RFA of the Day: Torrey Mitchell

Let the hoovering begin…

“We missed that piece for 89-92 games, his speed, his tenacity, his gritiness, his abrasiveness.”

-Todd McLellan on Torrey Mitchell, 2009 State of the Sharks

That’s one of many quotes which directly reference the effect that Mitchell’s injury had on the Sharks. It’s pretty clear. Everyone loves Mitchell, and at a level somewhat similar to the love that Marc Edouard Vlasic harbors for Mrs. Celiene Dion. After being dubbed the Sharks’ rookie of the year in 2007-2008, Mitchell broke both major bones in his lower left leg during the preseason, and then things got a little crazy.

Mitchell, although originally expected to miss only two months, suffered many setbacks and ended up missing the entirety of the season. However, Mitchell was able to come back to the Sharks in the first round of the playoffs; and even though he didn’t score a point, he was able to remind the coaches and fans what he is capable of bringing to the table.

What does he bring?

Well, if you were too busy thinking of Torrey Mitchell in that X-Men spandex uniform to read the first few lines of this story, here’s a recap.

“We missed that piece for 89-92 games, his speed, his tenacity, his gritiness, his abrasiveness.”

-Todd McLellan on Torrey Mitchell, 2009 State of the Sharks

That’s pretty much it. McLellan hit it spot on. Someone give that young up-and-comer a head coaching gig.

If Mitchell is healthy, and is retained by the Sharks, expect him to entrench himself on the third line and hold onto it like a kitten to a tree branch. He should improve on his 20 point season last year, and hopefully, return to the strong penalty killing form that we saw for much of the 2007-2008 season.

We talked about the merits of Mitchell (which sounds like a title to a Jane Austen book) so much this year, that this post seems like a formality at best.

Yes, we missed Mitchell.

Yes, we should resign him.

Yes, you should read that book.

TCY’s Final Offer: Two years at $1.00 MM. Although Mitchell’s season long injury was bad for the Sharks on the ice, it’s quite a convenient turn of events for their checkbook. Call me a heartless bastard but this injury was, dare I say, good for the Sharks overall. By missing the entire season, Mitchell probably scared off all the teams who would have extended an offer to him this offseason if he had progressed as expected. The Sharks’ brass remains confident that Torrey is still a capable NHL player brimming with potential. I agree, and I’ll give him two years to show me that he’s still the player I remember.

If you were Doug Wilson, how much would you offer Torrey Mitchell?