Comments on: Captain Blake… huh?

By: SoCalSharksGirl

SoCalSharksGirl — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:14:38 +0000

Did anyone see the Western Conference preview on On The Fly last night. They talked to Remenda, and the 3 names that he mentioned in this order were: Rob Blake, Dan Boyle, and Joe Pavelski. He got 2 of the 3 right! Blake has years of experience in being Captain, and has had a lot of success in that role (both in the NHL and International levels). He has been here a little bit longer than Boyler, and this is most likely a transition period where he will hand of the reigns to someone else when he decides to retire. He’s been a mentor to all the young d-men on the team, which will benefit them in their careers. And he’s a media guy as well, whether it be on the bench or in the locker room.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:00:56 +0000

This is a good point. I’ve been talked off the ledge since yesterday. Blake isn’t a bad choice, but I clearly think there was a better one. In the end, I return to my original hypothesis- it probably won’t matter a huge amount (it does matter a little). The Ratto thing does bug me though; I suppose your guess is as good as any.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:53:52 +0000

After spending much time on the podcasts downplaying the significance of who gets the “C”, getting your knickers in a twist over the announcement doesn’t make much sense.

I do agree that the “painfully obvious” statement was never expanded on.

So how’s this: coach Mac is from Detroit, and their recent MO is to have Norris-winning defensemen as the captain = painfully obvious who had to be Sharks captain.

By: Brian Boitano

Brian Boitano — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 04:39:58 +0000

Dan Boyle should be the captain. Rob Blake, however, will be a great captain. Here’s why I think he was chosen:

Blake gets a ton of respect from teammates, opponents, and, most importantly, the refs. I think DW and TM decided the vocal, hold-your-feet-to-the-fire cappy is less important than an elder statesman who has won it all, and who knows the refs and can pull a little influence. But what the hell do I know?

By: Ruben

Ruben — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 02:55:12 +0000

@Tomi

Those three were the top three scorers for the Sharks last playoffs. Personally, I thought Thornton played well, I remember a handful of slam dunks that Seto and Pavs missed on passes from him. I think most everyone agrees that Boyle was our best player overall, both statistically and effort-wise. Blake was a -5, but Nabby had a lot to do with all the minuses going around with quite a few soft goals. Otherwise he had a goal and 4 assists in 5 games, not bad for a Dman.

Nick brought up some interesting points. Otherwise, I think who the C is on affects the Sharks chances about .1% in the quest for the Cup. Then again, I’ve never been in a locker room, but if that’s so important I’ll just defer to the experts.

By: BreAnn

BreAnn — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:06:45 +0000

Ok instead of restating what has already been written I would say ditto to what Nick said. He stated exactly what I was thinking. And I do hate him due to him being in LA and then the times we played COL in the playoffs.

By: Ian

Ian — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:03:15 +0000

Nick hit it right on the head.

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:01:41 +0000

Adam nailed it.

As far as your last comment, Doug, personally I’m not convinced that the team’s fortunes will turn on who has the “C”.
Is it important? Sure.

But for all the talk, we on the outside have no idea just what goes on in that locker room–let alone in the heads of the players (as became painfully evident with news of Murray’s leadership presence, a fact that I’m not sure anyone predicted)

At the end of the day, letter or not, Boyle is probably going to be heard in there this year. So I don’t see this as being a big deal.

By: Nick

Nick — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:00:10 +0000

This is a pivotal year for this franchise (duh..) and I think the selection of Blake is just as much to protect Boyle as much at anything else. After this season, success or failure, it’s hard to see Blake coming back. Which means we’ll be getting another new captain.

If we take the cup the C gets passed off to Boyle with the job of turning it into a dynasty when everyone wants to resign for below market value.

If we lose again Boyle doesn’t have his leadership questioned for not winning. Blake retires, the whole team gets an overhaul and we start fresh with Boyle as the captain.

Do I agree wholeheartedly that Blake should be the captain of the Sharks? No, he was in LA too long for me to ever like him that much. Do I think it makes sense. Sure, i can deal with it.

By: JH

JH — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:20:24 +0000

Wasn’t he captain for forever in LA? Maybe they went with Captaincy experience? I liked Boyle’s attitude too though. Perhaps next year