Well, it turns out even the $2.75M arbitration award was too rich for the Blackhawks’ blood.  They ditch Niemi and sign Marty Turco for one year, $1.3M.  I guess you could say Doug Wilson’s evil plan of signing Hjalmarsson to an offer sheet really paid off.  The Hawks now have to go with a goaltender who’s last 5 years of save percentage are .898, .910, .909, .898, and .913.  I consider .900 to be the Mendoza line for goaltenders, and .910 is roughly NHL average.

The Hawks are delightfully, wonderfully screwed for goalies.  According to Hockey’s Future, the Hawks have only one goaltending prospect in their top 20, Alec Richards at #11.  Richards posted great numbers his last year at Yale, but has been unable to crack the magical .900 mark in either the ECHL (in a full season) or the AHL (only six games).  A blue chipper this guy ain’t.

The annoying thing about Turco is his ability to play well against the Sharks.  Each of the past three years Turco has posted a better save percentage against the Sharks than his season average.  It’s not statistically huge, but it’s irritating.  I guess the one upside is we are only facing the Hawks four times this year, versus the customary six against Dallas.

Well, I guess we know what John Davidson’s New Year’s resolution was.

Poor Andy Murray. Wasn’t this guy just praised for leading this team to a playoff run and rewarded with a Jack Adams nomination six months ago? What a difference a year makes…and the worst home record in the NHL. My advice to John Davidson? Avoid more panic moves like this one, big guy. Wait for someone to make an even bigger panic move, say, Bob Murray trying to save his skin by canning Randy Carlyle sometime in the next two months (my bold New Years Prediction) and hire that guy to give this team a personality in the off season.

How about a few more bold predictions in 2010 before the Sharks tangle with the Oilers tonight.

Prediction #2 (since Carlyle was #1): The Dallas Stars will be shaken up at the deadline, not stirred. The new GM has been suspiciously quiet, and I think he won’t be able to help himself by dealing Turco, Lehtinen, Brunnstrom, and even the legend himself, Mike Modano. Why not deal him to a team that has a real Cup shot and give him a final shot at glory? He’d look pretty good in a J.R. role on the Blackhawks, just saying.

Prediction #3: Dean Lombardi is going to add another veteran player down the stretch to make the Kings even more dangerous and Frolov will be his bait. I’m thinking something like getting Jeff Carter from the Flyers for Frolov and a 2010 2nd round pick. This gives the Flyers some salary cap flexibility while not killing their playoff hopes, and the Kings just get better with Carter.

Prediction #4: The Coyotes will fall harder than Tara Reid at Carlos and Charlie’s. I’m thinking they disappear from the playoff picture all together. They’ve played their hockey cards and the verdict is boredom.

Prediction #5: The Sharks, after much deliberation, will not pull a deadline deal for the first time in four years. Even though I still think we need another D, the Sharks and Doug Wilson will be the Gambler the other way and will take their chances and hold onto their 1st round pick.

Someone beats the ever loving snot out of Jacques tonight at the Tank. I’m thinking it might be Ryane Clowe who does the honors. Let’s start 2010 with a big win.

*Vesce shown actual size

Dallas is certainly a worthy opponent, and the Sharks again managed not to lose in regulation last night, falling 3-2 in the shootout to the Stars.  Of course, the way they lost will the be the topic of discussion today, mostly because there isn’t much to talk about regarding the Sharks.  I don’t mean for this to be a strident, finger-pointing post, because these games happen, and you can’t expect the boys in teal to be in absolute top form every game of the year.  I thought Dallas played very well, with a few more crazy-Turk (Turco) moves than I’m used to seeing.  I was a bit surprised at their lack of offensive firepower- I thought their D would be the main issue with the Stars.  Only James Neal seemed to be a consistent threat, with Brad Richards (their top scorer) and Mike Ribero (their top actor) held at bay.

So the game seemed to be going according to plan, the Sharks finally manage to crack Turco on a classic Dany Heatley tally and a flukey Ryan Clowe wrist shot that went off the D, and then the third period happened.  The one off of Demers’ boot was just bad luck more than anything.  The second was worse, because it stemmed from a bad clearing attempt, with a scrum in front finally tying the game.  Fairly lively overtime, and like always, I go into the shootout with more than a touch of dread.  Nabby is tied for third all time in losses in the shootout (tied with Tim Thomas, behind only Giguere and Luongo) with a win percentage of .455 and save percentage of .584.

The title of this post refers to the odd (some might say lame) selection of the third shooter in the shootout.  McLellan kept his second best shootout player (Ryane Clowe, 6 for 13 all-time) on the bench in favor of Ryan Vesce (now 0 for 1 all time).  To be honest, after you get past Pavs (14 for 25) and Clowe, it does get a little thin, choosing between Dan Boyle (4 for 13), Patrick Marleau (5 for 17), Dany Heatley (4 for 21) or Devin Setoguchi (1 for 6).  I’m glad McLellan chose Boyle, because if nothing else, it’s entertaining watching Boyle make about a thousand moves, sending the goalie into a full spin and flop.  This time Turco spun and flopped correctly, and made a no-look save on Boyle’s backhand.

But Vesce, not so much.  He skated straight down the center of the ice, handled the puck a couple of times, tried to deke, and left the puck behind him.  He swept at it on the backhand, but because the forward progress had stopped, it wouldn’t have counted even if it had gone in.  Not exactly an impressive performance.

It’s a minor point, but who’s the goat in this situation?  McLellan for putting in a guy that’s ice cold?  Or Vesce who didn’t even manage to keep the puck on his stick when he tried to shoot it?