I got the new Hockey News yesterday, with a blurb on the cover saying “How the Sharks Conned Us” and an article inside with the title above, courtesy of the Chronicle’s own Ray Ratto. Pretty harsh stuff. The article contained such gems as:

Is it not yet clear that Patrick Marleau is a supporting player rather than a dominant force? Is it not yet obvious that Jonathan Cheechoo’s injuries and skating limitations are making him a better-than-average-but-not-by-much player? Is it not yet evident the young players – Matter Carle, Ryane Clowe, Joe Pavelski, Steve Bernier, et. al. – still haven’t created and held their space against lesser talents but greater pests, such as Ethan Moreau and Kris Draper? Can we not see that goaltender Evgeni Nabokov is still a good, but not yet money goaltender?

So I was planning on writing a post today ripping Ratto and wiping my ass with this article (that last sentence is ridiculous), but after last night’s game, I just don’t have the stomach for it. It was impossible not to think of Sharks vs. Detroit game 4 when that shorty went in with 41 seconds to go. Doan even put it in the same spot as Lang did, if I remember correctly. He shot from almost the same patch of ice.

Of course it was just another regular season game against a below average Phoenix team (that’s been playing very well as of late) but maybe Ratto was right when he said what this team “does not have is the all-important taste for consistent and effective mucking.” Hard to dispute that after last night’s performance. The Yotes made up for their lack of talent with a blistering forecheck and an easy willingness to bang in the corners. The willingness that is completely absent in the aforementioned Patrick Marleau. But that’s a post for another day.

The post for today is this: the Sharks are now playing as if they know they can’t score. They know if they go down by two they are screwed. A one goal deficit is doable, two goals is a mountain, and three goals just ain’t gonna happen. I see (or think I see) this in the breakout, a source of unending frustration for me. It’s the same problem with the power play- too predictable, not enough speed, not enough movement. I would never wish for something like this, and the chances of it backfiring are too high, but maybe what this team needs is a minor injury to Joe Thornton. This team is leaning on him like a one-legged man leans on a cane.