Another fortunate win for the Sharks, this time in Anaheim less than 24 hours after they slipped by the Kings.  The Ducks have certainly lost a lot of that Stanley Cup shine, and they just aren’t as intimidating as they used to be.  Getzlaf, Perry, Hiller, and Ryan are on the way up, and most of the rest of the team is on the way down.

Looking at the boxscore, there’s another cause for relief- McLellan didn’t play the top forwards an inordinate number of minutes last night.  Patty and Jumbo played about 25 minutes each in the Kings game- last night, less than 20.  Looks like the 4th line got a bit more than usual- 8 minutes for McGinn, 6:28 for Staubitz, but the 3rd line got a bump as well.  Blake and Boyle still got a ton of minutes, but that includes over 6 minutes of PP time for Boyle, and almost 5 for Blake.  Those minutes aren’t a grinding as even strength or short handed.

Now with two wins, is the ship completely righted?  I wouldn’t go that far, but my hand has moved further away from the panic button.  With two very winnable games this week in Phoenix and Nashville, I wouldn’t mind seeing the win streak reach 4.  With Lemieux, JR, Grier, Huskins, and Mitchell still out, the Sharks are doing fairly well with what they have.

Beggars can’t be choosers, can they?  And the Sharks have been begging for points lo these last couple of weeks, so even a shootout victory over the 13th seeded Los Angeles Kings is still an occasion for mild rejoicing.  They sure started well; I think grier and I both thought that the first period was one of the best periods the Sharks have played in the last month or so.  But the Kings came out and scored on the first shift of the 2nd period, and some of that wind left the Sharks’ sails.  The Kings ended up out-shooting the Sharks in that period 12-10, but the Sharks came back again with a very good third period.  Still, they couldn’t get any past Erik Ersberg, who was fantastic.  And in a nice surprise, Nabokov came up big in the shootout, and the still-struggling Cheechoo managed to pot one in the 7th round to give the Sharks the win.

Even with a much-needed win, there’s some things about last night that are still cause for concern.  One, it seems Brad Lukowich is still trying to find his game again, he seemed to be fighting the puck a little bit, and he ended up playing exactly the same number of minutes as Alexei Semenov.  Two, with the close game and limited time for Luko, Murray, and Semenov, as well as the 4th forward line, this means the Sharks best players were leaned on, and leaned on hard.  Vlasic, Boyle, Thornton, Marleau, and Blake all played more than 24 minutes, including overtime.

So the Sharks roll into Anaheim today for an afternoon game to play the Ducks, who are very well rested; they haven’t played since Wednesday at home against Vancouver.  With less than 24 hours since the last game, I’m not having a good feeling about tonight.  I’m hoping the Ducks are a little rusty after their break.  Watch for Eric Christensen, you may remember he was one of the players Pittsburgh traded to Atlanta in the Marian Hossa deal, and the Ducks traded for him at the deadline.  He’s now on the top line in the old Kunitz slot.  The other big difference will be the lack of the Ducks’ shutdown line, which used to be Pahlsson, Moen, and Rob Niedermayer.  I’d have to guess now it’s Nokelainan (another traded deadline pickup), Niedermayer and maybe Todd Marchant.  Certainly not as scary as before.

I think we’re looking at another hard-fought game that will be very close, and I’m guessing overtime again.  The Ducks are even closer to a playoff seed than the Kings were, and they will be even more motivated to earn a point.  Look for the 1-4 or 0-5 if the game is tied, or the Ducks are ahead.

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I’m nervous about tonight’s game in St. Louis. The Blues were a team that started the year hot and then sank to near joke status, but they’ve risen from the NHL ashes to legitimately contend for a playoff spot. They’ve gone 6-3-1 in their last ten, but they’ve cooled off just a bit coming in a more reasonable 3-2 in their last five, with the wins coming over three non-playoff foes in Dallas, Phoenix and the lowest of the low, Tampa Bay. BUT – this team is desperate for points and St. Louis knows they can hang with the Sharks, even when they are at full strength. Previous results from the three other games with the Blues this year….

Nov 6 5-4 OT win
Dec 13 5-4 win
Dec 27 3-2 loss

Any guesses what we’re in for tonight?

On the positive side, it looks like Marcel Goc will return to the line up tonight, which means (thankfully) no more Brad Staubitz. McGinn will slide down to the 4th line with Shelley and Plihal and the line up will get a little stronger as another regular player comes back. More good news is the physical play can’t get any worse – right? In the three previous contests against St. Louis, there has been an average of 21 penalty minutes per game, good for ten total power plays per game – so it’s bound to get chippy. Oddly enough, there have been zero fighting majors – but this could be the physical wake up call the Sharks are needing after falling asleep at the hitting wheel against Minnesota. I’ve never seen the Sharks play less physical, and for a team that is 4th in the NHL in total hits (misleading stat, but a stat none the less), it was embarrassing to see no hits from Shelley and Murray and Semenov, I mean what else is Frankenstein there for – his award winning smile or smelly beard? Doubtful.

Sharks thrive in close games and perhaps this game will get their competitive juices flowing. It won’t be perfect, or even pretty – but the Sharks will win another wild one tonight.

Sharks 4
Blues 2

Lot’s of talk these days about fighting, what, with the GMs meeting about it right now, and the recent incident involving a Canadian senior league player.  The commentariat is also weighing in, with recent articles by Mike Heika and Puck Daddy, and even Scotty Bowman has recently spoken out.

Because I’m clearly on par with those guys, time for me to throw in the two cents.  Actually, the one article that really caused me to want to write about fighting was this one, about former Sharks enforcer Brantt Myhres.  Myhres has had a pretty tough go of it since his salad days on the Sharks, battling substance and alcohol abuse as well as a roughscrabble life in the low minors.

I hate to jump on a guy while he’s down, but Myhres may not have gotten the life he wanted, but it was the life he chose.  To me, it sounds like his story is more of argument to play college hockey rather than juniors.  If he had gotten a college degree, maybe he wouldn’t have stayed with the sometimes-glamorous-yet-often-painful job of a hockey enforcer.

Let’s get it right out in the open- I don’t want to see fighting banned for all of these reasons and more.  I think it can be a momentum changer, as I think we’ve all seen recently.  Agreed, the pomp and circumstance of negotiated fights is somewhat unsightly.   The league could be slightly better off if there were no players whose sole job was to run out there and drop the gloves every now and again.  But that decision should be trusted to those who make the lineups- the coaches and general managers.  If they want to waste use a roster spot on a guy who gets 3 minutes a night and 200 PIMs a year, that’s their prerogative, and I’m not going to be one of those jackasses who pretend to know the game better than those who have dedicated their life to it.

The one thing that really interests me about this debate is how there seem to be more fighting proponents in the U.S., and more fighting detractors in Canada.  I wonder why that is, especially given the 2008 Rogers Sportsnet Canadian Athlete of the Year.  I believe that’s what one might call irony.

Here’s what it comes down to for me.  I want that toughness it takes to fight rewarded and respected.  I want there to be a difference between Ryane Clowe and Mike Ribiero other than a 2-carat pink diamond earring.  The code is very real, and as long as it exists, fighting belongs in hockey not only because it’s pretty damn entertaining, but because it serves a legitimate purpose.

Watching the game last night, I wondered what else I could be doing other than torturing myself with the Sharks fourth straight loss. Being a total masochist, I had to endure whatever was on the ice, no matter how terrible. Well…it was pretty terrible. The Sharks got jumped, shanked and left for dead in the first ten minutes and could never recover. I hate to say new Shark, Travis Moen, looked a little out of sorts and was just trying not to make a mistake. The best player for the Sharks last night, in my opinion, was Jamie McGinn – he seemed to be everywhere and even earned some time with Joe Thornton. A possible bright spot from all these injuries is that McGinn could get the playing time to develop into a player that can be really useful in the playoffs.

Sharks fans are upset. We’re wondering what the hell happened here. The best team in the NHL is now tied for 1st with the Red Wings and are an extremely unusual 5-4-1 in their last ten games. With Rob Blake missing the third period after getting clunked with a shot, could things get worse? Well, I have four reasons not to panic folks. The Flames, Bruins, Capitals and Red Wings.

Reason 1) After coming out gangbusters in Jokinen’s debut in Philly, the Flames ate it big time in Carolina (6-1 loss) and I’m watching them get man-handled by those awesome Atlanta Thrashers right now, 3-1 in the 2nd period. While the Jokinen and Leopold trades were very sexy in hockey terms, dropping games in Carolina and Atlanta with a brutal week ahead could mean Calgary is going to continue to dip.

Reason 2) Boston Bruins fans must feel just like us Sharks fans…maybe even worse. They are 4-5-1 in their last ten and lost in Madison Square Garden today to the Mystery Rangers. Giving up top defensive prospect Matt Lashoff for eight weeks of Mark Recchi is a move that the Bruins are going to regret big time in two years. Can the Bruins right the ship – yes they can – but a potential first round date with the Penguins is no reward for winning the top seed. No real excuses except for “we just suck” because there are no major injuries to report – unlike the Sharks.

Reason 3) Washington Capitals have been a powerhouse in the East, and have gone 5-5-0 in their last ten, and if they continue to lose to Pittsburgh as they are right now 3-1, they will have dumped four straight at home. Ovechkin is banged up, sure I know this is true, but Capital fans must be thinking without adding anything at the deadline – oh my god we’re in big trouble….

Reason 4) The Red Wings got throttled by Columbus 8-2 last night. Their second time being on the wrong end of an ass kicking in a week, after getting killed in Nashville 8-0 last Saturday. No Hossa, Lilja, Holmstrom and their goalies suck. They should throw in the towel, right? Seasons over….

Do you see my point. The Sharks are riddled with injuries and have hit the skids – but so have four of the other best teams in the NHL. San Jose has a lot of soul searching to do in the next five weeks before the playoffs to find their offensive rhythm and luckily, I think the amount of games against the lower half of the Western Conference will help the Sharks get healthy in the standings and hold on to the #1 seed – but I just wanted to make the point that we’re not alone Sharks fans. Call a guy in Boston and he’ll have the same story.

Gotta be embarrassing for the Waterboy to have his miss on the front page of Yahoo with the title, “Goalie’s ‘humiliating blunder'”.  Oops.

That’s all I’m going to say about that.  Let’s talk about something good, shall we?  Today at The Puck Stops Here, there’s an article about the Dan Boyle trade that says it’s the worst trade of the past year, and I have to agree (although the Patrick O’Sullivan trade might be close).  Also, the point has to be made that Tampa has done an astoundingly poor job with the subsequent trades involving the pics and players they got for Boyle.  All the trades are pointed out in the link above, so if you’re interested in the individual deals, check that out.

Because I want to take my mind off of the Wild game, I tabulated all the assets that changed hands going into and out of the Lightning organization that were involved in the Boyle trade, and here’s the whole equation:

Tampa Bay loses: Dan Boyle, Brad Lukowich, Filip Kuba, Alexandre Picard, and a 3rd round pick.

Tampa Bay gets:  Andrei Meszaros, Noah Welch, Steve Downie, Ty Wishart, two 3rd round picks, and a 4th round pick.

So for a top-10 NHL defenseman, two solid blueliners, a marginal NHL player, and a pick, they get one decent blueliner, a solid prospect in Wishart, two players that are very questionable, and some middle round picks.  Not only was the Boyle trade bad, the suckiness of the trade was compounded by other major crap deals they’ve made this year.  Feel better about the Sharks now?

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With Travis Moen and Kent Huskins not available until Saturday in Vancouver and Kaspar being sent on the Worcester courtesy shuttle, the Sharks will let Brad Staubitz live another day and have promoted Jamie McGinn. Mike and I discussed why McGinn hadn’t been called up with a long term roster spot up for grabs, he is certainly the best player in Worcester. I think this is definitely the right play by DW here.

So, can we expect Marleau to slide back down to the 3rd line? It might be the best option to keep the Sharks running for the rest of the regular season and gives McLellan a stronger three line look that he desires.

McGinn/Thornton/Seto
Clowe/Pavs/Michalek
Moen/Marleau/Cheech
Lemiuex/Plihal/Shelley

I would assume that when Grier, Goc, JR and maybe even Mitchell are healthy, then the four guys to sit would be Plihal, Lemieux, McGinn and Shelley. Having Goc to win face offs could be what gives him the edge over Shelley for a playoff series.

As for Kent Huskins, this guy isn’t a total scrub and we should expect, if he’s healthy, he’s going to play and McLellan will be able to give people a day off down the stretch here if their banged up. Depth is key for the Cup run – and Huskins has been there before.

One more thing I want to say about Travis Moen – recent history will show that Doug Wilson doesn’t acquire guys he’s not interested in trying to lock up in the offseason. DW is totally locked in on Moen and I’m expecting that he’s going to zero in on locking him up to a 3 year deal before the man can hit free agency. Just a hunch….but we should consider getting used to Moen in Teal….and his arrival could spell the departure of Grier in the offseason….

The Sharks traded two prospects for two more players with Stanley Cup experience by making a rare Pacific Division swap by landing Travis Moen and Kent Huskins from the Ducks.

I like it. Travis Moen is exactly the type of player I wanted the Sharks to add. He kills penalties and is a general pain in the ass to play against. I hated him on the Ducks. It’s gonna be great to see him in Teal and he should look good on the 3rd line. Huskins is here for depth and is a general upgrade over Frankenstein. He’s won a cup, was a +22 in 76 games last year for the Ducks and is another “Luko” type guy.

The price. College player, Nick Bonino, former 6th round pick and ranked #15 by Hockey Future.com in the Sharks system and goaltender Timo Pielmeier, the fifth rated goalie in the Sharks system. It’s hard to pass judgement on guys we haven’t seen in person – but it certainly doesn’t appear to have damaged the core of the San Jose minor league depth.

And….as I PREDICTED on the podcast – Kyle McLaren was traded to the Flyers. Thank you very much to all those who laughed in my general direction.

More detailed comments on this deal and all the trades made in the NHL on our new podcast tomorrow!

Not that I mean to blast Goc (exactly), but when you’re missing a 9-point scorer in the lineup, you have some problems.  The Worchester Sharks lost to the Stars last night in a fairly embarrassing fashion.  Other than Jumbo, Patty, Boucher, and maybe a couple others, it looked a lot like a minor league effort.

Now knowing that JR and Grier will likely be out the rest of the regular season, the Sharks will have some serious holes for the next few weeks.  And if last night is any indication, Staubitz and Kaspar are not up to the job of filling in.  If I were Doug Wilson, I’d fly to Worchester and throw the gauntlet down in the locker room over there.  “We have a job opening, and we’re looking for someone to fill it.  It might be one of you, or it might not.  But there’s an opportunity for one of you to seize it.”  Then get a standing Boston-to-SJ plane ticket, and try out some guys.  Vesce.  T.J. Fox.  Steven Zalewski.  For God’s sake, suit up Roy Somner if you have to.

Watching TSN trade coverage very early in the morning, the only thing I’ve heard about the Sharks is that Brian Murray of the Senators has a deal in place with the Sharks for Chris Neil, but the Senators are still negotiating with Neil about a contract extension.  I like the idea of having Neil on the team (depending on what the Sharks send in return, of course), but make no mistake, he will not solve the production problems the Sharks are having on the third line.  Pop quiz: who has more points right now, Goc or Neil?  The answer is the aformentioned 9 pointer Goc.

With the BJs trading goalie Pascal Leclaire and a 2nd rounter to Ottawa for Antoine Vermette, it’s shaping up to be a pretty interesting day.  More to come.

Some Sharks rumors swirling around yesterday.

CHEECHOO TO PITTSBURGH
While this makes sense in a way for the Penguins, what are they offering in return. San Jose isn’t in the charity business right now. I’m not sure what the Pens have to offer that makes the Sharks better TODAY.

Mike’s take

Pittsburgh just waived Satan, so something is in the works.  Unless Goligoski or Letang are in the conversation, no thanks.  Of course that would make the deal even bigger, and I think the Sharks shouldn’t make a blockbuster deal at this point.

PRONGER TO SAN JOSE
Not a chance in hell the Ducks trade Pronger within their own division. End of story. Unless the Ducks were able to take DW to the cleaners (Michalek, Ehrhoff and Couture for Pronger) then they would pull the trigger. DW would never do that kind of deal in division. No Pronger in Teal.

Mike’s take:

Reportedly, the Blues would have to give up David Perron, as well as other players and a first round pick.  Translate that to the Sharks, and the Ducks would want Vlasic at least, and a first round pick in 2089, or whenever the Sharks have their next one.  They’ve traded a few of those away lately (see Boyle, Guerin, and Campbell).

All that aside, bringing Pronger to San Jose would screw the Sharks cap number for the forseeable future.  The last thing the Sharks need is another $6M man, with Marleau, Thornton, and Boyle all topping that figure now. With one more year on Pronger’s deal, say goodbye to Ryane Clowe- the Sharks can no longer afford him.  Oh, and Rob Blake too.  And after the 2010 season?  Likely only three defensemen under contract, with Marleau unrestricted.

With Boyle clearly taking the top spot in the blueline core, good young D under contract for years, gaining an aging high-priced defenseman would be a recipe for future disaster.

SMYTH TO SAN JOSE
With a cap hit of $6.25M over the next three years, how is this even possible? The reported Sharks scout at last nights Isles/Avs game might not have been there for a big fish like Smyth. Perhaps he was scouting Ian Laperierre? While Smyth would look great on the Sharks PP in front of the net, SJ can’t absorb his mega-deal.

Mike’s take

Refer to above about $6M contracts.  Smyth is underperforming, and with McLellan’s system enticing Joe and Clowe to stand in front of the net more, Smyth is even less valuable to the Sharks than he was last year.

12:15 PM: MAJOR UPDATE THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING
Bob McKenzie is reporting that Grier and JR are both out 4-6 weeks. I think this changes everything for the next 24 hours as the Sharks will need to add at least one player to offset these two major veterans. Oh man….this is not good news.