Dany Heatley: History Repeating Itself?

by waive kent huskins on May 22, 2011 6:51 PM PDT

Those of you who follow the NHL at large (more than just the Sharks) no doubt remember the falling out between Dany Heatley and the Ottawa Senators. Heatley claimed that the Senators were no longer using him as much or as properly as they should have been and wished to be moved. His numbers dropped from 105 points in 2006-2007, to 82 points in 2007-2008, and eventually to 72 points in 2008-2009. This drop in stats implied that:

a) His whole team was worse which made it more difficult for him to perform

b) He was correct in that his team was not using him correctly

or c) He was no longer trying as hard

Throughout the offseason between his last season in Ottawa and first season in San Jose he had developed a reputation as a prima dona who needed to be given his way or he would simply stop playing. Doug Wilson took the risk by shipping over-the-hill Jonathan Cheechoo and the speedy Milan Michalek to the Senators.

This ended up being a brilliant move in the first year of the Dany Heatley experiment. Cheechoo was a disaster in Ottawa and Michalek proved to be rather injury prone, never able to contribute much. Heatley scored 82 points in his first year with the Sharks and looked like he could easily reach 100 points again playing next to Thornton with a year already under his belt. And then this year happened.

Heatley dropped down to a lowly 64 points. Far too few for a $7 million sniper. He also only had 26 goals, tied with his rookie season for his fewest goals in a full season. He has been the target of criticism this season and this post-season. It did not take him long to be demoted to a second/third line role this year, where he has remained since. This season has me concerned that history could repeat itself in our Dany Heatley saga, although Heatley has remained quiet thus far. Let's compare this year to his last year in Ottawa by the three points I mentioned earlier:

a) His whole team was worse which made it more difficult for him to perform

2008-2009 Senators: True. They went from playoff contenders to the bottom of the barrel while he was there.

2010-2011 Sharks: Definitely NOT true. This time around, this is not an excuse for his drop in numbers. Our offense is as deep as it's ever been and our goaltending found stability.

b) He was correct in that his team was not using him correctly

2008-2009 Senators: Probably. Heatley saw less Power Play time in his final year which is where he is so deadly with his shot. I didn't watch them enough to know how their even strength lines changed but I know that the Heatley/Spezza/Alfredsson line was the deadliest in the NHL

2010-2011 Sharks: Possibly. Much like his time with the Senators, Heatley spent time on one of the deadliest lines in the NHL. The Heatley/Thornton/Marleau line was almost on par with the Heatley/Spezza/Alfredsson line at it's peak. Heatley spent most of his time away from the HTML line and has clearly missed playing alongside Thornton. his PP time has also been slashed considering that he has spent a majority of the year on the second PP line.

c) He was no longer trying as hard

2008-2009 Senators: Yes. It was no secret that Heatley stopped being satisfied with his diminished role on the Senators. By the end of the season, they couldn't wait to get rid of him.

2010-2011 Sharks: Sadly, it sure looks like it. Heatley has a history of not performing well when he isn't put in the situation he wants. He isn't someone who can be motivated by being demoted. McLellan will probably only reward Heatley when he produces, but Heatley will probably only produce when he is rewarded. Hence the awkward Catch 22 of Dany Heatley we are now stuck in.

Diagnosis:

Heatley is a player that flourishes when surrounded by talent and given opportunity to produce. He was on the best line in the NHL last year, and the best line for a few years in Ottawa as well. I do not think that reuniting the Heatley/Thornton/Marleau line at this time is a wise move, but, I do think it might be worthwhile to give Heatley more powerplay time. The powerplay is where Heatley is the most dangerous. Today Heatley was demoted to the third line; IMO, that is not how you are going to motivate him. It might be worthwhile to sort of let the baby have his bottle. If we continue to demote him and not give him opportunities to play alongside our elite, I have no doubts that we could have a similar falling out as the Senators did with him two years ago. Currently, Heatley is not being motivated in the right way, and his play is suffering. I'm not saying that we need to give him whatever he wants, but maybe if we give him a taste, he will wake up. Heatley is a player that is WORTH motivating. Don't forget that he is a two time 50 goal scorer. If we cannot motivate him eventually, he will no longer have a place on this team.

Go Sharks

Poll

In your opinion: which is the most likely reason behind Heatley's drop in production?

We aren't using him properly

19 votes

He isn't trying as hard

103 votes

He just isn't good anymore

81 votes

Other

40 votes

243 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Heatley had actually stepped it up in PO in my opinion

Throughout the season, he wasn’t skating or trying, but in the postseason, he had been working his ass off and looked to have finally meshed well with Couture and Clowe. Perhaps Clowe and Couture being injured has something to do with it or Heatley himself having an undisclosed injury? I don’t know, but if he can get going, we can still be in this thing. Go Sharks…

Go Sharks!

by Dmitriy on May 22, 2011 7:00 PM PDT reply actions

I agree that he has been playing better in the post season overall but only marginally. He still suffers from being streaky. Today was not a good game for Heater.

"Everybody had a part in this. As you can see, our fans love this. And we love them. And bring on the next team." -Joe Thornton

by waive kent huskins on May 22, 2011 7:02 PM PDT up reply actions

Won't argue about the last part...he wasn't skating again.

He needs to wake the f*** up along with others – most importantly: Seto, Pavs, Boyle, Clowe, Mitchell, and Wellwood

Go Sharks!

by Dmitriy on May 22, 2011 7:49 PM PDT up reply actions

I think he's playing okay. But okay unacceptable to me in the playoffs...

…I often wonder if he has issues with peripheral vision. He seems to lose the puck a lot when it’s right under him.

by mao2meow on May 22, 2011 7:15 PM PDT reply actions

I figured he was playing hurt…Even if he wasn’t trying he shouldn’t be this bad.

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I rec’d that shit.

by Steven Hida on May 22, 2011 7:55 PM PDT reply actions

This. He’s got to have a nagging injury. I don’t know why he didn’t take some time off during the regular season to heal in preparation for the playoff run. He doesn’t have the core strength to get into the dirty areas, which is where he was most effective his first year here. And frankly, a 70% Heatley isn’t worth his contract or helping the Sharks on defense.

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by ievans on May 24, 2011 11:14 AM PDT up reply actions

Heatley wasn't putting up a ton of points, but he played very well in the first two rounds.

He and the rest of the 2nd line haven’t had a great series against Vancouver, for whatever reason.

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take"-Wayne Gretzky"-Michael Scott.

by SharksFanEst.1994 on May 22, 2011 8:51 PM PDT reply actions

I think Logan has been pretty good. He’s been dragged down by Clowe and Heater.

Whole third line has struggled. Middle six has been the real issue for San Jose this series, something I don’t think anyone (especially myself) could see coming.

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by Mr. Plank on May 22, 2011 9:08 PM PDT up reply actions

I definitely didn't see this coming either.

Unfortunately, the secondary scoring has sort of dried up the past two times in the WCF. Maybe juggling lines is the answer? I personally think Heatley especially could turn a demotion to the 3rd line into a positive, and and would be able to generate some quality offense against their third pairing (if AV decides to match his third D-pairing against a 3rd line with Heatley on it).

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take"-Wayne Gretzky"-Michael Scott.

by SharksFanEst.1994 on May 22, 2011 10:09 PM PDT up reply actions

especially since we were supposed the offensive depth :/

by drewhamlet on May 23, 2011 7:55 AM PDT up reply actions

That is the funny thing too, even with our 3rd line playing like old men, and our 2nd line playing hurt, the Sharks have STILL been the better team when they had their legs each game. The problem has been they havn’t played 60 minutes each game while the Nucks have.

by VVhirlwind on May 23, 2011 3:42 PM PDT up reply actions

I could see the 2nd line’s problems coming tbh, because ever since Clowe’s injury he’s not really been able to do what makes the 2nd line magic and that is provide space by drawing defenders through insane puck control along the boards.

Heatley is a non factor because he’s simply not used to the ever increasing amount of shot blocking (I watched a reel of his 05-06 goals, most were zone entries where shots weren’t blocked, etc etc). He’s not skating like he did in Ottawa, so the problem compounds itself because when you get him the puck his shots are all blocked because he’s standing still.

Logan can’t do it all himself, not against the defensive depth that the Nucks have.

I personally wouldn’t mind seeing Heatley return to the 1st line, since so far Seto hasn’t really shown up for this particular series, regardless of how well the line overall has done. Maybe Seto/Logan could work some speed magic together. Dunno.

by VVhirlwind on May 23, 2011 3:48 PM PDT up reply actions

for some reason i thought we only had him signed til the end of this season

did we originally sign him through 2014? what a huge waste of cap space.

by drewhamlet on May 23, 2011 7:59 AM PDT reply actions

Wasn't a big fan of Heatley when he was traded over here.

demanding to leave Atlanta and Ottawa just makes him look selfish. (Though after the trade I thought with this talent on his wings, Jumbo was going to start putting up 80-assist seasons.)

Heatley looked like crap during the 2nd half of the regular season. His effort did pick up in the 1st two rounds. Maybe if we just keep scratching him. He’ll demand to be traded again and we can get the salary cap anchor traded to the Rangers or someone else in the East that needs a diva that maybe just can handle the travel of a West coast hockey team.

by buddahead9 on May 23, 2011 10:54 AM PDT reply actions

can't* handle the travel

by buddahead9 on May 23, 2011 3:00 PM PDT up reply actions

Except the problem obviously is that if it happens a THIRD time, on a team with talent that SJ has, what team would possibly want to take the risk of bringing him over? Any team that has remotely near the top line talent to “make him happy” is ass up to the cap, and any team that can afford it and is looking for better scoring but doesn’t have the supporting superstars would be axed in the trade.

by VVhirlwind on May 23, 2011 3:40 PM PDT up reply actions

yeah i know

a kid can dream though!!!!

I also dream that Petrecki turns into a serviceable 2nd pair dman, the one deemed worse by the Sharks brass of Stalock/Sateri gets traded for a draft pick who turns into a perennial Norris candidate puck-moving dman and that the Sharks decide to go on a 7-game winning streak tomorrow night.

by buddahead9 on May 23, 2011 3:52 PM PDT up reply actions

Cost of production

It would be one thing if Heatley was providing additional facets to his game that may not show up on the stat sheets but he’s just not doing much of anything. At $8mil/yr you’d better be doing something.

You take that salary and employ 2 solid D-men. Instead we’ve cash-strapped ourselves to having high profile players who end up disappearing when playoffs arrive.

by pc323 on May 23, 2011 12:33 PM PDT reply actions

I still think that the injury from last playoffs has really bothered him.

Last season, he came in, and made a fantastic impact.

You could tell he was struggling through the playoffs with that groin injury, and played through it. That might have only made it worse.

I believe he may have had a hernia over the offseason, but I’m not 100 percent sure, so don’t quote me on that.

Overall, I think that the injuries have had a toll on him, and he just needs to get 100 percent healthy.

Randy Hahn - "The Man With The Big Butt - Patrick Marleau - we like him and we cannot lie..."

by sharkzfan on May 23, 2011 4:53 PM PDT reply actions

I'm a sens fan

And I’m probably the only one that hoped that heatley continues to do well. With the sens heatley was told to play defense for a year and he didn’t like it/didnt want to so his minutes were cut, and you know the rest of the story. I hope that doesn’t happen to San Jose, who would take him if he asked to be traded from a second team in a similar situation!?

by spatial.taxes on May 24, 2011 3:28 AM PDT reply actions

64 points isn't okay for a 7+ million dollar wing...

But what about Marleau and Thornton? They put up pretty mediocre seasons as far as point production is concerned as well… whereas other players like Clowe and Couture have stepped it up and made up for those points not made.

This is a TEAM. Heatley is Part of it. Should he have posted 80 points+? of course… but I also think this team’s mentality isnt always about putting up individual points as much as playing well as a team

Drew: 'Oh no.. That is certainly the meaty part alright, but it's not the thigh..."
Randy: "No... that bone is NOT connected to the thigh bone..."

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by SeanCrosby87 on May 24, 2011 4:00 AM PDT reply actions

Other...

Usually I loathe when people say “Other” but here’s my explaination. I think Heatley is used for different things now- his game has changed. He’s passing a heck of a lot more than sniping… he’s playing on the PK a lot more. He’s on a line with Clowe and Couture- two guys that can play a good defensive game as well as get pucks to the net. He’s not paired up with Jumbo anymore except on PK. Jumbo is a passer that is perfect for a true goal scorer like Heater. I’m not saying Heatley is not successful or is playing wonderfully. With his salary, I’d like more goals but I can see his other assets he’s been displaying (except for the last couple games) and I can see why he’s not a 40 goal scorer this season.

Waiting for the Cup to come to SJ since 1991...

GO SHARKS!

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by winthecupsj on May 24, 2011 8:23 AM PDT reply actions

Thats where I agree with you….in the playoffs. In the regular season, at least i the first 3/4 of it, to me it was clear he was trying to revert to the old school sniper, which never really fit into our top 2 lines offensive systems simply because our god of passing usually does so from a static or slow moving position.

Look at a reel of heatley goals from 04-06 and almost all of them are from some kind of rush with all of the players that had the puck carrying it in. That draws defenders out of position for the slip pass that heatley’s one timer can capitalize on because there aren’t 20 guys to block the shot and it is usually cross ice so it puts the goalie in a harder position.

With Thornton/Clowe it is usually from the cycle or a slow/static position, so the defenders aren’t themselves also moving/chasing the puck carrier, they’re concentrating on zone and lane coverage, while also then being aware of Heatley, because he himself doesn’t slide all over the ice to create passing lanes, instead for the most part relying on the passer to create them.

He had such great success the first year because he was going to the dirty areas, and Thornton’s beautiful passes through 4 guys for quick tap ins were easy to get. Can’t do the same kind of passing to the point or the slot because the defenders, even if they don’t know exactly where the puck is going to, have enough time to slide their bodies into the lane to block shots.

This is why he worked better with Couture this year when he got switched onto that line, because he was trying to revert his game to sniping and Couture was the speedy puck carrier that pulls defenders to him with the rush etc and Clowe’s board grinding pulled defenders towards him.

When he decides to finally just go with whatever works, instead of trying to force his old style into a system that can’t support it like he was used to (with TWO of those speedy puck carriers) then he’ll start scoring a lot more and likely see a reunion with Thornton.

by VVhirlwind on May 25, 2011 12:05 AM PDT up reply actions

I don’t the issue is that we’re not using him “properly”. I think it’s that we’re using him differently. It’s no longer: “Dany, skate around to get yourself open and score.” And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

I honestly don’t see “isn’t trying as hard”. I think it appears like that, but for some reason he looked the same all of this season as he did in last year’s playoffs… when he was hurt. Prior to that injury, Heatley was very good. Hopefully, he’ll completely recover from that. A top form Heatley on the second line? That would be ridiculous.

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by Bockerz on May 25, 2011 3:32 PM PDT reply actions

Can I change my Other vote to...

…broken hand?

Liftetime president of the Darren Turcott Q-Tip Dexterity Awareness Foundation
finally caved in, as @shampeon on the Twitternet

by ievans on May 26, 2011 12:47 PM PDT reply actions

yea finding out about playing the whole second hand of the year and the playoffs with a broken hand explains a lot. he could never seem to keep the puck on his stick once the second half kicked in. the fact that they were having to fight back into the playoff picture and then the playoffs just showed me how much he is a gamer and was going to help as much as he could. I think he’ll be back to his normal self next season and ready to go.

by dannyschmanny on May 28, 2011 1:04 PM PDT reply actions