Pre-Season Review / Season Pre-View Part 6
Parts 1 through 5:
Atlantic - Crosby, Malkin, Staal
Northeast - Forward vs. Defence Salaries
Southeast - Stanley Cup Hangover
Central - Ten Years Too Late?
Northwest - Value or Cheap?
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Pacific - Best in the West?
While everyone concentrates on the most obvious strengths of the San Jose Sharks - two proven NHL goaltenders fighting for the starting role and a top line that somehow managed to improve on its absolutely dominating form from a year ago. But while Joe Thornton, Jonathan Cheechoo, Mark Bell, Evgeni Nabokov and Vesa Toskala fight it out over who should receive the most attention from the opposing team, the second line of Patrick Marleau, Steve Bernier and Milan Michalek - by far the best second line in the NHL - may quietly (relatively speaking) turn San Jose from serious contender to the team to beat in the Western Conference.
The big line of Thornton, Cheechoo and Bell are, in a word, unstoppable. But their opposition still has to try to slow them down, meaning those three can expect to spend most of their time playing against the best defenders in the league. And when your top two defencemen are tired out from playing against those three, who in the hell do you send out to face Marleau, Bernier and Michalek?
These three averaged about a point per game - each - during the pre-season. They would qualify as the top line on most teams in the NHL. And they are only going to get better as the year goes along. Bernier and Michalek are both young guys who have plenty of room to improve - and that’s a scary thought. And Marleau is still the captain anda bona-fide “go-to-guy,” even with big Joe in town.
San Jose has room to improve this year, just like everyone else. Someone - preferably Toskala, with his under-$1.5 million salary - has to step up, grab hold of the starter position and refuse to let go. Juggling goaltenders has its advantages, but the Sharks need the consistency and steadiness you get from having confidence in a definite starter. The blueline also needs to step up. Assuming they find the right deal, San Jose will deal one of their goaltenders as soon as possible to bring in defensive help. They have a young, inexperienced defence corps, and how deep their blueline proves will determine how deep into the playoffs they can go.
But with the scoring depth up front, brought about by the best 2nd line in the NHL, the Sharks are my pick for best in the west.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:42 pm
[…] 3. San Jose Sharks: The second line is certainly clicking, but the first line has not. I told you so. Joe Thornton’s line will wake up, don’t you worry. I can’t call them my pick to win the Western Conference any more - their division is just too tough. That honour will go to the Nashville Predators, thanks to those 24 games against St. Louis, Columbus and Chicago. However, the Sharks are in my opinion still the better team. +34.8 […]