Hey everyone! Hopefully you all had a really good Fourth of July weekend. There would have been a full post on (as what I like to call) the ultimate 24 hours of Doug Wilson, but I was actually watching a Giants' game and relaxing with the family.
This is going to be my last post for a week or so. The Marchell clan is taking a vacation this week. Hopefully not a lot will happen while I’m gone, because if it did…then odds are, I’d be annoying my family with the constant Sharks' talk.
Anyway, here’s my quick take on some recent events:
Blake will definitely be able to help out some of the young defensemen like Ehrhoff and Vlasic with his experience.
Having Blake on the power play will help tremendously. He’s got a hell of a booming shot. Hell, a defenseman that will be able to get pucks through to the net, something that most defensemen on the Sharks were not capable of doing, is a-ok with me.
It’s no secret that the Sharks aren’t that tough of a team. Bringing Blake on will provide a little bit of a mean streak for the Sharks. At 6'4" and 230 pounds, I would expect him to be making some big checks.
The fact that Wilson didn’t sign Blake to a multi-year contract was a very shrewd move on Wilson’s part. The Sharks won’t be tied down to a defenseman who, let’s face it, may or may not work out so well for the Sharks. However, his contract is a little steep. Five million dollars seems a little too high to me.
Which leads me to my next point…
I like Wilson’s trade for Boyle. I feel like Wilson is known too much for being a conservative GM. He relied too much on young talent developing over the course of a few years. The truth of the matter is, the window to win a cup is closing, whether Sharks fans like to admit it or not. The move proves that Wilson is in fact very serious about winning this season, as I’m sure his job depends on it as well.
The addition of the offensive-minded Boyle ensures a guaranteed quarterback for the power play. Not to mention this gives McLellan, the go-to guy for all things power play, a lot to work with.
We also gained Brad Lukowich, who was actually Boyle's defensive partner in Tampa. From what I’ve read about him (since sadly, I don’t get Center Ice, and therefore don’t see a lot of Lightning games), he seems like Kyle McLaren version 2.0. Bigger, better, and maybe we’ll see some hip checks!
And…
I guess once the Sharks took on all that salary, you could pretty much tell that someone was on their way out. After all, the Sharks still had to ink new deals with Clowe and Ehrhoff. The most logical trade bait appeared to be Kyle McLaren, although it’s hard to imagine that he would bring back a good return. Turns out that Rivet ended up being traded.
A fan favorite in San Jose (to yours truly, as well), he’s definitely going to be missed. He was one of the most consistent defensemen on the Sharks. The move does make sense though. Trading Rivet freed up around $3.5 million in cap space, and it brought back some definitely needed draft picks in return.
Finally…
Christian Ehrhoff signed a three year, $9.3 million deal, with $2.75 million for the '08-'09 season. That averages to roughly a $3.1 million per year. I think that Ehrhoff was one of the more stable defenseman during the end of the season stretch, when he was able to focus on just playing a simple defensive game.
I still stand by my opinion that he wasn’t the greatest in the playoffs. He’s also got to stop taking such dumb penalties. You guys know what I’m talking about. Anyone remember all those inconvenient tripping, hooking, or interference calls?
Over the course of a single holiday weekend, Doug Wilson was able to improve our defense tremendously with the additions of Rob Blake, Dan Boyle, and Brad Lukowich. Four Stanley Cup rings have been won among the new roster players, proving that Wilson wants guys with experience to show the younger guys how it’s done. He’s not going to settle for another second round exit.
All three men had previously played on teams that didn’t give them much to work with. Now, all of the newest Sharks have the opportunity to thrive on a hockey club that has a lot to offer.
Hope everyone is having a great summer. Go Sharks!
-Danielle
daniellemarchell@yahoo.com
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2 months ago
Wow--we might have overpaid for Ehrhoff, but we needed to sign him or someone else to fill everything out. It's funny--you were on him but seem to have come around, and while I still think I was reasonable to call for trading Marleau because he looked like the best trade bait, they updated their blueline without getting rid of him, which is even better!
Luke will be good for us, and should more than replace Rivet, but he makes my auto'd puck from 52 worthless. I especially like that the three newcomers are vets with Stanley Cup experience.
from 2 months ago
there are a lot of better defensemen who will play for less than $3.1 mil a year that would fill everything out. Hell, spend a little more and you can bring in Rozsival. I'd prefer to bring in Spang or Traverse before resigning Ehrhoff...
Ugh... what a day...
from 2 months ago
Yeah, but Ehrhoff is very young and getting better in his own end. He provides continuity and an asset there is a premium on: skating ability. I also don't think they can spend more money--I'm surprised they thought they could spend this much...the payroll has to be up by at least $6 million, and they haven't even signed Clowe, Goc (both needed to have 12 forwards return from last year), or any reserve forwards.
2 months ago
Hmmm...lots of stuff here...agree with most, except Rivet...I liked him as a presence, but truthfully saw him get skated around more times than I want to remember..likable, smart, but a bit slow.
Pretty obvious vs shrewd you would not want to sign a player of Blakes age to a multi year deal, as you are hoping erhoff, pickles, etc grow into their roles...pickles has been steady, but small...erhoff, erratic.
Personally I am most saddened by Curtis Brown not coming back, as his tireless work with Grier on the PK was amazing....and I look for Paddy to have a breakout year, finally....
of course, the best and biggest move was moving Ron--geez I was tired of his "sending messages"-I think/hope Todd will be what we have been needing to develop the powerplay....more than any one thing it will be the difference! (look at the PP % in the playoffs the last 3 years, and its clear with all the one goal games we had a chance in if not for the sucky playoff PP....not enough shots, not enough crashing nets, too much 2 man high dinky doo....Todd will change that) Look for him to put people in the crease...
from 2 months ago
Actually, Detroit's PP fell off during the playoffs too. Having Blake and Boyle will do a lot more for our PP than McLellan will. And Blake can still play, even at 38--he's better than anyone we had last year but Soupy. I reluctantly agree with you about Rivet, but you can hide one slowish guy on a second or third pair, especially if he's that smart. But it had to be McLaren or Rivet with those contracts, and I'm sure Rivet offered MUCH better return. Finally, you are dead on about Brown--we're gonna regret that, but perhaps Wilson knew he couldn't afford him since I would think he will make well over a mil.
from 2 months ago
i seriously hope that if Todd can do something to this team, its to teach them the importance of traffic in front of the net. I know thats not how Joe Thornton operates, he likes the behind the net set up. But theres no reason why the 2nd, 3rd and 4th lines can create traffic and try to get some shots at the point. Ron never really worked on that, and look at Detroit, they're the best offensive team in the league and thats their bread and butter.
from 2 months ago
Amen, brother!
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