power-play in his first season in SJ.

Patrick Marleau – A: Stripped of the captaincy, he has lit it up this season with 21 goals (tied with Dany H.) leading to 37 points in 35 games

Dan Boyle – A: A fiery leader, Boyle has been beat up all year but still has 29 points in 35 contests.

Scott Nichol – A: A putrid fantasy performer with only four points and a (-7), his effort has brought the right amount of spunk to a team in need of energy. He is also dynamic in the face-off circle with a 61.9 percent mark, the second best total in the league.

Ryane Clowe – B: Started out very slowly but rounding into shape nicely with 19 points in his last 21 games.

Evgeni Nabokov – B: The .920 save percentage is great, and the 2.35 GAA isn’t too shabby, but his 17-5-7 record could improve if he limited the cheap goals a bit more.

Joe Pavelski – B: Limited due to injury, “Little Joe” is death to goalies in the shootout and not to bad during the regular game either with 15 points and a +7 in 20 contests.

Manny Malhotra – B: Not much offense to speak of (13 points) but he was signed for his two-way play and face-off prowess.

Jason Demurs – B: An undrafted rookie, he has spent some time in the minors but he brings a nice right-handed shot to the power-play (13 points, six with the man advantage, in 28 games).

Douglass Murray – B: Seven points, +7 and 37 PIM. Those numbers don’t come close to striking the fear in opponent’s hearts like his thundering checks do.

Rob Blake – C: Hard to judge his first year effort at Sharks’ captain given injury, but his on ice production is down (2g, 6a, +2 in 24 games).

Devin Setoguchi – C: With nine goals in 23 games his scoring pace is that of a30-goal man over the course of a full season, but the young scoring star has only one goal in his last 11 games.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic – C: Rarely makes a mistake or gets caught of position while playing big minutes.

Kent Huskins – C: You don’t usually recognize that he has played, not necessarily a bad thing for a mostly stay at home defenseman.

Jed Ortmeyer -C: One of those grinders every successful teams need, Jed has chipped in four goals and four assists for the club.

No matter what the grade is for any of the players that I’ve mentioned, the only thing that matters in San Jose this year is getting a chance to win the cup. If the club fails to advance in the playoffs it won’t matter if every guy on this list ends the regular season with an “A” next to his name. This team will be judged by the number 16 – the total number of victories needed to hoist the cup.

By Ray Flowers

Is This It?

When the Sharks excited the playoffs last season in the first round, after the most successful season in franchise history in which the won the President’s Trophy awarded to the team with the best record in the league, the front office vowed that the culture of the team would change. Most assumed that would mean that a big ticket item would be brought in, Dany Heatley’s name being prominent amongst those mentioned, and many thought that the team would move parts such as deposed captain Patrick Marleau. Alas, we are mere weeks from the start of training camp and there has yet to be anything remotely approximating a culture shift in San Jose despite the trade today that sent Christian Ehrhoff and Brad Lukowich to the Vancouver Canucks for Patrick White and Daniel Rahimi. I know, earth shattering eh?

“This trade speaks to the confidence we have in the young players coming up through our system who have earned the right to compete for a spot on this team,” Sharks GM Doug Wilson said. “It also creates some flexibility in our team payroll for potential future transactions as the season progresses…”

White is a 20 year old center and a former first round draft pick who is currently skating with the University of Minnesota, while Rahimi is a blue liner who has been skating in the AHL for a couple of seasons. The Sharks, as mentioned, will be saving a few bucks as Ehrhoff is scheduled to make $6.2 million the next two seasons while Lukowich is set to make just over $1.5 million in the coming campaign.

The Sharks traded for Kent Huskins at the deadline last year and he should be able to replace the loss of stay at home defensemen Lukowich, but the loss of Ehrhoff will be harder to overcome. Though he often had no idea where his howitzer was going after firing the puck, Ehrhoff did a much better job putting the biscuit on net last season and the result was his most offensive season of his five year career, and I mean that in a good way as he recorded 42 points with 25 coming with the man-advantage.

Still, this deal is as much about what it wasn’t as what it was.

The Sharks saved some money and got two parts that might one day amount to something. At the same time this move certainly weakens the club at present, that is unless they use the extra salary cap space to bring in a top-6 forward. Heatley continues to say he wants out of Ottawa, and he and Joe Thornton have had success skating with each other in international play, so perhaps this move will accomplish the goal of bringing the sniper west to Silicon Valley. However, don’t go writing this down as a done deal by any means as one of the pieces often discussed in the potential Sharks-Senators deal was the now departed Christian Ehrhoff.

The Sharks need to do something. That much is clear. And while this may be the first step leading to the “real” move the club has been planning for months, if this is it, there are going to be plenty of disappointed fans at the Tank this season. Still, I’m willing to bet that Doug Wilson has something up his sleeve. Just read the following quote which was uttered in late April after the Sharks bowed out to the Ducks.

“Changes will be made,” Wilson said. “This is pro sports and winning is the only thing that matters…This organization will win and if unpleasant decisions have to be made, they will get made.”

By Ray Flowers