With the second half of the season ready to start tomorrow night in Edmonton, there are a few things we know about our beloved San Jose Sharks and a few things we don’t.

WE KNOW VLASIC, PLIHAL, GREISS AND THE GOOCH ARE BACK
After a few days of speculating, all four players were recalled from their bizarre conditioning weekend mecca to Worcester. I don’t understand the logic behind it. Why cart those four boys across the country to the freezing cold to get two games in (Vlasic only played in one by the way) only to head back on a plane today to Alberta. Vlasic’s recent play has waranted a demotion, so maybe the goal was to get his attention? Who knows.

WE KNOW NABBY IS THE MAN
What a great show from Nabby at the All Star game. He made Osgood and Legace look like the back-ups they used to be. He is the Sharks best player this season and the run-away first half MVP. Our playoff longevity currently rides on his shoulders.

WE KNOW THE ST. LOUIS GAME WAS WHAT WE WANT TO SEE
The Sharks stuck up for themselves. They held on to a lead and didn’t let the weaker team respond. They were physical, won tough draws and got good performances out of Cheechoo and Marleau.

WE DON’T KNOW WHAT DOUG WILSON IS THINKING
DW has one of the best poker faces in the game. It’s hard to tell what he has up his sleeve at any given moment, so trying to guess is almost futile. Is he going to go for it and trade major young players for high priced talent like Hossa or Campbell? Is he only going to add role players that won’t disrupt the core young players that he values? I fell in love with Brian Campbell during the All-Star game and I think DW should do anything in his power to add him. Would Ehrhoff, Pavelski and a #1 be enough? This guy Campbell is a cornerstone defender who is just coming into his own and could be the anchor blueliner DW has been searching for the last three seasons.

P.S. Did it piss anyone else off how pretty it was to see Thornton pass to Neidermeyer for that goal. Made me angry of what could have been…Damn you Rob N.!! “I want to play with my brother. WAAAHHH.”

WE DON’T KNOW WHICH MARLEAU AND CHEECHOO ARE GOING TO SHOW UP
You can’t fault Cheech’s effort. He is busting his ass and, as many people have said including Mike, he is perhaps only just now getting healthy from offseason hernia surgery. He has four goals in the last five games and is a +1 for the season. I think Cheechoo is going to bust out in the next week and net 15-17 goals in the final months. As for Marleau, he has seven points in his last seven, five of which has come on the power play – which means his five on five play is still terrible and he posted a -7 during this same stretch. In my gut, if Patty continues to struggle in the next two weeks, I think Marleau will not be a San Jose Shark past the trade deadline.

WE DON’T KNOW IF THE SHARKS SURVIVE THE FEBRUARY ROAD TRIP
This is a deadly trip with two stops in New York, New Jersey, Philly, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Detroit and St. Louis. If the Sharks are on the brink and are continuing to be Jekyll and Hyde – it could be the death sentence.

Selanne is back in Anaheim, Dallas could be on the brink of pulling off a huge trade sending Turco to Tampa Bay for St. Louis. Calgary isn’t going to stand pat at the deadline. The Sharks face an uphill battle to contend for the Pacific Division title, but if they can capture the passion they showed on Thursday night at the Tank and bring it to the ice every game – something this team has struggled to do since “Consistency” hasn’t exactly been this teams middle name – then the Sharks are as good as anyone on any night.

We will soon find out who these boys really are.