The draft isn’t until tomorrow, but plenty of stuff has happened in the NHL this week.  Mayers, Nichol, and Yawney will not return, but Seto will, at 3 years, $9M.  The dudes dissect that deal, and the two monster trades the Flyers made today.

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The first of several TLDR (too long, didn’t read) posts this summer concerns a key aspect of this Sharks team- the third line.  Generally on most teams, the third line is a defensively minded trio that should shut down the opponents’ best players, maybe contribute 20-25 points per player, and have the trust of the coaching staff to kick in some PK time.  However, some teams go another way, a road less traveled, yet more treacherous.  These teams like to continue to pour on the pressure in the offensive zone, field three scoring lines, and dare their opponents to keep up.

So where did the Sharks reside in this spectrum?  Mostly on the offensive side- Pavelski/Mitchell/Wellwood had some great scoring punch (102 points in the regular season, 22 in the playoffs, mostly due to Pavelski’s 66 and 10, respectively), but Pavs was the 2nd most used shorthanded forward, with Mitchell 6th.  And as many Sharks fans have noted, they did not serve a ‘shutdown’ role, T-Mac likes to match power with power.

This is pretty similar to Detroit’s style (sound familiar?).  Detroit’s third line this year was largely Hudler, Filppula, and Modano/spare parts, tallying around 100 points if we include Modano’s 15 points contribution in the 40 games he didn’t play.  Detroit went even more offensive with these guys- none of them played significant PK time.

Or we could look at Vancouver, as Tom mentioned in a comment in the last post, with Malhotra/Hansen/Torres (not always Torres, but probably close enough).  All agitators or defensively-minded, all tough to play against, all can play the kill.  Tom also accused us of flip-flopping a bit, since we seemed to endorse more of the Vancouver style third line instead of the Detroit model in the last podcast.  Admittedly, this would be a sea change for the Sharks.

My opinion is based on what a wise man once said to Woodward and Bernstein- “follow the money.”  I furtively wish that the Sharks could go and gather as many great players as they possibly can, pay them Yankees money, go win the Stanley Cup, and I’ll live out my days watching the championship DVDs over and over again.

Unfortunately, reality intercedes.  Two inconvenient truths:

1. The Sharks defense is not amongst the best in the West.  In fact, it might be considered merely average.
2. The Sharks do not have a lot of money to spare on said defense.

For me, it comes down to a question of salary mix.  Detroit is spending good money on their third line, around $7.5M, for the privilege of third line scoring punch.  And why can they afford it?  Because they are only spending around $24M on their top 6 forwards.  Vancouver had a good shutdown third line, for which they only spent an economical $4.5 or so.  And why?  Because they spent a ton on their D, about $24M.

In contrast, the Sharks spent only $18M on their defense last year, but they spent $24 on their top three forwards- Jumbo, Heater, and Patty.  Then another $7M and change on the second line, which was unquestionably a great deal.  Only the Kings and Caps spent more than the Sharks on forwards last year, and it was close- the Kings spent less than $100k more, the Caps spent about a million more.

So my opinion has to be based on this reality- the Sharks are extremely forward heavy in terms of salary distribution, and I believe a #2/#3 defenseman is their highest acquisition priority.  This means something has to give, and that must be the third line.  I don’t believe it’s wise for the Sharks to have a $4M third line center, even if he puts of 66 points.  You keep him, but he should be playing the second line.  Maybe that means Seto is the odd man out.  Or maybe it’s Pavs.  Or maybe it’s one of the big 3.  It would be incredibly difficult to make that call, and I don’t envy Doug Wilson’s position here.

The bad news is, I believe if the Sharks defense remains middle-of-the-pack, which it probably will be, even with Ian White, it will be the same old playoff slog next year.  The Kings are improving.  The Blackhawks will probably be better next year.  Vancouver might re-sign some or all of their free agents.  Now that Feaster is the GM, Calgary might do something worthwhile.  My new position is resources must be shifted.  They must be shifted to defense, and the third line should again serve a more traditional role.

Did I flip-flop?  Like a fish out of water on ketamine.  But as the proverb says, a wise man changes his mind, a fool never will.

The Dudes recap the Stanley Cup finals and congratulate the Boston Bruins.  But this week’s main task is to examine the current state of the Sharks’ defense and goaltending, and try to guess what will happen during the summer.  Of course Mike and Doug have to bid a fond farewell to Niclas Wallin, who decided to play in Sweden next year.

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Do you know the way to San Jose?

• Member of 2002, 2006 and 2010 USA Olympic Team.
• Former captain of two different NHL franchises in Buffalo and New York.
• Calder Trophy winner. Hobey Baker winner. Stanley Cup winner. Multiple trips to Conference Finals in both conferences.
• Played 70+ games for 11 straight NHL seasons until last year.
• Chronic knee condition and surgery limited him to 24 games in 2010-11 and Torterella’s dog house.

Chris Drury is an interesting story to follow this offseason. Will he retire and sail into the sunset to live off his big 32.5M payday from the Rangers or will he continue to rehab the knee and give it another go. He would be 35 going into next season and IF he could recapture even part of what made him one of the best defensive forwards and faceoff guys for several years in the NHL, wouldn’t some NHL teams be interested? We know Doug Wilson has given guys a chance in the past. He has brought in established NHL veterans and given them another shot with Jeff Friesen, Claude Lemieux, Jeremy Roenick. Their last chance before retirement and one more shot to win the big one.

The Sharks have been linked to Drury in the past via trade and his free agency in 2007. I could see Doug Wilson making a phone call and an offer of the same deal Roenick signed in 2007. One year and $500,000 to prove you’ve still got it. Drury has been known as one of the most competitive guys in the NHL. Unless his knee is beyond repair, you gotta think he’d consider it.

Based on Doug Wilson’s track record and Chris Drury’s competitive spirit, it’s not too far fetched. I’m not saying I’m advocating for it, I’m just saying…it could happen.

In the start of an offseason series, Mike and Doug break down the status of all the Sharks’ forwards, and identify which are the keepers, which ones may be brought back, and which ones may be let go.

Also, this is a call to those wonderful readers and listeners that won the fantasy leagues- drop us a line so we can schedule your appearance on the podcast.

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The Dudes begin to tackle the many offseason questions that surround the Sharks- the coach, the D, the third and fourth lines.  Of course, hockey is still being played, so those topics are addressed as well.

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Sharks hockey is over you say? Yes, it is. Sorry, I can’t change that – but you can get a glimpse at a potential Young Dude on the NHL Network tonight when Sharks goalie prospect J.P. Anderson is in between the pipes for the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors in the Finals of the Memorial Cup.

What is the Memorial Cup, you say? How dare you! It is only the Final Four of Canadian Major Junior Hockey! What the BCS should be NCAA Football. It pits the playoff winners of the three Canadian Hockey League’s which are the Ontario Hockey League, Western Hockey League and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in a final tournament with a host team (which happens to be Anderson’s Mississauga St. Michael club) for the steal cage match of amateur hockey to crown the Summer Slam champion, the winner of the Memorial Cup.

Sharks prospect J.P. Anderson has had an amazing year in the Ontario Hockey League, posting the following stats:

Regular season: 38-10-1 with a 2.36 GAA and .911%

OHL Playoffs: 15-5 with a 2.11 GAA and .920%

Memorial Cup: 3-1 with a 1.76 GAA and .939%

Hard to say what Anderson’s future holds in the San Jose Sharks organization but his accomplishments this season in junior hockey have likely opened some eyes. For the 2nd straight season, he has won the Dave Pinkney Trophy for having the fewest GAA in the OHL regular season. At 19 years old, there’s likely no rush to push him into professional hockey, especially with Tyson Sexsmith, Alex Stalock and likely Harri Sateri circling for playing time in Worcester, but he’s definitely a guy to keep an eye on in the next two years.

Enjoy checking out this kid and his bright future tonight. Good luck Young Dude.

Another year, another disappointing loss.  The Sharks drop game 5 to Vancouver on some crazy plays, and the Dudes try to suss out if it was a Sharks choke job or a Vancouver domination.  And while there’s plenty of time yet, Mike and Doug try to call what philosophy the Sharks should contemplate.

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She’s not crying because it’s her last show….she saw the replay of the final two goals last night.

We will be recording this afternoon with our post Conference Finals thoughts. Keep all sharp objects at a safe distance today.

I went 0 for 5 with a beautiful woman this afternoon. Still a loser.

This afternoon, it appeared the hockey gods had smiled a giant toothy Baba Booey grin upon the Sharks. The Vancouver parade to the penalty box was plentiful, they were losing their composure and the Sharks were given golden opportunity after golden opportunity to take the lead. And then…0 for freaking 5.

When lady luck invites you over, you have to score. That’s the bottom line.

Sure, the Sharks melted down and allowed multiple 5 on 3’s and three goals in two minutes, but it never ever should have gotten to that point. The Sharks had been operating at a tasty 41% (5 for 12) on the PP in the first three games, so they should have easily had a 2-0 lead after five free gifts from Vancouver. The Sharks could gain the zone. They could even set up, but it was one shot and done, Vancouver was always first to the puck and they could clear from anywhere at any time.

We said at the beginning of the series that special teams would decide the winner. The Sharks may have dug their own grave today by refusing their free gift from the Canucks. I’m not giving up but I was pretty disappointed today. I can handle losing, but when the Sharks had the girl back at their place, took her upstairs and got her undressed…they busted out their Bobo Fett action figures.

Want to feel better? Vancouver has been up 3-1 against Chicago and Nashville in the playoffs this year and they lost both Game 5’s at home, so all is not lost. All you have to do is win one game to make this a series again and I have to believe the Sharks will do just that.

We will record the next podcast on Wednesday to talk about Game Six….make it so.