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What to Expect out of San Jose
This Season?
Bottom end changes may define SJ's
fate
| 9/28/14 - By Zack Bodenstein -
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Following a 3-0 series collapse against the Kings,
the Sharks are trying to look past it. Meanwhile, General Manager Doug Wilson,
is not. Wilson immediately referred to his team as a "tomorrow team" hinting at
the possible anticipated rebuild for the Sharks. However, the players don't
think of it this way.
In specific, Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau
(both entering their age 35 seasons) were offended when hearing Wilson's
comments, pleading their cases that the Sharks are still a top team in hockey
and there is no need for a drastic change. Ultimately, they're right. The
Sharks put up the best fight against the Stanley Cup Champions out of everybody
(the top teams in hockey) who squared off against Los Angeles. The Sharks, in
my eyes, played better than Los Angeles in every game except for games 5 and 7.
So what does all of this mean? The San Jose Sharks are coming into a
season where they shed a lot of cap by parting ways with some veterans to bring
upon a bigger role for young players. The Sharks do have young players who are
capable of contributing this season. They have a bolstered top-6 in the
forwards department followed by an average bottom-6.
The question is
whether they use youngsters with skill and potential such as Freddie Hamilton,
Eriah Hayes, and Tye McGinn to play hard third/fourth line minutes, or if they
turn to veteran tough guys (with significantly less skill) such as Adam Burish
and John Scott. A big part of the bottom-6 depends on if Tyler Kennedy can live
up to his potential he had in Pittsburgh, following a devastating first season
in teal.
Their defense has some heavy contributors, such as
Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Brent Burns, but they also have underrated guys who can
carry big minutes and play significant roles on the back end, such as Justin
Braun and Jason Demers. The Sharks have elected not to dip into free agency,
but with another depth defenseman via trade (Nick Leddy is on the block) they
would be very well off having that last spot being fought for by Matt Irwin,
Scott Hannan, and Mirco Mueller. Mueller would be a great fit in the top-6 to
play most nights, based on his potential, skill, and worth ethic. Some nights
it would be ideal for McLellan to elect a veteran over him depending on the
situation.
The Sharks goaltending is tricky. The starting spot is
definitely up for grabs, but I see it currently as Antti Niemi's job to lose.
He has a Stanley Cup and the experience over Alex Stalock, who will be
competing for that role. Best case scenario; this situation strives both
goaltenders to play at the top of their game every night. Stalock looked much
more composed last year, looking like one of the most promising goaltending
prospects hockey saw last season, and Niemi's inconsistency didn't help his
case. Alas, we have this dilemma.
My ideal projection for Todd
McLellan's lineup on October 8th when the Sharks get that Stanley Cup banner
raised in front of their eyes after it slipped through their fingers is:
48-19-8
12-39-83
McGinn-15-57
75-10-48
44-52
61-88
Mueller-5
31
32
I'm expecting the Sharks, who are
still a top-5 team in hockey, to make the playoffs, finishing at least top-3 in
the Pacific Division. Anaheim bolstered up by trading for Kesler, but losing
tons of depth this summer, while Los Angeles stood pat with their championship
team. The Sharks will contend for the Western Conference's top team along with
Chicago, St. Louis, Los Angeles, and Anaheim in the regular season. The
playoffs are a mystery.
Contact Zack at at
zackbodenstein@letsgosharks.com
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