September 9th, 2012 at 10:28 PM
By Tejus GovindjieAfter almost eight straight years of knocking on the door of the Stanley Cup Finals, the San Jose Sharks' window is finally closing. They've managed to keep a core group of players together through their primes but now those players are on their last legs.
Many of the team's key players are only signed for the next two seasons. Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture and Dan Boyle are all free agents after that with only Couture being a restricted free agent. There aren't five more important players on the team's roster right now then those five.
Those players are the team leaders and the team as of right now will only go as far as those players can take them.
But does that necessarily mean the Sharks will not be competitive after that?
It's safe to say a good portion of those players will be re-signed, probably not all, but a few. Couture would figure to not be going anywhere as he's not yet entered the prime of his career and the Sharks would be able to match any offer given to him thanks to his restricted free agent status.
Read more... Join the Conversation... September 1st, 2012 at 3:54 PM
By Tejus GovindjieIt's very clear no one wants the NHL's regular season to be shortened and at definitely not have a full season struck from the records. A shortened season may have it's benefits, specifically to a team like San Jose.
A lot of the Sharks' success will hinder on Martin Havlat's health. He's proven that he can't stay healthy for a full season over his entire career but that when he's in the lineup he's a valuable asset that makes the Sharks a much better team.
A shortened season means there's less odds of Havlat injuring himself or having any other superstar miss a majority of the season.
The Sharks roster as a whole maybe could benefit from fresher legs.
They've made the playoffs eight years in a row and have advanced past the first round in all but two of those seasons. They made the Western Conference Finals two out of the last three years and most of their star players are no longer spring chickens.
Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dan Boyle are still stars in the league that produce at an above-average level but they are getting older and coming out of the primes of their careers.
Read more... Join the Conversation... August 28th, 2012 at 4:49 PM
By Tejus GovindjieThe San Jose Sharks need to get their forward positions situated. With the pending lockout potentially eating into the season, they may have been granted some extra time but the options are far and few between for what they need.
It has been reported by several sources that the Sharks are one of the teams willing to take a flyer on Sergei Samsonov. Samsonov did not play in the 2011-2012 season but at age 33 still should have plenty left in the tank if he's in shape.
If completely fit and healthy, Samsonov should provide very similar play to Torrey Mitchell only in an upgraded fashion. Though he lacks Mitchell's tenacity, Samsonov has good speed and better offensive instincts that make him a viable option for various spots in the lineup.
In his career, Samsonov has played 888 regular season games and registered 235 goals and 571 points. His last season in the NHL, which was split between the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers, he scored 13 goals and had 40 points in 78 games.
Read more... Join the Conversation... August 26th, 2012 at 4:17 PM
By Tejus GovindjieA surplus of defenseman is the San Jose Sharks' biggest asset right now. The injury problems suffered by the Philadelphia Flyers' defense during this offseason could be an opportunity for the Sharks to snag a forward they need.
If they want to make a trade to address areas of weakness, such as their bottom six forwards, then it's a good probability that a defenseman will be headed out of town. With that being said, are there any potential matches that the Flyers might be willing to part ways with in a trade?
Philadelphia arguably got more out of their rookies last season than other team in the league. Those players are untouchable but it means the Flyers might be willing to part with other players because they're confident in the younger players filling the voids. It would be a similar situation to when they decided to let Jeff Carter and Mike Richards go because they knew a player like Claude Giroux was there waiting to fill the wings.
If the Flyers want a defenseman from the Sharks there are a few different options, each of whom is a different player.
Read more... Join the Conversation... August 5th, 2012 at 5:00 AM
By Tejus GovindjieThe San Jose Sharks appear to have made their major changes to the team for the upcoming season. With only a few minor tweaks remaining, the Sharks may choose to fill the remaining lineup slots with internal options within the organization.
The Sharks have one of the thinnest prospect pools to choose from but there are options at every position that they can utilize.
There have been other instances where prospects came out of nowhere in training camp to make the roster and make an impact on the team.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic was not a prized prospect but emerged to become one of the franchise's cornerstone defenseman and because of that has six years of NHL experience at age 25.
In net, Alex Stalock is still one of the more highly regarded goaltending prospects in the league. Despite his injury problems the last few seasons, Stalock's potential could make the Antti Niemi or Thomas Greiss more expendable than they may be in the past. It's likely that Stalock is still a good year away from seeing NHL action but it's not out of the realm of possibility for him to get some spot starts this season.
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