Shutdown Line

It would be great, to be sure, depending on who you want that shutdown line to be.

In the series against Anaheim, Joe Thornton’s line played the majority of the minutes against Getzlaf and Co. Ideally, you hope that that top line is capable of shutting the other down. If you decide to play another line against that top line, you are left with playing a line with limited scoring potential (if you’re advocating for Mitchell, Moen, Goc, or something), while your top line sits.

We do need a defensive stopper line, and while I liked the idea of adding a guy like Moen, I don’t really like Moen himself. He seemed to shrink against his former team, and played well in about four of the twenty games he was here. You can sign a new player, but we’re having some cap issues so money will be tight. What’s important is advocating for strong defensive play from your top two lines. Marleau, Pavelski, and Michalek seem to get the whole defensive forward aspect, but it takes an effort from every guy. Will this year’s playoff loss inspire them to play better defensive hockey? One can only hope.

To me this is largely a matter of coaching, not personnel. The current forwards get it. Marleau and Thornton did a decent job against Getzlaf and Perry, and I’m not disappointed with them. Detroit is good measuring stick, and except for the games where Getzlaf was sick as a dog, the Ducks top line was just as huge against Zetterburg and the Wings as against the Sharks.

But I like your thinking about shutting down the opposing top line. Look at the teams that the Sharks need to get past in the playoffs: Toews/Kane, Getzlaf/Perry, Crosby/Malkin, and goodness knows who else rises up next year. I think the shutdown player needed by the Sharks is a blueliner. I’d like to see a big, mean D-man paired with Boyle, able to pin guys to the boards, clear the crease, and inflict some pain without needing a full two-handed swing or leaving his skates.

Torrey Mitchell is definitely going to be a big part of this, although placing him on a pure checking/shutdown line might take away some of his offensive capabilities. In a perfect world he’s part of my third line with McGinn, a line that is good defensively but has some touch around the net.

As for the poll question, I voted for going after someone in free agency, but like TCY said, the cap issues make this a concern. Although Plihal doesn’t get much love from the general fanbase, I actually think he’s fairly adept at serving this purpose:

Moen-Plihal-Grier

The fourth line is where things get really good in my opinion. Talk about shutdown. Moen was a part of the checking line for Anaheim when they won the Cup, and his contribution during that run (along with Pahlsson) was a key aspect to their success. Pairing him with Grier and Plihal makes for a very imposing crew of players to face, and coupled with the last change at home, McLellan will have boundless opportunities to throw them out against the opposing team’s top line. They’re physical, decently quick, and all very good in the defensive zone. There’s a reason all three players see a lot of PK time.

- April Pre-Playoffs

Take a look at some of Plihal’s numbers in that piece- while he’s not an offensive powerhouse by any means, he is defensively responsible as well as being an RFA who isn’t going to command a whole lot of money. There’s definitely upgrades out there in free agency, but with money tight and most likely being used for other personnel, he’s not a bad fit.

I say re-sign three of those four and make it a line combination. Although Grier might be hard to sign, maybe Grier gets the Right Wing. I think the combination I listed would be deadly, especially as an energy line. Or Roenick-Mitchell-Cheechoo, not neccessarily as a shut down line, but those guys provided a lot of energy in the playoffs, and if Cheech and Roenick are willing to take paycuts, I could see it happening.

armstrong goc plihal

as my fourth line/ shutdown line looking forward to next year we are cap raped so i don’t see us signing anybody trades are big possibility though.