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San Jose Sharks Blogger •
Face of the franchise, fallen star, playoff scapegoat, prodigal son and fearless leader, Patrick Marleau has been each of these things for the San Jose Sharks during his career. Praised and scorned in equal measure, he holds franchise records in games played, goals, assists, points, power play goals, game winning goals, overtime goals, shots, and many more. Since the Sharks entered the league in 1991, no player has been more tied to the franchise’s success, or failure, than Marleau.
Despite being named the Sharks’ most valuable player, it was another tumultuous offseason for Marleau, who was once again the subject of intense scrutiny and trade rumors after the San Jose’s latest playoff collapse. Although he was shopped, stripped and nearly shipped out of town during the summer, he came into training camp without complaints or excuses, insisting he just wanted to play hockey and prove the naysayers wrong.
He won’t get that chance until April, but the Sharks’ former captain has been far and away the team’s best player through the first 12 games of the season, producing nine goals and seven assists playing both left wing and center on the second line. Marleau leads the Sharks forwards in ice time, averaging 20:31 a night, and he’s a fixture on the power play and penalty kill. Most nights, whether the Sharks win or lose, the outcome usually hinges on Marleau’s performance and production.
We really shouldn’t be surprised by Marleau’s early performance. He had 12 points through the first 12 games last season, using his speed to contribute on both sides of the ice, and teamed with Joe Thornton on the fist line to produce a career-high 38 goals. If anything, we should be surprised that he’s doing it with a stump for a linemate. The Ryane Clowe-Joe Pavelski scoring race is dead even at the moment, with both players collecting two points. The difference is that Pavelski has missed the last 10 games with a broken foot, while Clowe has simply been missing in action.
The other noticeable surprise has been Marleau’s resiliency this season. Coming into training camp, some questioned whether we would see a repeat of Marleau’s 2007-08 performance, when his game went in the tank and he finished with 48 points in 78 games. The root of that dreadful season was a second-round playoff loss to the Detroit Red Wings the year earlier that saw Marleau held without a point. That was followed up by a public admonishment by Sharks coach Ron Wilson, resulting in a season in which Marleau looked like a shell of his former self.
After he was stripped of the captaincy in July, some feared Marleau would respond negatively to the public indictment of his leadership ability. In fact, we’ve seen the exact opposite through 12 games, leading many to believe the move actually liberated the soft-spoken forward, allowing him to play without the added responsibility that comes with the captaincy. I’m not sure how much truth there is to that, but he’s certainly in fine form.
Marleau’s strong play has also increased the likelihood that he’ll represent Canada at the Olympics in February. Allan Muir of SI wrote an excellent piece earlier today, analyzing each candidate for both the Canadian and American Olympic teams. There’s no doubt about it, Marleau has clearly played his way into “Making A Case” territory. The final roster won’t be announced for another two months, but if he can keep performing and producing at a high level, his versatility makes him a very attractive option.
Of course, Shark fans would probably prefer that Marleau stay home and rest his weary bones during that two-week stretch in February. There’s no doubt the heavy workload had an impact last season, and whether it was the result of fatigue or injury Marleau struggled down the stretch, saving his worst hockey for the playoffs.
Games / Points / Plus-minus / Points-per-game
October 11 / 10 / +6 / .91
November 13 / 16 / +5 / 1.23
December 13 / 14 / +5 / 1.07
January 11 / 13 / +6 / 1.18
February 13 / 12 / +3 / .92
March 13 / 5 / -7 / .38
April 2 / 1 / -2 / .50
Playoffs 6 / 3 / 0 / .50
There’s a lot of hockey to be played between now and April, and interested observers will watch to see if San Jose’s former captain can keep up his current pace. It certainly won't hurt to have Pavelski return from injury and Clowe return from his early season funk. Unfortunately, no matter how well Marleau, his linemates or the Sharks perform during the next five months, they’ll all be judged by their play in April and beyond.
ryan.garner@hockeybuzz.com
Despite being named the Sharks’ most valuable player, it was another tumultuous offseason for Marleau, who was once again the subject of intense scrutiny and trade rumors after the San Jose’s latest playoff collapse. Although he was shopped, stripped and nearly shipped out of town during the summer, he came into training camp without complaints or excuses, insisting he just wanted to play hockey and prove the naysayers wrong.
He won’t get that chance until April, but the Sharks’ former captain has been far and away the team’s best player through the first 12 games of the season, producing nine goals and seven assists playing both left wing and center on the second line. Marleau leads the Sharks forwards in ice time, averaging 20:31 a night, and he’s a fixture on the power play and penalty kill. Most nights, whether the Sharks win or lose, the outcome usually hinges on Marleau’s performance and production.
We really shouldn’t be surprised by Marleau’s early performance. He had 12 points through the first 12 games last season, using his speed to contribute on both sides of the ice, and teamed with Joe Thornton on the fist line to produce a career-high 38 goals. If anything, we should be surprised that he’s doing it with a stump for a linemate. The Ryane Clowe-Joe Pavelski scoring race is dead even at the moment, with both players collecting two points. The difference is that Pavelski has missed the last 10 games with a broken foot, while Clowe has simply been missing in action.
The other noticeable surprise has been Marleau’s resiliency this season. Coming into training camp, some questioned whether we would see a repeat of Marleau’s 2007-08 performance, when his game went in the tank and he finished with 48 points in 78 games. The root of that dreadful season was a second-round playoff loss to the Detroit Red Wings the year earlier that saw Marleau held without a point. That was followed up by a public admonishment by Sharks coach Ron Wilson, resulting in a season in which Marleau looked like a shell of his former self.
After he was stripped of the captaincy in July, some feared Marleau would respond negatively to the public indictment of his leadership ability. In fact, we’ve seen the exact opposite through 12 games, leading many to believe the move actually liberated the soft-spoken forward, allowing him to play without the added responsibility that comes with the captaincy. I’m not sure how much truth there is to that, but he’s certainly in fine form.
Marleau’s strong play has also increased the likelihood that he’ll represent Canada at the Olympics in February. Allan Muir of SI wrote an excellent piece earlier today, analyzing each candidate for both the Canadian and American Olympic teams. There’s no doubt about it, Marleau has clearly played his way into “Making A Case” territory. The final roster won’t be announced for another two months, but if he can keep performing and producing at a high level, his versatility makes him a very attractive option.
Of course, Shark fans would probably prefer that Marleau stay home and rest his weary bones during that two-week stretch in February. There’s no doubt the heavy workload had an impact last season, and whether it was the result of fatigue or injury Marleau struggled down the stretch, saving his worst hockey for the playoffs.
Games / Points / Plus-minus / Points-per-game
October 11 / 10 / +6 / .91
November 13 / 16 / +5 / 1.23
December 13 / 14 / +5 / 1.07
January 11 / 13 / +6 / 1.18
February 13 / 12 / +3 / .92
March 13 / 5 / -7 / .38
April 2 / 1 / -2 / .50
Playoffs 6 / 3 / 0 / .50
There’s a lot of hockey to be played between now and April, and interested observers will watch to see if San Jose’s former captain can keep up his current pace. It certainly won't hurt to have Pavelski return from injury and Clowe return from his early season funk. Unfortunately, no matter how well Marleau, his linemates or the Sharks perform during the next five months, they’ll all be judged by their play in April and beyond.
ryan.garner@hockeybuzz.com
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