Shark Week: Week Eleven Power Rankings

by FTF Staff on Dec 20, 2010 11:30 AM PST in Shark Week Player Rankings

"Shark Week" will be a piece that runs every week on Fear the Fin, where Plank and TCY will track the progress of the players over the course of each week. The players are listed alphabetically, the arrows will indicate the change on a weekly basis. We will also keep track of our top five Sharks players each week.

Big stick tap to Japer's Rink, whose weekly feature called "Capitals Ups and Downs" helped inspire this series. In fact, we pretty much stole it entirely.

Goalies___________	Trending	Notes
Antti Niemi		He's played his best hockey of the season in December, going 3-3-1 with a 2.22 GAA and a .922 SV%. He didn't close out Nashville as he should have, but he played a magnificent game against Dallas on Monday.
Antero Niittymaki		Niittymaki has been given more starts over the course of the last week, but was inconsistent. He played a poor game against Dallas where the Sharks were lucky to come out with a win, but was instrumental in the game against St. Louis. Looking to grab more starts to close out 2010.

Defensemen_______
Dan Boyle		Minutes are still up as he played over 25 minutes every game last week, but finally started to score. He's posted 3 assists in his last four games. Minutes will always be an issue for him.
Justin Braun		The kid is a machine, and he's one factor in the team's recent success. Still isn't where we'd like him to be defensively, but the coach trusts him enough to put him out there. The young defenseman has nine points in just 13 games this year.
Jason Demers		Don't take the flat line as a suggestion that he's getting worse. He's playing well on both sides of the red line, but we'd like to see more of the offensive brilliance we know he's capable of displaying. No points in his last three games, and he needs to shoot more (We liked the 6 shots he had in Dallas).
Kent Huskins		He's played two games since returning from injury, and looked a bit slow against Dallas playing only 16:07. His minutes should increase as we move forward.
Derek Joslin		He lost his starting job to a combination of Braun's emergence and Huskins' return. There just wasn't any room for him. This isn't to say he's that bad, having skilled young defenseman is a blessing. Likely demotion coming once Murray returns.
Douglas Murray		What looked like a minor injury has kept Murray out since 12/11. The team misses his physicality.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic		Brine Time is must see TV. He's playing well defensively after struggling in that regard early, and has been scoring in bunches. He has two goals and three assists in December.
Niclas Wallin		Remains one of the team's most valuable blue liners, and he's scoring all of a sudden. Another goal for Wallin would match his career high. Hamburgers.

Forwards__________
Ryane Clowe		What. A. Player. "Chippy Clowe" has been hot in December, and we're not talking about his v-neck sweater ensemble. His board play is second to none, and he's created space for Couture to flourish.
Logan Couture		We thought he'd be good. We didn't know he'd be great. He isn't just leading all rookies in goal scoring... he's fifth in the NHL with 17. As a rookie.
Benn Ferriero		He's still an important part of the FCC line, but he's been pretty invisible as of late. Just three points in December, and has been bounced down to the fourth line at times.
Dany Heatley		Heatley has remained the best of the Sharks top three, but that's not saying much considering that they've been extremely disheartening for much of the month. Need much more from them if San Jose is to establish Western Conference supremacy.
Patrick Marleau		Two straight weeks of the down arrow for Marleau. However, his game against St. Louis was his best of the recent stretch. One assist, and a plus two. Team still needs more than that, but recent play has offered that glimmer of hope.
Jamal Mayers		Scrapped against his former St. Louis brethren on Saturday. He's been good at what he was brought here to do-- forecheck, log fourth line minutes, and drop the gloves.
John McCarthy		Hadn't been a factor as of late, and lost his job when Setoguchi returned. Barring an injury, don't expect him back in the lineup any time soon.
Jamie McGinn		He's not scoring, but he may be one of the hardest working guys out there. He's leading the team in hits in December and has looked good with Setoguchi and Pavelski.
Torrey Mitchell		Scored an important goal in Dallas, but he needs to shoot the puck more. His ice time has fluctuated.
Scott Nichol		Leads the team in face-off percentage for the second straight year.
Joe Pavelski		Has returned to form recently centering "The Redemption Line" (McGinn - Pavelski - Setoguchi). Two assists in each of his last two games.
Joe Thornton		Two points in six games isn't what we expect from Thornton. The fact thas his wingers are struggling doesn't help. Has worked on his defensive game, which is a plus, but his check gets cashed for goals and assists.
Devin Setoguchi		Being in the coach's dog house has lit a fire under Setoguchi. He's back from injury and scoring like he did in his sophomore season: three goals in his last three games. Watch out for him.

Fear the Fin's Top Five, Week 11

Logan Couture (10)*
Ryane Clowe (8)
Dan Boyle (5)
Marc- Edouard Vlasic (2)
Devin Setoguchi (1)

*The number in parenthesis tracks the FTF Top Five over the course of the 2010-2011 season. Five points for a week in first place, four for a week in second, etc.

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Comments

Are we going

to start the W streak now that we all have been waiting for

by sharks Indiana on Dec 20, 2010 11:33 AM PST reply actions

Couture has been amazing. Such a pleasure to watch him play.

Churning and burning, they yearn for the cup.

Twitter! rmorse05

by sharks in oc on Dec 20, 2010 11:59 AM PST reply actions

Yeah he is

I had a dream last night that he scored again. Literally, dude is haunting my dreams.

by Chicago Shark on Dec 21, 2010 5:07 AM PST up reply actions

Is Pickles supposed to have a green arrow in the Top 5?

Cloweture is an absolute dream come true. They should have got the duet album in the Christmas commercial, “The Captain & Me” is a great name but nothing could step to Chippy Clowe next to Logan’s Teeth in a V-neck.
It’s great to see Pavs and Seto gelling again, good news for them and the team. It’d be really great to see McGinn provide a mini-Clowe role for them so Gooch can worry less about the boards and more about the goal- but that line has had great energy the last 2 games.
Nitty’s game against St. Louis reminded me of his early un-rusty play, and it’s good to see Niemi’s got the straw out of his sleeves and is able to make a glove save here and there. I’d definitely like to see them start switching it up in net a bit more often though- a rusty Nitty forcing us to give up an extra division point to Dallas after Niemi goes 1-2-1 (with an OT win) in the previous 4 starts definitely left a bitter taste in my mouth. I don’t want a one-loss-you’re-out rule, but unless somebody’s playing like an absolute monster 2 or 3 starts seems more manageable so we aren’t playing a shaky goalie after a pair of losses from the other.
Dear Santa, please bring me 2 regulation wins this week and a healthy Douglas Murray in time for FTF Night!
GO SHARKS!

So, the caterpillar has emerged from its cocoon as a shark, with a gun for a mouth.

by CloweMyWord! on Dec 20, 2010 12:15 PM PST reply actions

Yuppers, fixed.

"San Jose is where I want to be at the end of the day, and there's an opportunity now to make it there. It is where my heart is." - Jamie McGinn, 2/22/10
Fear The Fin: Where Selling Your Soul Is The Likely Solution

by Mr. Plank on Dec 20, 2010 12:45 PM PST up reply actions

Hopefully before he saw it...

You wouldn’t wanna get Brine Timed!

So, the caterpillar has emerged from its cocoon as a shark, with a gun for a mouth.

by CloweMyWord! on Dec 20, 2010 12:53 PM PST up reply actions

Hope and dissapointment

I am very optimistic with the improved play by Seto, Pickles, and both goaltenders. Only good things can come from those four playing the way they should- the winning way.

Very dissapointing to see HTML with red arrows or a flat line. This should never happen. Marleau is showing glimmers that he’s coming back but I’ve been saying that for the last 3 games and it’s getting old. Heatley has been frustrating due to him not being able to keep a puck on his stick. Jumbo… oh my Jumbo, two points in six games is UNACCEPTABLE from him. I have a feeling once one of these three turns it on, all of them will. Who is going to step up to the plate?

GO SHARKS!

by winthecupsj on Dec 20, 2010 12:40 PM PST reply actions

Maybe a bit harsh on Ferriero

He’s not getting the points, but he seems to be finding the puck and shooting it, and always is available as a passing option.

My dream line is still McGinn Couture Ferriero, which would reunite the Clowe Pavelski Setoguchi line. But Clowe and McGinn look like they’re becoming interchangable on those two lines. Hopefully those six guys will become interchangable altogether. Along with Mitchell, who I refuse to give up on, they are the core of the future.

They're not getting this kind of coverage at "Hockey Night In Canada" folks! - Randy Hahn

What Jay Leach is to the San Jose Shark's Defense, I am to Fear The Fin's Mod Squad.

by ElvisVF101 on Dec 20, 2010 1:06 PM PST reply actions

Don't you dare touch my Cloweture line!

I’d like to see McGinn use his time with Pavs and Seto to focus on his board work and develop into more of a grinding, power-forward since it seems like he’s had trouble focusing his efforts so far this season. Being able to work on a specific role and excel in one area instead of working hard all over the ice and not having much to show for it might do a lot for his stats/confidence, plus it’d make him a viable option to leave with Pavs and Seto as a Clowe ~~replacement~~ substitute, or form a strong line with Mitchell and Ferriero if Benn can’t stick it with the Cloweture line (I do love Cloweturierio though…)
It’s nice having so many forwards either stepping their game up or growing into their own this year, if HTML can get back in form so we can maintain some line stability in the bottom 3 we’re going to have a monstrous offensive group.

So, the caterpillar has emerged from its cocoon as a shark, with a gun for a mouth.

by CloweMyWord! on Dec 20, 2010 1:43 PM PST up reply actions

Why, why on earth would you break up Clowe/Couture.

Fear the Fin: "I've always said that if you don't have the motivation within you... It's not Doug Wilson's job to motivate me. I've got motivation within myself, especially going through some of the experiences that I had last year." - Nick Petrecki

by Matthew_Taylor on Dec 20, 2010 1:46 PM PST up reply actions

I don't want them to break up

But I don’t think there’s any harm if they start seeing other linemates, have more of an open relationship. More scoring you see…

They're not getting this kind of coverage at "Hockey Night In Canada" folks! - Randy Hahn

What Jay Leach is to the San Jose Shark's Defense, I am to Fear The Fin's Mod Squad.

by ElvisVF101 on Dec 20, 2010 2:02 PM PST up reply actions

I think there is harm, because Clowe really caught fire when he was paired with Couture. Not many other lines are scoring, and moving pieces around doesn’t always work.

by Matthew_Taylor on Dec 20, 2010 2:28 PM PST up reply actions

Fair point

In my opinion, Clowe and Couture have consistently looked good this year, no matter who their linemates have been.

They're not getting this kind of coverage at "Hockey Night In Canada" folks! - Randy Hahn

What Jay Leach is to the San Jose Shark's Defense, I am to Fear The Fin's Mod Squad.

by ElvisVF101 on Dec 20, 2010 2:37 PM PST up reply actions

Unfortunatley they're the only two forwards you can say that about...

They’ve got over 25% of all our forward’s points so far (30+24=54/205) and most of those came after they got put together.
I don’t know where that chemistry came from, but I just can’t see them getting split up. If anything I’d like to see them get someone besides Marleau for their troubles (though it seems they might be starting to pull him out of his slump kicking and screaming). I’d still really like to see them try out Heater or Mitchell on that line.
JUST DON’T SPLIT THEM UP!
And if somebody tries, I’ve got a four word Christmas present for them:

So, the caterpillar has emerged from its cocoon as a shark, with a gun for a mouth.

by CloweMyWord! on Dec 20, 2010 3:15 PM PST up reply actions

Also, Wallin

They're not getting this kind of coverage at "Hockey Night In Canada" folks! - Randy Hahn

What Jay Leach is to the San Jose Shark's Defense, I am to Fear The Fin's Mod Squad.

by ElvisVF101 on Dec 20, 2010 1:07 PM PST reply actions

Who would have thought we'd see this quote coming from the FTF staff

Niclas Wallin Remains one of the team’s most valuable blue liners, and he’s scoring all of a sudden. Another goal for Wallin would match his career high. Hamburgers.

All parts of Wallin’s season has been surprising, except the lower body injuries and solid defensive play. I just never thought he’d come through with so much offensive pop and step up to the immense defensive needs of the team.

Bravo Hamburgers, bravo.

Erlich for President

by SharksFanTillDeath on Dec 20, 2010 1:18 PM PST reply actions

They don’t call him The Secret Weapon for nothing!

"If you can accept losing, you can't win." ~Vince Lombardi
The Jody Shelley of FearTheFin's Mod Squad.
Tweet Tweet.

by ZeroIndulgence on Dec 20, 2010 2:22 PM PST up reply actions

Hamburgers.

A noun which will reside deep in our hearts (mostly in th arteries) this season. Great analysis of the player performances yet again!!

Hockey is like a box of choclates. But not really, hockey is way better.

by Pavsisaninja on Dec 20, 2010 1:25 PM PST reply actions

The Redemption Line

I like the name. I hope it stops making sense soon, but I like it.

by petshark on Dec 20, 2010 2:45 PM PST reply actions

I like all the green arrows this week.

Hopefully, some more guys will get rocking and make it rain green up arrows next week.

I just talk a lot and somehow accidentally say things that sound smart. It’s all smoke and mirrors, I tell ya.

by Auth0r on Dec 20, 2010 5:30 PM PST reply actions

Love these updates

BTW, hate to go OT, but the ‘ticket buy/sell thread’ needs one more rec’
here

mash – v. – to reduce to a soft pulpy state by beating or pressure
inter – v. – to deposit a dead body in a tomb
"That’s ******* scary." - The Copper & Blue, on Sharks prospect Brandon Mashinter

by SwisherThresher on Dec 20, 2010 9:17 PM PST reply actions

Demers

Don’t take the flat line as a suggestion that he’s getting worse. He’s playing well on both sides of the red line

Even though this is a overall progress tracker, still surprised this is not a down arrow, since this past week included that egregious pinch that led to that 3-on-1 in Nashville…

"Burnside seems to hate these guys. Oh wait ... I seem to love these guys!" - Pierre LeBrun

by DownRUpLYB on Dec 21, 2010 1:52 AM PST reply actions