The Sharks made it official today: they will not offer Jeff Friesen a contract.

I suppose Tomas Plihal and Lukas Kaspar have more of an upside.  To be honest, I haven't seen eneough of them to know if we can expect anything from them.  I do recall Plihal resembling a deer caught in headlights whenever he was on the ice last year, which is why he wasn't out there very often.  Maybe he's over that, maybe he has potential, maybe maybe maybe whatever.  I'm still ticked that the Sharks waited until the last possible second before saying thanks for the memories and don't let the door hit you on the way out to one of the most popular players in franchise history.

Yes, I know you can't assemble a roster based on your heart and not your head.  That said, Plihal and Kaspar had better show something and show it quick to justify why they'll be in uniform tonight and the only Friesen uniform being worn will be on a few fans who still don their #39 jersey before heading to the Tank.

In other news:

• Kyle McLaren will accept an assignment to Worchester while the Sharks figure out what to do with him.  There are some possible scenarios in which he could be brought up, but it's most likely he'll be traded ASAP.  For San Jose's sake the players had better hope it's to an Eastern Conference team so they won't have to face him very often and that he isn't fully recovered from the injuries he's incurred in the past lest monster hip checks be applied on anything in teal.
  
• Tonight's probably line combos and defensive parings according to David Pollack, who since he got them from Todd McLellan ought to know:
  
  

  Marleau	Thornton	Setoguchi
  Michalek	Pavelski	Cheechoo
  Clowe	Roenick	Grier
  Shelley	Plihal	Kaspar

  Vlasic	Blake
  Lukowich	Boyle
  Murray	Ehrhoff