Let’s suspend reality for a second and pretend that you’re the GM for the San Jose Sharks. Aside from the fact that you’d have to associate with those idiots from San Francisco*, it seems like it would be a pretty good gig if you could get it. They have nice weather, an already strong team and an arena that provides one of the best home-ice advantages in the league. The Sharks have a fan base that gets behind the team, but doesn’t exert any overt pressure like New York or Toronto. It’s the best of both worlds.
But when you look just beneath the surface, it looks like there could be a little trouble in paradise. One of the biggest questions floating around the Western Conference is this: Should the San Jose Sharks blow up their team? Should they make a few big trades and try to change the dynamic of their team? Should they go in a different direction or should they stay the course with the team that they’ve assembled over the last decade?
Can you build a Stanley Cup champion around Jumbo Joe?
For the last couple of years, I’d answer any questions about the Sharks the same way: they have enough talent to beat anyone in the league on any given night. I figured they were just a hot goaltender at the RIGHT time away from a Stanley Cup (then again, isn’t everyone?). But after their playoff collapse in their recent President’s Trophy season, I’m changing my tune.
It’s not only because they lost to the 8th seeded Ducks in the 1st round of the playoffs this spring. The problem is that it was so predictable! Even though they had more points than anyone else last season, it still wasn’t a huge shock that they lost in 6 games to Anaheim. Part of it was because the Ducks were a good playoff team that just happened to sneak into the playoffs—but part of it was that the Sharks have a reputation of folding like an Old Navy suit in the playoffs.
At some point, you have to start believing that there’s some truth to the “choker” label. Just like those 8th seeded Ducks are known as a good playoff team, the Sharks are known for playing their best hockey in the regular season. This is where the management has to decide what their goal truly is for the organization—do they want to have a team that is perennially a contender or a team that can compete with the best when it matters most? Both are good for the fans, but there’s a world of difference in the hockey world.
The most important part of the decision-making process to change the direction of the team is EXPECTATIONS. If you’re talking to a fan from Phoenix or Florida, they’d happily accept a team that has made the playoffs 10 of the last 11 seasons. Just the idea of MEANINGFUL hockey games in April is enough to get those fans excited. But being competitive isn’t enough for teams like the Red Wings and the Penguins. They expect to make the playoffs. They expect to go deep into the playoffs. And anything less than a Stanley Cup is a failure.
So here’s what it comes down to: are the Sharks content with being a good team every year or do they want to be a Stanley Cup contender that people will take seriously in the playoffs? Guys like Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau are great in the regular season—but have a reputation of pulling a Houdini Disappearing act every year in the playoffs. Whether Marleau’s reputation is deserved or not is up for debate, but a quick look at Thornton’s stats shows that he’s a completely different player in the regular season (and I’m actually a Thornton fan).
Do you want guys with that kind of reputation leading your team? That’s exactly the decision that the Sharks are dealing with right now. It’s not easy to trade away guys that are all-stars every year and the faces of the franchise. But maybe it’s time for a change.
The problem is that the Sharks are the quintessential team where the players on their own are better than the sum of their parts. But the problem is you can’t quantify chemistry on a team. Leadership is something you see on the ice when it’s there, but don’t really notice it when it’s absent. And you certainly can’t measure heart and grit in the playoffs.
Maybe it’s time for the Sharks to look at themselves in the mirror and decide what kind of team they want to be. Are they content with continuing down the same path or are they ready to take the next step towards the Stanley Cup? Unfortunately, I don’t think this current collection of guys is going to be able to take that final step to greatness. But will the Sharks front office have the BALLS to do something about it? We have the entire offseason to find out.
* The View From My Seats isn’t exactly a Giants fan.
Matt Reitz
Matt Reitz is an NHL Writer for ProHockeyTalk on NBCSports and the Editor-In-Chief here at ViewFromMySeats.com. When he's not shoving a mic in the face of NHLers or explaining why home teams should wear white, he's usually trying to figure out what song to play next on his iPod. It's a never-ending job.
