Shortage of Letters
August 19th, 2009, 8:12 am
The big news is that Patty no longer has the C, and no one has an A either- the Sharks are officially letterless. We break all that down and more in the latest podcast. Lots of emails to get to as well- thanks for writing in.
One thing I was thinking about after we recorded the podcast last night, is this could be a continuation of the changes that Todd McLellan brings as coach. It would be a bit unseemly to come in, get rid of some guys (like Cheech, who we are still convinced with not be with this team in October) and pull the captaincy out from under a player that’s been with the franchise since 1997. The first round loss certainly provides an ample excuse to stir the pot in any way management wishes, but I also wonder if this is also a move to align the team more to TMs philosophy.
In the no-thanks department, Hockey News has just put out their standings predictions for 2009-2010, and the Sharks are listed as #1 in the West again. I know a mature team has to be able to handle the pressure, but it’d be nice for Chicago or Detroit to be the team to beat. Playoff success is the only thing that matters here, and the fewer things I read about the Sharks getting 115+ points again, the better. I just want them healthy and playing well in March and April, I couldn’t care less about November and December.
There are plenty of quibbles I have with these rankings, so stay tuned- we will get to our predictions very soon.
Loading ...
A Cup-contending team needs a veteran captain. No way Pavelski gets the C.
If the Sharks have any desire to keep Patty, he’ll “earn” the C during camp. Otherwise, it’s no-win for him staying. Option 1 – no C, and he plays poorly = no new contract. Option 2 – no C, and he plays great = contract demands too much to keep him. Option 3 – “earns” C and remains loyal to team next summer.
I’ll make sure not to have the Sharks on top in my predictions!
didn’t the Penguins just win the cup?
Tomi –
Why yes, they did!
“A cup-contending team needs a veteran captain”, yet the cup champions were captained by a 21-year-old and the Western conference finalist Blackhawks were captained by a 20-year-old.
thanks Kerry, exactly what I was getting at. I guess we’ll see who earns it
Crosby has been their Captain for greater than 2 years. He has the skills that lead to respect from the veterans. He was also annoited the C during a rebuild.
Now… if you think Pavs will get the respect from the locker room as a 24 year old, slightly-better-than average player, I think you’re overrating his ability. When Morrow took over in Dallas, he was 28; Drury didn’t see a captaincy until the same age. Point being, Pavelski is too old to have been annoited the captain, and too young to have earned it.
The C is Boyle’s to lose. And if he does, it’s going back on Patty’s sweater.
What was the last Stanley Cup winning team to have a first-year captain? (Much like last summer’s connundrum of the last Stanley Cup winning team to have a rookie coach – and we didn’t know about Byslma yet!)
What was the last team to not have a top top player as captain? I think Brind’Amour with the Canes, but before that it has been awhile. Crosby, Lidstrom, Lecavalier, Stevens, Sakic… not many Pavelski-like players in that group.
I think Boyle and Thornton are the only real options. I’d give it to Blake before I gave it to Pavelski, at least right now. The only way Marleau doesn’t get an A is if he doesn’t want it, he has done way too much for the franchise and his actions going through this show why he was a good (if not great) captain in the first place; team first, him second.
You can’t keep adding rules to what makes a cup-contending captain. Oh he can be young now if he was young when he was first made the captain or if he skill outweighs his youth…
I don’t think there’s a rule for the kind of captain that you need on a cup winning team. As has been addressed on the podcast before, different captains work for different teams. And I don’t think you can say the absence of a “cup contending captain” is really the reason this team hasn’t reached the promised land yet.
And for the record, I think Thornton would be a terrible idea. Let someone earn it. Why is Joe any better than Marleau?
I hope they give the C to Thornton. He is our best player, and we need him to step up in playoffs more than anyone else on this squad. The question about “When is this going be to your team?” from the State of the Sharks still rings in my ears, as is puzzled look on Joe’s face.
Face it people, we can’t get very far in playoffs with our best player productivity dropping over 25% in playoffs. Look no further than Malkin, Crosby and Ovechkin and how they show up in playoffs. We can’t afford another playoff series where Joe waits till Game 3 to wake up and start playing and Game 5 to show get really pissed.
Maybe if Joe knew from the very beginning that it’s up to him to carry this team on his shoulders since he is the Captain he wouldn’t be as passive as he was for most of Anaheim series.
Boyle for obvious reasons would be my next pick, but I hope DW finds a way to send the right message to Joe regardless. We can’t afford him to keep taking passive role on the ice and off the ice when he kept sneaking past everybody without saying a word or taking any responsibility in the locker room or in the interviews. Remember how he kept saying after each loss to Anaheim “Not sure why we lost, we were a better team out there..”
Dudes – in your podcast you said that giving C to Joe T would be putting too much pressure on him and I disagree. When you’re a no. 1 draft pick, you know you’ll be playing under microscope throughout your whole career – it simply comes with a territory. Then you win Hart trophy and it only adds to what is expected from you on the ice. It’s time for Joe to step up and start playing like he should in playoffs.
PS – I’m also glad to read the reports that Joe T is already here in San Jose skating early. Last year he was one of the last guys to show up at Captains Ice, with only Europeans following him later.
It’s time to get out and watch boys in action. Pollak reported they skate at 10am every day.
If your “best player” needs to be named Captain before he steps it up or starts bringing his strongest effort every night, is he really your best player? Most skilled for sure – but that’s my basic qualm about JT