Your San Jose Sharks are playing out the string here. We know this roster will not attend the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Shockingly, the 42 points the Sharks have through 74 games will not see them into the postseason. So, we're going to see how the Sharks and the management core treat the roster this summer, but there has been one question on my mind regarding the future of this team: is David Quinn safe in his job as San Jose Sharks head coach?
It's fair to say that Quinn has been working with limited talent, but the Sharks' fans and management would have expected more. Only 42 points after 74 games is not just unacceptable; it's a stark disappointment. Quinn has a history of seemingly holding teams back. The season after he was let go by the New York Rangers, they started to make the playoffs when he was let go in the Big Apple.
It's not fair to suggest that Quinn was the sole problem. Many rebuilding teams need help to break through the glass ceiling and into the postseason. However, not being the problem and being the solution are very different. This roster has not been held back by anything but its poor building. However, the Sharks are looking ahead, knowing that the hockey club needs help, and they have to consider that a new voice, a fresh perspective, maybe the catalyst for the change the players need.
Quinn's record last year was 22-44-16. This year, so far, it's 17-49-8. For those better with numbers than I am, you'll have seen that it's 39 - 93 - 24 as the Sharks head coach. Closing in on 100 losses with less than 40 wins is unacceptable when he had a guy win the Norris Trophy last year as the league's best defenseman. This isn't a case of the personnel being bad the entire time; he's been unable to get the most out of what he has had despite being given very little. Will a coaching change see the Sharks improve? I doubt it, but what do you think?