It’s Timo’s Time to Step Up for the San Jose Sharks Next Season
With Timo Meier’s role expanding on the San Jose Sharks next season will we see the power forward produce at a point per game pace?
Timo Meier quickly became one of the San Jose Sharks top point producers last season and now in 2019 – 2020 he’ll be leaned upon for his scoring output and physical presence on the ice even more.
San Jose drafted Meier with their 9th overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. A power forward with the speed and quick hands of an elite scorer. The Swiss born winger plays a highly effective game in all 3 zones while often getting matched up against an opposing teams best skaters.
Meier scored 30 goals last season and accumulated 66 points in 78 games played. To go along with these numbers the almost 23-year-old was no stranger to shooting the puck. Meier placed 3rd on a Sharks squad that put up the 6th most shots in the NHL during 2018 – 2019.
The most impressive aspect of this level of production is that he did most of it at 5v5. Meier scored 47 points at 5v5 with 38 of them being considered primary. At the same time Timo ranked 3rd in the entire league with an ixG of 19.84.
This essentially means that Meier is a one man wrecking crew in the offensive zone. The power forward is heavily involved in the play and can make opponents lives difficult in a number of different ways.
Meier uses his strong skating ability to push the puck up the ice and into the offensive zone creating a rush opportunity that’s hard to contain. Along with this his soft hands and large frame make him a pesky net front presence.
Timo definitely understands that if he wants to remain successful in the NHL and on the Sharks he will need to keep playing with an edge.
Brodie Brazil of NBCSN Bay Area caught up with Meier to get an idea of what type of game the young Sharks forward tries to bring to the ice on a nightly basis.
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“I try to be a physical guy. Try to get in the areas where you might hurt, and try to score some dirty goals,” Meier said at training camp. “I want to get better, that’s always something I try to stay hungry on.”
Meier put up a 0.85 PPG rate last season logging an average of 16:58 in ice time. Compounding on this narrative is that he ranked 6th on the Sharks in power play time among forwards. Now with the departure of Joe Pavelski there will be ample opportunity for a player of Timo’s caliber to get open ice with the players like Erik Karlsson and Brent Burns.
Now it isn’t guaranteed that Meier will get this coveted role on the top unit considering there are other forwards with just as much of a shot like Kevin Labanc and Evander Kane. Nevertheless if the Sharks are looking for a skater that can replicate what Pavelski can do on the special teams, Meier’s skill set makes him the best candidate for the job.
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The Sharks have a lot on the line entering the 2019 – 2020 campaign and they’ll be leaning heavily on Meier. He’s shown that he has what it takes and judging by his leap in development last year we shouldn’t get surprised if we see Timo flourish in what will be his 4th season in a teal sweater.