San Jose Sharks Season Preview
It’s the day after the season opener, and the San Jose Sharks came out ready to play this season. After a dominating performance all around leading to a 4-0 victory over the Los Angeles Kings, it’s given many people hope that this season will end up being much better than we all expected given the strange offseason we’ve all had to endure. However, my job is to bring it all back to Earth, and to remind people that last night, despite being fantastic, could very well be an anomaly. This is the San Jose Sharks season preview.
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Forwards: The forwards for the San Jose Sharks last year was a sort of bittersweet group of players. With Pavelski playing wing on the first line with Thornton and Hertl, and a second line of Couture, Nieto, and Marleau, the top 6 for the San Jose Sharks could make a case for being one of the best top 6 in the NHL. The only issue was the depth. Many people, including myself, wanted Pavelski to play as the 3rd line center to help the Sharks with depth, and that mess of a 4th line with Mike Brown on it is an embarrassment to itself. However, after last night, my mood on the depth sort of changed. The 4th line is still embarrassing with Mike Brown and Adam Burish on it, but one of those players will be a healthy scratch once either Barclay Goodrow, Tyler Kennedy, or James Sheppard comes back from injury, so that’s not a huge deal. The big deal to me was the 3rd line. Playing on the 3rd line for the San Jose Sharks was Tye McGinn, who was playing his first game with the San Jose Sharks, Chris Tierney, who was playing his first ever NHL game, and Tommy Wingels who is the only one with experience with this team. I won’t lie when I thought they would struggle, especially against a Kings team with a lot of depth. However, I was extremely impressed with the way that line played. Tierney looked like he belonged, and actually got praise from Tommy Wingels for playing like Logan Couture (wouldn’t that be awesome if he did) and the 3rd line scored two very impressive goals for the Sharks last night. Expecting them to play at that level all year is a bit of a stretch, but them playing that well against a very good depth team shows that the 3rd line, and the depth of the Sharks, could end up being alright this year.
Defense: Along with Chris Tierney, Mirco Mueller impressed in his first NHL game last night. He played with Brent Burns on the back end, and both were very impressive last night. It’s still his 9 game tryout, and Mirco might end up being sent back to the CHL by the end of it, but if he continues to play as well as he did last night, you can expect to see Mirco Mueller stay with the Sharks for the entire year. Then there was the pairing of Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Justin Braun, which, unsurprisingly, was a great pairing once again, and will probably be one all year considering how good they are. The main issue defensively, is the 3rd pairing, and depth. Jason Demers had a great year last year, and really showed that he can be a good defenseman. However, he and Scott Hannan last night was the skidmark on the Sharks win. They were outshot 25-11 when that pairing was on the ice, and because of that, and Hannan getting a bit injured last night, you might see Matt Irwin when the Sharks take on the Jets in the home opener. But after Matt Irwin, that’s it. The only other options to come in for an injured defenseman are Taylor Fedun and Matt Tennyson. If the Sharks make a trade this year, expect it to be for a defenseman because the depth just is not there. The defense will definitely be a weak spot for the Sharks, but Mirco Mueller’s strong play was a welcomed addition. Let’s just hope he keeps it up.
Goalie: The Sharks announced that it would be an open competition for the starting goaltender this year, and for day one they gave the nod to Antti Niemi. Niemi answered the call and ended up with a 34 save shutout. Don’t expect that to be the end of it though. I expect the Sharks to keep the competition open, and I think that’s a terrific thing for the goaltenders. Antti Niemi knew that if he had a bad performance day one, the Sharks would give the net to Alex Stalock in the second game, and Niemi answered with a terrific game. Keep the competition open. If Niemi has a bad game against the Jets, let Alex Stalock take over against the Capitals. Make sure both goalies know that you need to earn the starting goalie position, and you have to keep it that way throughout the whole year. Antti Niemi knew his job was up for grabs, and he went out and earned his second start. Make him earn his third start. Keep both goalies in this competition and make sure they’re playing at the highest level they can all year. The competition could be good for Niemi and it could make him play at a level he played at two years ago.
Prediction: Despite the “rebuild” the Sharks wanted this summer, this team is still a playoff team. I think they will finish 2nd in the division behind the Los Angeles Kings and they will take down the Anaheim Ducks in 6 games in round one of the playoffs. However, that’s as far as they go. Unless they play the way they did last night against the Kings in the playoffs, which I don’t think they can, they won’t make it past round 2. That may not be what Sharks fans want, and it certainly isn’t what I want, but considering the offseason we’ve just gone through, I think a second round exit wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.