Throwing This Out There
by Diecast Dude
Sat May 10, 2008 at 10:59:12 PM EDT
Joel Quenneville was recently let go by Colorado. Word is he wants the currently vacant Toronto gig, which leads to some questioning of his sanity, but that aside he's also someone most teams would love to have behind the bench. Should the Sharks give it a thought? Would he be an improvement over Ron Wilson? Or is Wilson not enough of the reason behind three straight two and throughs to warrant being replaced? Just wondering what people think.
That Has Got To Hurt
by Diecast Dude
Fri May 09, 2008 at 01:46:01 AM EDT
Glancing at the list of injuries assorted Sharks were laboring with during the playoffs... it's easy to be of two minds on this. One says "well, that explains why this or that player was off their game." The other says "and what, every team doesn't go through this in the playoffs including the ones that are still playing?" So I'm not really sure what to make of it all.
Anyway, here's the list:- Kyle McLaren: -- Groin and unspecified knee problem. No surprise; he was noticeably ineffective in the regular season after trying to come back from knee surgery in January.
- Christian Ehrhoff: High ankle sprain. Played fairly well in the post-season, or at the least wasn't any more bumbling with the puck than anyone else behind the blueline.
- Brian Campbell: MCL sprain incurred against Calgary; MRI scheduled for next week on his right knee and shoulder. So was that why he was dreadful?
- Craig Rivet: Assorted injuries (wrist, knee and elbow). Still played okay.
- Milan Michalek: Shoulder (still can't find any details as to nature or severity of injury). One can only wonder if the overtime in Game Six against Dallas would have been different had he not been unable to play. Ah well.
- Patrick Marleau: Scheduled to have an MRI on his shoulder. Nevertheless, played like a leader.
- Jonathan Cheechoo: Sprained MCL. Didn't score much, but played hard.
- Devin Setoguchi: Left shoulder surgery and sports hernia surgery. Good thing he's young so he'll heal faster. Wonder when he'll be back.
- Mike Grier: Arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. Which may explain why he was invisible most of the time during the post-season.
- Joe Thornton: The story says "MRI on his leg due to a hit in Game 6." I'm assuming this was the Dallas series (the Sharks have got to hire some better writers for their Web site). So what was the excuse before then?
- Patrick Rissmiller: Sports hernia requiring surgery. Reference earlier "good thing he's young" comment.
- Curtis Brown: MRI scheduled on his left hand. Which could explain why he didn't see more ice time.
Get well, gentlemen.
Before Getting Into All That...
by Diecast Dude
Wed May 07, 2008 at 02:16:00 AM EDT
... in this case, "that" being an overview of the season plus discussion as to what this team needs to do in order to break a now three-year long routine of two and through, a brief glance at the conference finals (Game Six thoughts ASAP):
Detroit vs. Dallas: Yeah, good luck with that, Stars. Let us know how it works out for you. By the time this series is done, Sharks fans might be rather relieved their team didn't make the next round.
Predicted winner: Detroit
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia: As opposed to the seemingly mandatory whistle-swallowing come playoff time, there's no way the NHL will let the Flyers goon up on Sidney Crosby and company. Not that they need a whole lot of help anyway.
Predicted winner: Pittsburgh
What's The Story On Milan Michalek's Health?
by Diecast Dude
Mon May 05, 2008 at 04:06:34 PM EDT
Still looking for some kind of word somewhere by someone official regarding Milan Michalek's condition. If anyone spots anything other than message board rumor, leave a comment. Thanks.
[Open Thread] Western Conference SF Game Six: San Jose Sharks at Dallas Stars
by Diecast Dude
Sun May 04, 2008 at 08:40:18 PM EDT
(Stars lead series 3-2)
It's now or never / do or die / there's no tomorrow / make or break time. Again. For the third game in a row.
One of the oddities of this series has been that in the first five games, the team that has scored first has lost. This could lead to the interesting scenario of both teams spending all three periods telling the other one "no, you shoot," which means a scoreless tie going into overtime. I doubt it, but stranger things have happened.
Okay, let's drop the puck.
Friday Night Delights
by Diecast Dude
Sun May 04, 2008 at 08:31:22 PM EDT
No, I'm not talking about meeting a swimsuit model at your local watering hole on a Friday night who takes one look at you and immediately professes her undying passion for you that must be satiated by spending the weekend with her on her private reserve. Get real.
Now that the emotions have subsided from last Friday's 3-2 overtime win by Los Tiburones over the Stars, a review is in order. A huge part of the third-period comeback was how the forwards and defense finally got on the same page. Earlier in the game, whenever the puck was in San Jose's end the forwards seemed to be more interested in watching the action than actually participating in same, while for their part the defense was staying so far behind Dallas' blue line whenever the puck had crossed same they might as well have been on the bench for all the help they weren't providing. Certainly you don't want to be caught pinching in with this leading to an odd man rush the other way. But three on five isn't going to generate a whole lot of offense, to put it mildly.
Brian Campbell, who has struggled mightily throughout the playoffs, picked his play up big time; his dash to score was a thing of beauty. When he is on his game -- making accurate passes to start plays and posing a constant threat to join in the play himself -- a defense can't concentrate solely on Joe Thornton or Jonathan Cheechoo or Patrick Marleau or Milan Michalek, etc. Obviously you have to be smart, but when the Sharks defense is actively participating in the offense along with the forwards fully supporting the defense... well, you get third periods and overtimes like last Friday.
[Open Thread] Western Conference SF Game Five: Dallas Stars at San Jose Sharks
by Diecast Dude
Fri May 02, 2008 at 06:17:04 PM EDT
(Stars lead series 3-1)
Back in the mid '70s, the late Tug McGraw collaborated on a comic strip named Scroogie that I enjoyed. In one of the strips, the baseball team Scroogie was on was trying to catch another team for the pennant. The first three panels each had a different player on the team calling out a rallying cry: "It's do or die!" "It's now or never!" "There's no tomorrow!" The final panel showed Scroogie, a relief pitcher on the team, standing on the mound thinking, "We'd better win this thing soon... we're running out of clichés."
This pretty much sums up tonight's game, which for the Sharks is a now or never/do or die/there's no tomorrow/Sydney or the bush event... again, since they faced the same scenario two days ago. Everyone has to actually play as opposed to showing up, the best players have to be the best players because you know full well the Stars' best players will be on top of it, and all parties concerned have to play the entire game with no nap periods in the middle of a period. Or the beginning or end, for that matter.
Okay, let's drop the puck.
Tastes Like Chicken, Sort Of
by Diecast Dude
Thu May 01, 2008 at 08:21:17 PM EDT
Seldom have I been as pleased to eat crow as I am today. I'm currently munching on 99 44/100% of the negative gloom and doom stuff & nonsense that poured forth from my browser yesterday concerning Game Four between the Sharks and Stars.
For the first time in this series the Sharks played a complete game. It's the only way to be competitive with a Dallas squad that gives no quarter. There were flubs and fluffs; the giveaway by Devin Setoguchi that led to Dallas' goal... yeesch. However, San Jose didn't fold its tents and simply go away. They fought back, evened the score via a routine Patrick Marleau shorthanded goal, and then went ahead courtesy of that regrettable rarity lately: a power play goal. Surprise!
Expecting the Sharks to now reel off three in a row and take the series is optimism at its extreme. Extreme lunacy, that is. However, it is not an impossibility. It will take three straight games with the same consistent willingness to do what it takes to win shown last night. There can be no slide into half-hearted pseudoeffort believing that somehow last night settled things and the Stars will now roll over in the face of such an opponent. Not going to happen. If anything, San Jose now needs to crank it up a notch from last night as Dallas will certainly do the same. They're going to want to end this series now.
It's actually inaccurate to say the Sharks have to win three in a row. They have to win tomorrow. Nothing else matters. For today, it's celebrating Los Tiburones demonstrating they do indeed have heart and passion. Now, could someone kindly pass the salt? This bird's a little tough.
[Open Thread] Game Four, Western Conference SF: San Jose Sharks at Dallas Stars
by Diecast Dude
Wed Apr 30, 2008 at 06:06:30 PM EDT
(Stars lead series 3-0)
When the team you root for is down 3-0 in a best-of seven series, there are three ways to look at Game Four:
- The ultimate comeback! C'mon, you can do it! Don't give up!
- Aw, c'mon. Win one for pride's sake if nothing else. Yeah, it'll only prolong the agony and briefly postpone the inevitable, but it's better than being swept!
- Could you please mail it in tonight and get this thing over with?
I'm rather leaning toward Door #3 on this one. This team is not going to win this series, so be done with it. Shake hands, skate off, and clean out your lockers back home because chances are very good more than a few of you will have a business address other than 525 West Santa Clara Street in San Jose come the fall.
Okay, let's drop the puck.
Not Going To Write You A Love Song
by Diecast Dude
Wed Apr 30, 2008 at 11:23:46 AM EDT
Yeah, yeah, I know. Used the same title for a post on the NASCAR blog not too long ago. Well, it applies here as well. Plus it gives me an excuse to put on a Sara Bareilles video to serve as a distraction from brooding too much over what went down last night in Dallas:
For two periods, we saw what had been expected going into this series: two quality teams having at it and giving it everything they had. San Jose held a slight advantage, which was appropriate as they are at least talent-wise the better team. However, this advantage wasn’t gained by talent alone. It came about by talent working. Which of course has been the idea all along in this game. You receive only that which is earned, not implied.
And then the third period started.
Once Dallas had evened the score, and yes it should have been 2-1 at that point save for a failed Lasik operation on Don Van Massenhoven but these things happen and you have to play through them, the Stars kept working while the Sharks immediately turtled. It became the same act we’ve seen for the past three post-season, rapidly going on four: an unwillingness to work, an inability to make plays. That the game went into overtime is a testimony solely to Evgeni Nabokov saving the Sharks’ bacon time and again until finally he could no longer save his teammates from themselves.
Last night was a gut check. The Sharks didn’t have any. When your superduperstar transforms before your very eyes from hockey’s equivalent of the Holy Trinity to the trinity individually known as Larry Curly and Moe, when your forwards develop sudden amnesia on how to play in their own zone and as a bonus the other team’s, when your defensemen become convinced the NHL is a no-checking league, when you believe the puck is made out of toxic rubber and must be disposed of as quickly as possible with as little force as possible lest it corrode your stick, you lose. When you do all of the above against a team more than willing to accept your largesse in handing them every possible opportunity to beat you, you lose. Furthermore, you lose like a bunch of gutless pretty boys who dazzle when allowed to do so but collapse like a sandcastle in a hurricane when actively opposed. Which is precisely what happened last night and in every other game this series.
Displays like this game mark the fourth straight year we’ve seen this act in the postseason by this team. Every year during the offseason we’ve heard the same speech about how all is well, wait until the kids develop, we’re smarter, we’re better, we’re tougher than last year. No. You’re not. You’re not smarter and/or better and/or tougher than last year, because if you were smarter and/or better and/or tougher than last year you wouldn’t be going gently into that anything but good night. You are the same team you’ve been for the past four years. And it’s not that you’re not good enough to win. You simply can’t be bothered to do what it takes to win. When next season rolls around, if there is yet another offseason of the aforementioned speech combined with window dressing moves toward (quote) improvement (end quote) in lieu of a genuine strengthening of this team’s core, the Sharks would be well advised to eschew any kind of banner raising or unveiling ceremony for this season’s Pacific Division championship. If not, they face the prospect of more than a few fans climbing into the rafters of HP Pavilion to hang a companion banner reading "so what."
Assuming they have any fans left.
[Open Thread] Game Three, Western Conference SF: San Jose Sharks at Dallas Stars
by Diecast Dude
Tue Apr 29, 2008 at 07:18:34 PM EDT
(Stars lead 2-0)
It's not do or die, but it is closely related.
Given how the Sharks have played better against Dallas in Dallas this year than at home, it's not unreasonable to expect San Jose to come out flying. Which they'd better. The only way to break the trap is by blowing past it. Or a few well-placed elbows, which given the Sharks inconsistent level of physical play thus far in the series would be a change of pace.
Dallas is too good of a team to be given anything -- like the puck, repeatedly (*coughbriancampbellcough*) -- so the mistakes that have plagued San Jose in the first two games have to be sharply curtailed. The "oh, we had a chance to score there but didn't because so-and-so didn't bother to work their way into position to grab a rebound or variations thereof" shtick has got to come to a screeching halt. The physical play has to both increase and become consistent; you can't check someone once and go off on your merry way assuming that's good enough for the entire game. Basically, the Stars aren't going to beat themselves. They can be beaten, but only by playing better. Thus far in this series, the Sharks haven't come close to this. Tonight, they'd better. It's that simple.
Okay, let's drop the puck.
P.S. A profound thanks to whoever in the NHL wrote a schedule that has a playoff game starting when most of us are still at work... noreallyImeanthat... (grumble grumble grumble)
And This Is Acceptable How?
by Diecast Dude
Mon Apr 28, 2008 at 01:26:07 AM EDT
For whatever reason, the Sharks have this penchant for not playing motivated unless absolutely pushed. Well, they now have their wish.
Tonight's 5-2 loss to the Stars in Game Two of their Western Conference Semi-Finals matchup was dreadful. Constant fumbling with the puck, especially in the defensive zone. An unwillingness to physically engage Dallas on any kind of consistent basis. A string of missed scoring opportunities because while Player A was doing their best to set things for Player B, Player B was already in full retreat mode. Shaky goaltending. At least it was a team effort.
Of course the series isn't over yet. That said, if they lose Tuesday night in Dallas it will be. The Sharks have to look within themselves and answer the question why both individually and collectively they tanked at the Tank tonight. They know exactly how Dallas is going to play, and they should know by now that the referees are going to allow the Stars to continue clutching and grabbing and holding the Sharks to their heart's content every time they're in the Dallas zone. Nothing a few good elbows wouldn't cure, even if it means taking the penalty. The point is that along with the need to start making basic plays, such as not handing the puck to your opponent time and again, they have to start playing angry. They should be very angry right now. At themselves. If not, then there is something seriously wrong with this hockey club requiring major off-season work to eradicate. But until that is proven to be a necessity, San Jose needs to find the answer within as to why they are handing a team with which they are at least an equal if not superior this playoff series without so much as a whimper.
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