Haven’t seen too many people predicting that kind of turn of events. I like Blake, but the dude was not the most vocal last year (not when compared to Boyle or Pavs or JR), and he is clearly not our best player or not even an All-Star Caliber where you’d put Joe, Heater, Marleau or Boyle. It’s probably his last year as a Sharks anyway.

And Thornton gets to keep the A?

Very strange move.

The move to make Blake Captain also bothers me because he is not a guy who will be with the team longer than a year or two, opening up this process next off season again. I wish they had given it to someone planning on being here a while to keep the team together….

But whatever. If they win the cup this year, WHO CARES! GO SHARKS!!!!!!!!!

As I mentioned in Evilducks’ fanshot, Blake is an interesting choice. He’s the senior voice in the locker room, and while he wasn’t very vocal on the ice, I remember reading somewhere that his voice is very respected in the locker room…so that may have had something to do with it. He’s also been a capitan before. So while its a little surprising, its not really shocking, at least to me, that he is the pick. Basically, he’ll hold down the C for a year while the young kids get a full seaosn to show they can lead this team.

Boyle is no surprise as an A, as everyone expected him to get a letter. Thornton is a bit of a surprise as the other A. I guess they felt like they couldn’t give Patty a letter after all the offseason turmoil surrounding him or whatever. Or maybe they felt the center on the first line should have a letter? Dunno.

In the end, it probably doesn’t matter. They could have given the letters to Shelley, Staubitz and McLaren and it wouldn’t have changed much, most likely. I’m just sad that when we win the Cup, it won’t be Patty skating over to recieve it from the commish.

Joe getting to keep the A probably has a lot more to do with DW wanting to see him really step up and be a leader more than anything else. It’s felt like that to me every since the early out in the playoffs. DW’s been pushing his name a LOT and putting pressure on him to really take his roll to heart. (that’s been my interpretation of it, anyway)

I really should be working, but I can’t help but refresh every sharks page I know of for news about cuts and captaincy.

Rob Blake is a proven winner, despite being in the later stage of his career. He is a guy that knows how to handle the pressure of wearing the C. I don’t recall anyone ever questioning his leadership in LA.

I was actually thinking that they were gonna give it to Thornton (His pic was front and center on the last update from the official site regarding the final rosters/captaincy article)
I don’t mind this move though. Blake’s been a Captain before, and his voice should carry in the locker room. Perhaps it’s a placeholder move until Pavs takes it up after Blake retires.

I don’t recall anyone ever questioning his leadership in LA.

I don’t think the stop gap thing makes sense at all- now you’re promoting Pavelski from no letter to Captain? Barring another huge playoff failure and stripping of all letters it seems like a long shot especially because Boyle and Thornton will be under contract next season.

Surprised at Blake, but as I said before, its a locker room issue. They know who they want leading them. We don’t.

Since he’ll only be around one more year (most likely) you go with a proven leader (also wear the A in Colorado for a spell I think) knowing next year you can re-evaluate the leadership again depending on how the season goes. I think Mac is putting the onus on Thornton and Boyle to take the reigns in the upcoming season and prove that one of them can be the long-term captain at the end of the season. I’d expect to see one of them promoted to captain next year and Pavs sporting the other A – unless Blake decides to come back again which I very much doubt he will.

I do think also that this shows that while the captains are important, they should not be relied on as the end-all be-all in close games – that leadership needs to come from everyone in their own way and the each player is responsible for his performance as to how it benefits the team.

I’m not Catholic, for the record, but this strikes me as the hockey equivalent of when Pope JP II died, and instead of going for a younger, longer lasting pope, they get crusty ol’ Benedict (Cardinal Ratzinger). A “transition” pope.

And thus, a “transition” captain.

Nothing against Catholics, mind you.

until Pavelski steps up. Although youth hasn’t stopped some from being captain (Crosby, Toews), I think those were different circumstances. Those teams were very inexperienced and lacked real veteran leadership. The Sharks, on the other hand, do have that veteran leadership, which makes giving Pavelski the C now a more questionable choice than those other two examples. I’m thinking if Blake is gone after this year, which all indications suggest, then it’ll be Pavelski.

But again, I’m not in the locker room and I don’t know what’s going on.

Most of which has already been mentioned here. My other reason is if this is his last season, I’m sure the Sharks would be keen to keep a guy like Blake around in some kind of back office/Assistant coach role.

Perhaps this is greasing the wheels. Letting Blake know he is immensely valued as a member of the team, but also letting him know his value stretches beyond what he does on the ice.

Slappy would be donning the C.

in your mind, if Sharks somehow pull a miracle and win the Cup this summer, does Blake deserve to be the first one to lift the Cup?

Can you even imagine it?

I can’t.

According to the internet, Rob Blake has a “superior conditioning regimen.”

What kind of role do you guys think that may have played in the decision.

Callahan appears to be the depth d-man.

is I feel like it makes the captaincy less of an issue. To be blunt, no one really cares about Blake that much so I think we’ll here a lot less of captaincy complaints. A lot less of ’ THE CAPTAIN NEEDS TO STEP UP AND LEAD" compared to what we would have gotten with Pavelski or Boyle or (please no)Thornton, under the weight of expectations after all the playoff losses. In a way it lessens the burden of the captaincy with a “boring” choice.

But FTF just set a new record in September for page views in a month. Thanks everybody.

it doesn’t really feel like any of these 3 (boyle maybe excepted)“earned” it in terms of on ice play…but I guess we don’t know what training is like

Meh.

If the coaching staff and the players think Rob Blake would be the best captain, he probably is.

I’d rather see Boyle wear the C, but I’m fine with Blake.

There are updates in Off the Post, including a picture of Cheech as a Senator, and the current whereabouts of one Alexei Semenov.

As we all know tomorrow is the first game of Sharks regular season. I planned on wearing my jersey to school but guess what. I have a chem lab so I can’t. Looks like the Semenov T-shirt will be worn once more…

That was during the second of my three five minute breaks between my classes today. Being out from 9am-9pm for classes and a midterm is not fun.

So, yeah. Real analysis this time, not that joke “Blake speared Perry in the nuts” reaction. But I really do believe that that needs to be brought up whenever there is a conversation about Blake and/or Perry. It should be a rule or something.

Blake obviously has some leadership capabilities, judging by what comes out of the locker room about him being the guy that calls people out (along with JR, but unfortunately that’s no longer an option). He has experience being captain, no matter what Rudy may say about that experience.

But, I think it ultimately comes down to the stop-gap factor: he’ll be here for one more year, maybe two if he decides to sign for an insanely cheap price, and so this year will serve as a long try-out period for a more long-term captain. Obviously, Boyle and Thornton will be two of the top choices for when Blake leaves because of their current status as alternates (and really, who didn’t see that coming?), but it will also allow for Pavelski to mature for one more year if he really is the captain of the future.