It is a well-known fact that the San Jose Sharks had an implosive end to the 2013-14 season. The question now remains, to what extent does Doug Wilson need to revamp the roster?
Major changes are bound to be happening over the summer, a lot of which are going to be at the core of the team. Wilson made a statement in May that he would analyze those players who are playing the style of hockey he wants, and those who are not.
The problem is partially due to the leadership of the team. Sharks analyst Bret Hedican made the following statement agreeing to this:
"It does speak to the leadership group, and is saying to me that the leadership either isn’t on board with what he’s trying to do, or strictly isn’t bought in to understanding what it’s going to take to win. If the leadership has not bought in with the understanding of what it’s going to take to win, then it probably explains why we’re in the predicament that we’re now in, watching the Sharks get beat by the L.A. Kings for the last couple of years."
Wilson knows that a deeper look into the goals of the franchise are imminent if wanting to better the record of the team moving forward:
"We’re going to have to take a step back as an organization, take an approach that goes a little deeper than we’ve taken in the past, and with that will come pain. There will be some tough decisions."
There has been a lot of talk after the trades during the 2012-13 season about creating a north-south type of hockey. The team is only partially to this point and further moves will be necessary to meet this goal. Martin Havlat and Dan Boyle leaving the roster is the first step to what will likely be many prior to the start of next season.
Rumors abound stating that Joe Thornton may be asked to leave and that younger members of the team will take over in leadership roles. Time will tell if this is true. I anticipate either Logan Couture or Joe Pavelski receiving the ‘C’ in the coming season.
The Sharks have been getting worse over the years rather than better and something must be done. But in answering the question asked above… Wilson needs to shake things up quite a bit.