It’s Monday morning, and time to confess. ‘cantstopthegrier’s real name isn’t ‘cantstopthegrier’. There might be some people reading that are new to the Internets, so I figured I’d start slow. The reason for this confession will be clear in a minute. Actually, I’m about to reveal his real name. It’s Doug Santana.

Now before you all jump to google and find his sex tape, there’s actually a good reason for revealing this personal information about my long-time friend. As loyal readers are no doubt aware, Doug is a fan of the hockey rumors, and by extension, the biggest hockey rumor site, hockeybuzz.com. For those of you that aren’t aware of it or don’t read it, I understand. But it is a force. According to Eklund, the “anonymous” blogger there that posts most of the rumors, hockeybuzz gets twenty million hits a month. That’s a hell of a lot. That’s about a million times more that we get. Other than Eklund, they have bloggers dedicated to every team in the NHL. There are two Sharks bloggers there currently, and we’ve commented on their posts before, Ryan Garner and Mark Freitas.

Where am I going with this? Doug entered us into the “Next Great Hockey Blogger” competition on hockeybuzz, sending Eklund links to five of our past posts. And here is the starting bracket. As you can see, there’s Doug’s name at #12 in the Southwest bracket. Out of 416 applications, Doug has made it to the top 64. I actually wanted to reveal all this last week, but we held off, because the idea was for both of us to be in the contest as a team. Eklund is apparently not the greatest correspondent, and Doug’s emails reiterating the situation have gone into a black hole.

Either way, the first post is due tomorrow morning, and Doug is working on it right now. I want to get the word out, because I think the way the contest will work is that fans will vote on the individual matchups. Get ready to vote for us! Or at least read the post and make up your mind for yourself. I will be posting progress notes on the whole contest as time goes along, so stay tuned.

Tonight’s game against the Ducks should be a doozy. I invite you to read Sleek’s post at BoC’s on the game tonight. The reason I’m eagerly awaiting this matchup is not because of the playoff implications, however. I think the Sharks certainly have the upper hand to the #2 seed, and with several games against L.A. and Phoenix, it’s ours to lose. Even if we lost all the remaining games to the Ducks and Stars we could still capture the #2.

Of course I am worried about these upcoming games being a playoff preview. It’s likely that the Sharks will have to go through one or both of the Pacific teams to win the West. If we manage to crater even when we’re on this good streak, I don’t like our chances. So here’s my internal multiple-personality-disorder point/counterpoint on the game tonight:

Why the Sharks Will Win

• They’ve gotten a point in 14 straight games, and are playing their best hockey of the season by miles
• Ducks don’t have Stompy McCutYourLeg
• The Ducks-Sharks matchup has gone to the shootout 4 times out of six this season, and we have the Secret Shootout Weapon – Joe Pavelski (10 of 13 lifetime).
• Semenov is a likely healthy scratch
• SOU-PY! SOU-PY! SOU-PY!

Why the Ducks Will Win

• They own the Sharks this season (5-0-1)
• They get to play the Sharks at home, who are only 18-13-6. But the Ducks are 17-17-1 away. Hm, maybe that’s a wash.
• Ducks are 27-10-4 since Mr. My-Vajayjay-Hurts-and-I-Don’t-Want-To-Come-To-Camp-Or-Play-The-First-Three-Months kicked Andy McDonald out on his keister.
• Todd Bertuzzi has remembered that being 6-3, 245 with good hands is actually an asset in the NHL.
• The gravitational field caused by Giguere’s giant pads is growing inversely proportional to the amount of hair he has.

See you there.

The big news last night wasn’t that the Sharks gave up the lead on three different occasions and won in the shootout; it was the Kurtis Foster injury. Foster and Torrey Mitchell were skating hard for a puck behind the Wild net- Foster trying to touch-up for icing, Mitchell trying to prevent Foster from doing so. At full-out breakneck speed, Foster changed direction a bit, and Mitchell made contact. Foster ended up going into the boards so hard it was like a shotgun blast. The damage- a badly broken fibula that required surgery.

The NHL just decided not to suspend Mitchell. I think it’s a good call, although clearly I’m a Sharks fan and I’m biased. Suspending Mitchell would have been punishing him for the outcome of the play, not his conduct during it. When I saw the play at game-speed, I didn’t even think it should be a penalty. Since I haven’t found a working video yet, I have no reason to change my opinion. It was a hard play that went wrong, you see a hotly contested puck many times during a game, and a slip at the wrong time could result in serious injury like we saw last night.

It’s also sparked a debate about bringing in no-touch icing. I don’t have a really strong opinion one way or the other, but I’d lean a little towards keeping things the way they are, for two reasons. The first is the last thing hockey needs is more stoppages. Re-instituting tag-up offsides was a good move. Taking out a point of contention for the puck in favor of yet-another faceoff seems weird to me. The second is that it’s purely reactive measure that won’t have much benefit for the health of players. In my mind, there are better things the league could do to reduce injury (like require players to have their chin-strap somewhere near their chin), but if this incident leads to a rule change, I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it.

Quite busy the last couple days, and I know grier is too, but let me give a couple of thoughts in handy bullet-point form:

• Oilers game was a little too reminiscent of those several games earlier in the year when we had a thousand shots but couldn’t score.  Roloson stood on his head, and for that, I give him props.  But EDM is second-worst in goals against in the West, only behind L.A.  If we can’t score against them, what about against a decent defensive team?
• Speaking of L.A., we couldn’t score a bunch against them either.  It got real interesting in that last five minutes, when the Kings threw caution to the wind.  The onslaught was turned aside, but I don’t like the trend.
• And speaking of decently defensive teams, you would think we’d be seeing one in the Wild.   But you’d be wrong.  Minnesota is exactly in the middle of the West in goals against, and 9th of 16 in goals for.  They seem to exemplify mediocrity.  Hmm, that’s a question for my philosophy blog: is it possible to exemplify mediocrity?

With the Sharks swarming and gunning for win number twelve tomorrow vs. the never-say-die Oilers, I thought it might be time to look three weeks into our future and play another game of Who’d You Rather? Assuming we don’t go into total meltdown and San Jose finishes somewhere between two and five in the playoff seeding, here are my personal preferences for 1st round playoff opponents in decending order, from most desired to most dreaded. So – Who’d You Rather?

1) Minnesota Wild – They are skidding like Kirstie Alley at a Taco Bell, and as I’ve said before, I just don’t get how this team wins games. They are so boring and if we play the Wild, I will be “Wild” with excitement for a four game sweep. They can’t match up with San Jose at all. My clear first choice for Round one.

2) Vancouver Canucks – Beside Luongo, what do they really have going for them? The fact that the Sharks swept the season series in four games played in Sept-Oct, before they actually pulled their head out, means Vancouver might be easy pickings for San Jose in Round One. With no Ohlund and no secondary scoring after the Sedin line, the Tank will be chanting “Canucks-Suck” in Round One.

3) Nashville Predators – I think they will be on the outside looking in once the playoffs begin, but if they are in the picture – I wouldn’t mind dancing with them again. The Sharks own Nashville in late April and this Preds-Lite club would lose in five games to San Jose – Nashville is without a playoff tested backstop and really no scoring to speak of. The big thing that concerns me about playing Nashville is that the third time around, the Preds could just give up and go for cheap shots late in a series. As JR said, “Tootoo is a dumb dumb”.

4) Dallas Stars – Suprised? I was a little too after I read this over, but here’s the thing – I still don’t buy Marty Turco stock in late April. Shakira’s hips don’t lie and neither do Turco’s playoff numbers. 11 wins and two first round exits where his GAA was 3.35. Compare that with Nabby’s 24 playoff wins and lifetime 2.20 GAA and you can see why I wouldn’t mind pressing my luck against the Choker, Marty Turco. I think they might be regretting the Richards deal, since his initial 5 point outburst, he has three points and is a -3, while the Stars have gone 2-4-0 in the Richards era. Oops.

5) Colorado Avalanche – I would be dreading this match up in Round One. This team could have enough juice left to cause a lot of problems for a higher seed in Round One, if they don’t end up being the #3 themselves (I don’t they will, it should be Calgary). Forsberg, Sakic, Smyth, Foote and the revenge of Scott Hannan bring back playoff nightmares of seasons past. We should beat them, but I’d rather not put myself through the mental anguish. This series would go a brutal six games.

6) Anaheim Ducks – Simply put, we have to go through them at some point. May as well do it early.

7) Calgary Flames – My last choice for first round match up. I don’t think we match up well against Calgary and they have some emotional victories against us this year, so all the momentum is in their court. They play physical and have the skill players to beat you in transition. Add the fact that Kipper could shut anyone down at any point and Calgary is last on my list for desired first round pairings.

The Sharks must win the Pacific division! Sunday isn’t going to be like last night vs. St. Louis. While Edmonton has won three of their last four, their wins have come vs. Columbus, St. Louis and Chicago – not exactly the cream of the rink – but Edmonton is a true pain in the ass and won’t stand for getting their ass handed to them. It should be physical, and it will be a good warm up for next Friday’s physical affair with the Ducks. Let’s make it TWELVE!

So the Sharks played a spectacular first period last night, and basically coasted to a 4-1 win. It was a bit disappointing that they didn’t continue to stomp on the gas and bury the Blues, who were positively floundering during the whole period. Despite being fairly young and 14th in the West, the Blues don’t have any quit. If the Sharks pulled back too far, St. Louis could have made a game of it. But they didn’t, and the Sharks continue to roll. Although I can’t make the game tomorrow afternoon, I will certainly TiVo it, and have every expectation that the Sharks will continue the streak. Grier thinks that the streak will come to an end against the Kings next week, but I think they will last until Friday against the Ducks. I just don’t have a good feeling about it, even without Pronger.

Speaking of that, here’s his quote on the suspension: “While I did not intend to injure Ryan, I respect the league’s decision on this matter and look forward to returning to the ice and leading my teammates into the playoffs.” Notice he didn’t deny that he tried to step on him. It’s hindsight, but who can say a suspension isn’t justified now?

Mike Wilbon called for the Sharks to win tonight on PTI today. Two things

1. This is probably the first time in the history of PTI that the Sharks were the subject of anything. Seeing “SHARKS” in the right-hand screen rundown gave me a little thrill.  Yes, I’m that pathetic.
2. The only way for Wilbon to know less about hockey is for him to be declared mentally retarded. Every hockey pick he makes is wrong. And by ‘every’, we’re only talking about two or year per year.

Thanks for the jinx, meat.

Personally, I think he stomped on Kesler deliberately.  But then, I hate Pronger.  With a passion.  A passion so hot I would love it if he were on the Sharks.  The league has a nice history of looking the other way when star players commit offenses.  Hey, I know the evidence may not be compelling to some, but I have a tough time believing that Steve Downie wouldn’t be looking at an suspension if he were the guy in the video.  You know why Pronger does it?  Because he can get away with it.  The mark of a good player.  Annoying douchebag as well, but a good player.

So Patrick Marleau has been playing great lately. He saved a goal late in the last game, and had a nice little six points in seven games streak as well. He’s using his speed again, and making strong moves, they way a lot of us have been advocating for most of the season. To a casual outside observer, this could be a run of the mill case of a player slumping early in the season, then finding his groove.

And yet, he’s been blasted in a manner I’ve not seen before as a Sharks fan. Generally the media and fans here are fairly laid back. But the bandwagon jumpers piled on. And this past week, Ryan Garner chose to rip Marleau again, even after his recent resurgence. Garner also said on the Teal Spiel last weekend that regardless of what happens the remainder of this season or the playoffs, Marleau should be traded before his no-trade clause kicks in on July 1. You may have heard my call after that debating some of those points, and I’ll try to flush them out a bit more now.

I completely disagree with that opinion for several reasons. For one, Marleau is a very good player who I would characterize as a consistent 60 to 70 point producer. The last two years have been better than that, but let’s be conservative about it. The Sharks will have to find those goals somewhere next season without Marleau. Who’s gonna give ’em, Marcel Goc? How can you not view this year as an aberration? Save one season (when the Sharks missed the playoffs), Patty’s scored 25 goals every year since 2000. To say that he’s suddenly a punter will require a better argument than I’ve seen anywhere so far.

The second is the damage I believe it will do to the Sharks organization and reputation around the league. Let’s be honest- San Jose isn’t usually on any big UFA’s short list. Name a quality free agent other than Mike Grier that’s signed in San Jose in the last while. It just doesn’t happen. What we do see is players being developed in house, or traded for and re-signed, like Joe, Rivet, McLaren, and God willing, Campbell. Now suppose this- the Sharks’ captain has a bang-up last half (or quarter) of the season, performs well in the playoffs, and is promptly traded. Dontcha think this might put a bit of a damper on the Campbell re-signing effort? Or any other free agent that would be open to coming out west? The message would be this- the Sharks will ship good players, even the captain, when they need to clear salary. Turning around a slump doesn’t matter. No player is safe. In my mind, this will damage the Sharks more than keeping Patty around.

The third is the obvious possibility that Marleau will right himself and get back to the 80-point per year clip (or even better) he’s had the last couple of seasons. And the Sharks will have gotten diminished value for him, probably picks or prospects. Marleau was tied for 29th last year in points, and the names below his could fill an All-Star team. Sundin. Kovalchuk. Kariya. Hejduk. Stall. Richards. Gagne. Need I go on?

I’m not trying to be a Marleau fanboy here. In hindsight, it wasn’t the best decision to give him the captaincy. Maybe the two-year, $13M deal with an NTC was excessive. But those decisions have been made already. What do the Sharks do now?

Since I’m on a roll, I have an answer for that too. We can’t keep everybody. If Marleau goes into the tank again and is invisible in the playoffs, that makes it easier for the Sharks to get rid of him. But if not, we can clear out guys and get picks. Maybe McLaren. Maybe Carle. Maybe the Rizz or Goc. I have to believe that Brown, Plihal, and Semenov won’t be back. Clowe should be cheaper now that he’s been injured the entire season. The elephant in the room is that the Sharks won’t spend to the cap. But if Marleau continues to perform, as quietly as he may do it, the Sharks can’t afford to get rid of him.

As the Sharks attempt to push their franchise record winning streak to ten games – so many people are talking about next year already. “What are the Sharks going to with Patrick Marleau?” “How are we going to keep Brian Campbell?” “Is there room for Andrei Nazarov on the roster, since DW has a soft spot for mediocre Russians?” Why are we jumping to the offseason already people? Our boys are on a mad-hot run into the Stanley Cup playoffs and it’s like us Sharks fans don’t know what to do with ourselves. Take some time to smell the Teal people and let Doug Wilson worry about the offseason…..trust me, he already is three moves ahead of us.

What the hell is this rumor about? Seems kind of crazy and a little implausible that Doug Wilson would have actually pulled the trigger on this one. Why would you want Avery when you already got Shelley – doesn’t make sense. Mike thinks, and I agree, that DW brilliantly played several teams against one another into a bidding war for a young player with high stock and Wilson turned Bernier into Campbell. Sharks go on nine game win streak and Marleau/Pavs/Seto form a legit 2nd line. BAM! Speaking of Stevie B….it looks like he’s out with a “groin injury”, although according to this blurb from Yahoo Sports he looked fine in warm ups. So, I take it back Buffalo….for now.

San Jose wins again in Nashville. Why? The Preds are coming off a long road trip and that usually spells bad news for the home team, especially against a club clicking like the Sharks right now. San Jose has Dallas in their sights and knows if they don’t win the division, they are destined to play the Ducks in Round One, which would not be any Sharks fans first choice. I think Nabby goes again and then Boucher will play on Sunday against the Oilers. Just a guess, with Ron Wilson that’s the best you can do.

GO SHARKS!