Someone Get Me a Boyle
July 2nd, 2008, 3:06 pm
More action today and the San Jose Sharks were out of it. Last night during our latest podcast (feed link here), I brought up Sean Avery and how I wouldn’t have minded seeing him in San Jose, but not for 4M. Well, that was the price and I’m glad Doug Wilson didn’t go there. As for some of the players who moved today, the Sharks were never in on Hossa. There’s no way they could compete with the mega-bucks Edmonton was offering and there is no way they could offer the prestige of playing in Detroit, which ultimately won him over. It sucks, but that was never a realistic option. As for Ron Hainsey, take a look and tell me if you think he’s a better option than Ehrhoff.
Hainsey 245 NHL games 85 points -11
Ehrhoff 264 NHL games 90 points +31
And remember, this is coming from a non-Ehrhoff fan, but Hainsey is three years removed from being WAIVED. He was WAIVED by the Canadiens – I’m sorry, not worth 4.5M. I applaud DW staying out of the Streit/Hainsey market. This would not have been an upgrade and the Sharks can do better for the money.
In a conversation with David Pollak the Sharks GM made it clear that the money was too rich on Campbell. Now DW is a man of mystery, as we know, but he also likes to drop hints and let you read between the lines. His high praise for Detroit should have led us to McLellan’s name and now his mention of finding a defensemen on the trade market has to lead you to believe that he is working the phones. Getting a UFA appears out of the question, excpet for Bret Hedican who apparently negotiations are “ongoing”, so who else could the Sharks get?
Dan Boyle? If he wanted to come here and waive his NTC and if Tampa Bay is stupid…I mean crazy….no, I mean stupid enough to trade him then I would fax the Sharks roster over to Tampa, cross off Joe, Patty and Nabby’s names and say “pick two guys”.
Pavel Kubina? Well…we know it almost happened last season. Could Wilson catch Fletcher at a weak moment and convince him to still trade Kubina for McLaren straight up? Toss in a case of Ensure and maybe we’ve got a deal.
Brian McCabe? Sharks could wait until Fletcher has McCabe completely bent over the barrel with the threat of being sent to the Marlies and force McCabe to accept a trade. He could be had for nothing I’m sure.
Cam Barker? Is he the odd man out in Chicago? Could the Blackhawks feel sorry for the Sharks and send Barker, the 3rd player selected in the 2004 draft, to San Jose? If Wilson dangled Setoguchi, is that enough? He hasn’t really gotten a shot to crack the regular rotation, but his size, mean streak and PP ability are big selling points.
In my opinion, in order to improve, San Jose needs to add two new defensemen to replace McLaren and Ehrhoff and one new veteran checking forward. Could this all happen via trade? Yes. Could San Jose strike for a more under the radar player like Chris Gratton to play on the 3rd line? Sure. But the big names were never a real option on the UFA market and before we start cursing Doug Wilson’s name, we have to remember that he locked up Joe Thornton when San Jose would have lost him to some loony team like Vancouver or Edmonton offering 7 years/70M this offseason. Give Wilson a chance….maybe he’ll get a Boyle for you? If the Sharks ended up with Hedican, Barker and Gratton – that is pretty damn good.
We broke a lot of it down in the latest podcast (feed link here), especially the stuff with Campbell. Not a real great day for the Sharks, but the free agency season ain’t over yet. Oh yeah, we got the podcast listed on iTunes as well, so if you search for Dudes on Hockey or ‘sharks hockey’ you should be able to find it. Spread the word, and keep those questions and comments coming.
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I am starting to feel about DW the same way I felt about RW. From all appearances he is doing everything right, and getting good results on the ice.
At the same time, I am starting to sense a bit of stagnation with the way we aquire, or don’t aquire, talent. No doubt thate are doing it the right way so that we can be competative for years to come, and we aren’t mortgaging our future, which is good, but I am starting to not care about the future. I want it NOW!
I am an American for Christ’s sake, arn’t I entitled to everything I want?
As I am sure Mike would agree…”You can’t lose what you don’t put in the middle. But you can’t win much either.”
On Boyle, don’t be surprised if they trade him for little in return. Feaster is a moron
Here’s some wishful thinking: If RW is the antithesis of Barry Melrose in terms of how they treat their players, maybe he’d be willing to waive his NTC for a straight-up trade for Boyle.
I think the new owners in TBY are having some play-time, and trying to run the team like their fantasy league last year. I wouldn’t put it all on Feaster. That being said, it’d be tough to screw up this deal too bad, with several teams in the hunt. The opportunity for screw up would be to get the wrong pieces, not bad ones.
I agree with Scotlund. It may be time for the Sharks to consider a new GM. Not only because of his ineffectiveness to lure prime free agents to San Jose, but also because of his disingenuousness.
In the aftermath of Brian Campbell bolting for Chicago, Wilson had the nerve to say, “When we acquired him, it wasn’t necessarily a huge part of it for him to be staying here long-term. It was to help our team to be in a position to win.”
Pardon my French, but what a bunch of hooey! You don’t trade Steve Bernier and a 1st rounder with the idea that Campbell would be a rental. No way that was the plan! I’m sure Wilson was holding himself in a dark room crying himself to sleep on Tuesday.
Wilson justified the late 1st rounder as “basically a glorified second-round pick.” Hey, golorified or not, it’s still worth something. Shea Weber was a second round pick. Heck, we could have had Weber too but instead we drafted Matt Carle. Brilliant.
But my biggest problem with Wilson is him stating, “When you’re committed to winning, you have to be aggressive.” Oh, really. So does that mean the Sharks aren’t committed to winning? The last time I checked, they’ve not exactly been “aggressive” this offseason. Unless you count re-signing Jody Shelley aggressive. And if that’s the case, then lord help us. Especially if Wilson believes his own bullshit, “If anything, we’re a better team now than we were at the beginning of the last season.” WTF?????
Let’s take a deep breath, people. Don’t forget the DW engineered the best trade in Sharks history, then resigned the best player in Sharks history to a under-market-value contract.
Also, the Sharks were (allegedly) making a legitimate run at the Cup last year, and BC was a part of that equation. Didn’t work out, but isn’t that a case of DW being aggressive?
The BC quote I talked about in the podcast is one of the more telling things I’ve heard in a while. It supports what I’ve thought for a long time- players just don’t think of SJ as a good hockey city, and it seriously affects DW’s ability to sign people. Reportedly ATL offered $8.5M to BC for many years- should Don Waddell be replaced for not being aggressive enough? I’d bet if we gave Campbell that deal, there’d be a host of comments about how we overpaid.
As much as we’d like to believe the NHL is a level playing field with the salary cap, the truth is DW is at a significant disadvantage to Ken Holland, Glen Sather, Bob Gainey, Cliff Fletcher, and even Dale Tallon. We make the exact same offer as one of those teams, those teams will sign the player 95 times out of 100.
C’mon, Mike. Please. Don’t insult me or Doug Wilson by comparing our situation with that of Don Waddell and the Thrashers. Waddell has been Atlanta’s GM for 10 years and under his “direction” the Thrashers have made the playoffs only once. He should’ve been replaced long ago.
Much like Ron Wilson, Doug Wilson has done a good job. And like Ron, who Doug said needed a new class to teach, Doug may need a new class of his own. Only because we’re 5 years into his tenure and Doug Wilson hasn’t gotten the Sharks over the hump. It’s not that he’s done a bad job. He just hasn’t done a good enough job.
I give him all the credit in the world for the coup of the century by bringing Joe Thornton to San Jose and keeping him here. But is that it? Are we going to let him slide because of the Thornton deal just as Giants fans allowed Brian Sabean to slide for signing Barry Bonds?
I’m glad Wilson didn’t overpay for Campbell. But don’t just sit in a dark corner sucking your thumb cuz you lost out. Have a Plan B and C. Is there even a Plan B or C?
I get that San Jose isn’t considered a prime hockey destination. But mostly it’s because players don’t really know what San Jose has to offer. Like Campbell said, if he hadn’t been traded here, he wouldn’t have even considered signing here.
But don’t you think its part of the GMs job to sell San Jose to these players. Recruit Thornton and Marleau as your team’s evangelists. Personally pick up these free agents by private jet. While on the plane, wine them, dine them, and have them watch a video about all that the Bay Area has to offer. Escort them into the Sharks lockerroom with their name and number already embroidered onto a Sharks jersey hanging between Joe and Patty’s lockers.
Given the Sharks loyal fan base and the annual ticket price increases, I think Wilson and the Sharks need to pull out all the stops when it comes to recruiting top tier free agents.
Do you think Wilson has made such an effort?
Actually, I think Don Waddell is a decent GM. He has kept Kovi there, got a lot of good young players in the Hossa trade, and worked under and ownership (not unlike the Sharks) that has additional financial restrictions. It’s completely valid to rate a GM by wins, losses and playoff berths. But they don’t operate in a vaccuum. They are competing against other smart men, many of whom have built-in, and sometimes overwhelming, advantages, due to aformentioned budgetary concerns, locale, and recent results.
I unfortunately have the benefit of hindsight (I didn’t look at the timestamp of your comment) but clearly Plans B and C are Blake and Boyle.
As to your last question, I think the answer is an unequivocal yes. He’s made great trades, signed good contracts, and, if you believe most of the hockey media, was in on the Chara, Niedermayer, Redden, Campbell, and now Boyle sweepstakes. Of course none of those panned out, but can we honestly say it was for lack of trying?
Lack of trying is what Lombardi is doing- taking lesser value for Vishnovsky, not offering Blake a new deal, and damaging LA’s image as a team that wants to win. They look like a team that is scuttling the season to get Tavares. Why would any free agent want to go there?
I really didn’t think we had a chance on Reddon and that Reddon used the Sharks to get the most he could out of the Rangers. If Reddon had any desire to be a Shark it would have happened when he refused to wave his no trade to come to the Sharks at the deadline he didn’t do it then so it does not shock me he signed with the Rangers.
Looks like Boyle is coming seems to be
Matt Carle
1st round
4th round
prospect
for
Brad Lukowich
Dan Boyle
I think that they might be over paying but honestly at the same time I can’t help but ask if it can be October now I’m really excited about next years team.