Joe Thornton

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Thankfully You're a Sharks Fan

As Sharks fans, we all have a lot to be thankful for. I mean, we could be Islanders or Blue Jackets fans, so already we're pretty happy. And Sharks fans are lucky to be treated to a quality on ice performance night after night, plus a management that is committed to winning and has shown it. As an organization, the Sharks themselves have much to be thankful for as well: 1. Captain Joe Thornton -  Personally, i wouldn't want anybody else captaining the Sharks. Thornton has shown that he wants nothing more than to win, and to win in San Jose. He is committed to this team, he is committed to winning, and he is committed to being the best player on the ice every night. The Sharks...

Joe Pavelski: The Greatest Hockey Player of All Time?

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The Sharks traded for Brent Burns and Martin Havlat in the offseason. So what? The real story of this young season has been the incredible play of Joe Pavelski. Playing last year largely as the third line center, Pavelski tallied a career high 66 points. It was that sort of play that made Devin Setoguchi expendable in the offseason, allowing GM Doug Wilson to acquire the top 4 defenseman this team truly needed.

 

This year, Pavelski has taken Setoguchi's spot as the right winger on the top line with Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau (who has rece...

In The Rear View: The Sharks' First Month in Review

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It was almost exactly a month ago when the Sharks kicked off their 2011-12 season with an opening night win against the Phoenix Coyotes at the Shark Tank. San Jose dominated that game by a score of 6-3, which doesn't really do it justice, considering just how much better the Sharks actually were. This was the first time fans and coaches alike had a chance to see just what this new, and hopefully improved, Sharks team would look like, and it looked good.

 

But then there were the dark times. A three game stretch where the Sharks played Anaheim, St. Louis, and Anahe...

Six Games In

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Instead of writing some game recaps, I decided to give my take on some players that are playing well, some that aren't, and some keys to winning games.

 

 

Looking Good:

 

Michal Handzus – This guy might be the prototypical 3rd line center that every team needs. Remember Malhotra? Handzus is the bottom six player the Sharks needed last year, and he has not disappointed. Defensively he is really good, he is always above 50% in the...

That Was Easy (Better Luck Next Time, Phoenix)

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Coyotes @ Sharks

 

That was almost exactly how the Sharks would have wanted to start the 2011-12 season. Sure, it would have been nice if less starters had been injured and if they could kill a freaking penalty, but all in all, a 6-3 win against the Phoenix Coyotes at the home opener is a great start to what hopes to be a great season.

 

No starting goalie? No backup goalie? No problem. Enter Thomas Greiss, who is just two years removed from backing up Evgeni Nabokov. He played...

Game Day: Phoenix Coyotes @ San Jose Sharks

 



The fifteenth season of the Phoenix Coyotes is finally set to kick off tonight as they host the San Jose Sharks at 7:30 p.m. PST. As per the usual recipe, many questions surrounding the franchise continue to bubble up to the surface, the most prevalent of which was the focus of the Coyotes’ new ad campaign launched this week. On a team scale, league-wide “experts” continue to place them near the bottom of the Western Conference standings, or more specifically, the “not quite as bad as those Oilers but close enough” position of 14th. Bear in mind that they also did this last year (actual position: 6th) and th...

Logan Couture and the Runner Ups

As you may have heard, Logan Couture signed a contract extension with the San Jose Sharks this past week. The contract will bind him to the Sharks through the 2013-14 season and pays Couture $5.75 million ($2.75M the first year, $3M the second year). This was a smart move by Doug Wilson; now the Sharks top two forward lines, top defensive pairs, and number one goalie are all signed through 2012-13, security that many other teams would die for (namely the Devils and Predators with Parise and Weber, respectively). In light of his new contract, I decided to post this story I wrote a while ago shortly after the NHL Awards.

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Why the Luke Schenn Contract is Important.

Both the mornings and evenings have begun to get cooler, and with that slight change in tempearture, hockey seems to be getting closer and closer to returning. The back half of August is upon us, and maybe the Toronto Maple Leafs’ most important player for both this and future seasons remains unsigned. 

Luke Schenn has developed into a cornerstone member of the Leafs. He is valuable on the ice, having led the league in hits by a defenceman last season with 251. As well as off the ice, being the longest serving Leaf (along with Kulemin and Grabovski) a strong character like Schenn’s is necessary in one of the youngest dressing rooms ...

San Jose Sharks Line Profiles - Top Six

The San Jose Sharks have made some noise this offseason through trades and free agency. Once again, they look to have one of the most prevalent top six forward groups in the league. Now that we know all of the Sharks' moves this summer, its time to breakdown that top six and make my predictions on point totals.

 

Line One: Marleau-Thornton-Pavelski

With the departure of Dany Heatley this summer to the Minnesota Wild, the door is now open for Joe Pavelski...