Top 5 San Jose Sharks Training Camp Battles to Watch in 2014

The San Jose Sharks open training camp for the 2014-15 season in just a few weeks. Like all NHL teams, the Sharks figure to have several interesting battles for various positions on the team.

The Sharks promised some significant changes after last spring's historic collapse against the Los Angeles Kings in the opening round of the playoffs. We won't learn exactly how some of these changes will shake out until training camp gets underway and coach Todd McLellan puts his new lineup on the ice.

Here is a look at the five battles to watch when the Sharks open camp later this month. Keep in mind that in most cases, I am presenting the top two or three contenders for each available spot. There are certainly others, but they will need to have a very strong camp to win each of the spots up for grabs here.

Feel free to comment on these or any other battle you feel belongs on this list. As always, indicate why you feel the way you do.

5. Pesky Forward

TONY AVELAR/Associated Press

The Sharks will be without super pest Raffi Torres for at least the first half of the season.

Last month, the Sharks learned that they will be without the services of pesky forward Raffi Torres for a substantial part of the season, perhaps as much as half of it. Torres has an infection in his previously injured knee that will require significant time to heal.

Last year, injuries limited Torres to just five regular-season games. The Sharks had to make do without their best pest, the forward who gets under the skin of opponents and helps take them off their game.

The top two established candidates to fill this role are veteran Adam Burish and Mike Brown.

Of the two, Burish is more of a grinder and a pest while Brown is more of a traditional enforcer who packs more punching power.

Neither player was able to contribute a lot last season. Burish played in just 15 games and failed to register a point. He picked up six penalty minutes and was a minus-four.

Brown appeared in 48 games, scored twice and accumulated five points. He did have 75 penalty minutes with the Sharks, which placed him second on the team behind Andrew Desjardins.

One of these two players is likely to assume the agitator's role, with Burish being the favorite if he can stay healthy.

4. Sixth Defenseman

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

NEWARK, NJ - JUNE 30: Mirco Mueller, 18th overall pick by the San Jose Sharks, poses for a portrait during the 2013 NHL Draft at the Prudential Center on June 30, 2013 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

The Sharks opted not to re-sign veteran defenseman Dan Boyle after last season and traded his negotiating rights to the New York Islanders before the start of free agency on July 1.

The departure of Boyle and veteran Brad Stuart opened up two spots on the Sharks defense. The organization filled one of them by moving Brent Burns back to the blue line after he played forward last season. The other will be filled by a training camp battle.

The two leading candidates are 2013 first-round draft choice Mirco Mueller and Pleasanton, California, native Matt Tennyson.

The Sharks would love to see Mueller step up and claim this position. At 6'3", he has the size and hockey IQ to become a solid NHL defenseman. The big question is whether or not he is ready to reach that level this fall as Mueller won't turn 20 until March.

Last year, Mueller turned pro late in the season and played nine games for the Sharks' AHL affiliate in Worcester, Massachusetts. If he's ready to step up to the NHL, he should have the inside track for the job. If not, he'll get additional seasoning in the AHL.

Tennyson is five years older than Mueller and doesn't have as high of an upside. The former Western Michigan University star has spent the past two seasons with Worcester and even played four games with the Sharks last season, picking up two assists.

Tennyson has a heavy shot, which could make him an asset on the second power-play unit, but his lack of physicality may hinder his ability to play well enough in his own end of the ice at the NHL level.

Either way, the Sharks have a hole to fill on defense, and these two players are the leading candidates to start the season in San Jose.

3. Sixth-Line Forward

John Russell/Getty Images

Freddie Hamilton hopes to stick in San Jose this fall.

The Sharks have an opening for a fourth-line forward on their roster this year, and the two prime contenders for the spot are Freddie Hamilton and Chris Tierney.

Hamilton, 22, led Worcester in scoring despite playing in only 64 games with the AHL club. He also appeared in 11 games with the Sharks but failed to register a point.

Hamilton is positionally sound and smart on the ice. The fact that he is a good penalty-killer may help his cause when the Sharks look to make their final cuts.

Tierney scored 40 goals to lead the OHL's London Knights last year. He finished the season with 89 points in 67 games. He also served as captain of the Knights and has good leadership skills.

At 20, he will turn pro this year. If he's ready for the NHL, he will stick in San Jose; otherwise, he'll head down to Worcester to get his first taste of pro experience.

Tierney has more offensive upside than Hamilton, but his skill set is less well-suited to fourth-line duties than Hamilton's.

2. Captain

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

Will Joe Thornton remain on the Sharks' top line?

Joe Thornton has been the face of the Sharks franchise since he was acquired from the Boston Bruins in 2005. But after last year's humiliating playoff loss to the Kings, general manager Doug Wilson promised to make changes to his hockey club.

Last month, Thornton was stripped of his captaincy. The Sharks now have two players on their roster who were removed as captain of the club in Thornton and Patrick Marleau. The organization is looking for a new group of players to step forward and take on a leadership role.

"We want to reset the hierarchy and culture in the organization, and that's really where the term rebuild came from," McLellan told NHL.com (h/t Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo Sports). "As a staff, we talked about the ability to push and win as much as we can while we get younger, while we adjust the roles a little bit and give some of the younger players more responsibility.”

The strongest candidates to replace Thornton as captain include Joe Pavelski, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Logan Couture, three younger players with significant experience and who figure to have major roles on the ice.

With the captaincy up for grabs, the future personality of this team may altered by the decision of who gets to wear the "C." Neither Marleau nor Thornton was able to lead this talented team to the Stanley Cup Final. In training camp, the next leader of the team will be determined.

1. Starting Goaltender

Jay LaPrete/Associated Press

Alex Stalock hopes to win the job from Antti Niemi.

The Sharks starting goaltending job is up for grabs in training camp later this month.

In the teal corner, the defending champion, at the age of 31, from Vantaa, Finland, Antti Niemi. In the white corner, the 27-year-old challenger hailing from St. Paul, Minnesota, Alex Stalock.

Niemi is the more experienced candidate. In fact, he won a Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010 and won a career-best 39 games for the Sharks last season. He has served as Team Teal's starting goalie for the past four seasons. Like the rest of the team, Niemi has enjoyed plenty of regular-season success but has been very inconsistent in the playoffs.

Stalock has served as Niemi's backup last season. He has only 27 games of NHL experience to his credit, but last season, his statistics were far superior to Niemi's. Stalock only played in 24 games, but his .932 save percentage and 1.87 GAA were impressive. Niemi's save percentage was a solid .913 and his GAA 2.39, although he played in 64 contests.

In the playoffs, when Niemi and the Sharks struggled defensively, they turned to Stalock. He relieved Niemi twice in the series before starting Game 6. Although the Sharks did not win the game Stalock started, his postseason numbers were again much better than Niemi's.

The Sharks re-signed Stalock to a new two-year contract this summer. Now he and Niemi will battle in training camp for the starting goalie spot.

This battle will likely continue throughout the season with the coaching staff riding the hot hand as often as possible. Expect the games to be divided more evenly this season unless one netminder clearly outshines the other. The Sharks need a reliable goalie who can help them advance deeper into the playoffs this year.