Burning Questions for the San Jose Sharks as the 2014-15 Season Begins

The San Jose Sharks have several burning questions at the start of the 2014-15 NHL season.

They are coming off another successful regular season and a historic playoff collapse. With a few minor exceptions, the roster is more or less the same as last season's. A few new players have cracked the lineup, and the team will have a different captain, but the core remains intact.

The key for a successful season for the Sharks will again be how far they get in the playoffs. So the team has 82 games to fine-tune its lineup and prepare for another crack at the postseason.

Here is a look at the five biggest burning questions facing the Sharks at the start of the 2014-15 season. Feel free to comment on any of these issues or add one of your own that you feel belongs here but was omitted. As always, indicate why you feel the way you do.

How Badly Does Last Season's Playoff Collapse Hurt This Team?

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The Sharks look to bounce back from last year's painful playoff loss.

Last spring, the San Jose Sharks became just the fourth team in NHL history to blow a 3-0 series lead and lose a best-of-seven playoff series.

The big question is: How much of an impact will this historic collapse have on the club's psyche at the start of the new season?

This marks roughly a decade of playoff disappointment for Team Teal, but none of the previous defeats was as embarrassing or as devastating as the loss to the Los Angeles Kings last spring.

While many hockey experts talk about a "Stanley Cup hangover," few discuss the effects of having an entire offseason to dwell on a demoralizing defeat of epic proportions.

The Sharks need to put last year's playoff defeat behind them and become the team that finished the regular season with 111 points, not the team that blew a 3-0 lead in the playoffs.

If there is a hangover effect, it could be costly to the Sharks in the competitive Pacific Division.

How Will Young Players Step Up This Season?

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Tomas Hertl is one of a number of young players are looking to step up ther games.

While there was not a lot of turnaround on the San Jose roster this summer, at least two young players are expected to play major roles on the team this season.

Forward Tomas Hertl is back in the lineup and healthy. Last season, the native of the Czech Republic scored 15 goals in just 37 games, including what was arguably the highlight-reel goal of the year last October against the New York Rangers.

Hertl is set to open the new season on the top line alongside Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski, according to David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury News.

That means the Sharks are expecting at least 25-30 goals from Hertl and improved play in his own end this season. They expect solid production from Hertl as a key to the team's scoring depth.

The other rookie who is expected to be a big part of the team's plans this year is defenseman Mirco Mueller. The 19-year-old native of Switzerland was paired with veteran Brent Burns during the season opener against Los Angeles and is expected to get top-four minutes throughout the season.

Mueller's biggest strength is his hockey sense. He is smart positionally and anticipates the play very well. He will need to excel this season if the Sharks defense is to remain good enough for the team to contend in the competitive and deep Pacific Division.

The Sharks have to hope that Mueller's game improves as the season progresses and he gets more experience.

Forward Chris Tierney was the other rookie in the Sharks lineup on opening night. He started as the third-line center between Tye McGinn and Tommy Wingels. It was Tierney's NHL debut.

The 20-year-old Keswick, Ontario, native will play a bottom-six role if he stays in San Jose this season.

Who Takes over as the Offensive Defenseman?

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The Sharks need to replace Dan Boyle's offensive production.

Dan Boyle had filled the role of offensive-minded defenseman for the better part of six seasons, but now the 38-year-old veteran has signed with the New York Rangers.

At first glance, the current roster lacks a player who can replace Boyle's offensive production on his own. They will also need somebody to quarterback the power play. 

Moving Brent Burns back to the blue line will help take up some of the slack. Burns has a good shot and the size at 6'5", 230 pounds to be an offensive presence.

Mirco Mueller may also see time on the second power-play unit. While he is more of a passer than goal scorer at this point in his career, his vision should be an asset on the power play.

Coach Todd McLellan will also likely use forwards on the point during the power play. Joe Pavelski has seen time there in the past and may continue to do so.

Either way, the Sharks need to find some consistent point production from their defensemen if this season is to be a success.

Who Wins the Starting Goalie Spot?

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The battle for the starting goaltending position may last all season.

Antti Niemi and Alex Stalock battled for the starting goalie spot throughout training camp. Coach Todd McLellan did not name a starter for opening night until a few hours before the game, but Niemi got the call.

"[Niemi] has a proven track record," McLellan told Dan Rosen and Chris Zupke of NHL.com. "We'd like to show him that we have the confidence in him this year," McLellan said. "It's a fresh year, everybody gets a fresh start, and [Niemi] starts."

While Niemi got the nod, McLellan admitted that Stalock will also get plenty of starts. "Alex will play," McLellan said. "He'll play a lot. And so will [Niemi]. Both of them have had a very good camp."

The hope is that both goalies play well but that one clearly establishes himself as the starter before the start of the playoffs. It doesn't really matter which one, but somebody has to be the starter.

More importantly, the starter must play well once the playoffs begin in order to help the Sharks make that long-awaited lengthy postseason run.

Who Steps Forward to Lead the Team?

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Joe Thornton was stripped of his captaincy.

It's been a confusing few months for the Sharks when it comes to on-ice leadership.

Over the summer, management stripped Joe Thornton of his captaincy. This was largely in response to the Sharks' repeated playoff failures and specifically the team's collapse in last year's series against the Kings.

The Sharks played the preseason without a captain or any alternate captain but finally announced the new leadership arrangement shortly before the season opener in Los Angeles.

The team will go without an official captain this year, but it did name four alternates. They include former captains Thornton and Patrick Marleau as well as Joe Pavelski and Marc-Edouard Vlasic.

Keep in mind that wearing a "C" or an "A" on your jersey is largely symbolic. The bigger issue is who steps forward to lead this team.

Critics have accused the Sharks of lacking leadership and heart. Despite the fact that both Marleau and Thornton have been removed as captain, they have been reappointed as leaders by their peers.

This issue won't be resolved until the postseason, but it will linger around this team until it either goes on a long playoff run or has a clear change in locker-room leadership.