1. Mike Johnston of Sportsnet had an article up yesterday about how the Penguins should think about dealing the 2nd best player in the world because their defense was obliterated and they lost to a stacked Rangers team. Well, he didn’t say those exact words. Regardless of what he really said, the idea for the article is six destinations for Malkin and the San Jose Sharks happen to be one of them.
Would the Sharks take Evgeni Malkin? All 29 teams would take Evgeni Malkin, but he won’t be traded. Johnston lists the following players as trade chips from San Jose: Joe Thornton, Tomas Hertl, Matt Nieto, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Mirco Mueller.
Trade Malkin, lol. The second best player in the world. Here’s a thought: just keep him and don’t do stupid things like waste other cap space and trade for people like Max Lapierre. I don't understand everyone citing the salary cap as a reason to trade Malkin. Everyone knows that Malkin and Crosby together will be $2.8M cheaper on the cap than Toews/Kane next year, right? I think the Penguins will be alright. Don’t get excited Sharks fans, San Jose isn't getting Evgeni Malkin and I doubt Wilson has the stones to pull off a blockbuster like that anyway.
2. The Sharks are inking an extension at the SAP Center and are working on a new arena. That’s good, I guess, but who really cares? San Jose isn't in any danger of relocating so this is just some pre-work for 10 years down the road when the Sharks actually need a new arena so they don’t end up playing in a rickety old shack. Maybe the city can put a condition in that Wilson has to be fired.
3. The Mike Babcock watch is officially on. I highly doubt that San Jose is on his list of potential destinations. There’s no good reason for him to leave Detroit to go to California. He’s got a good thing going in Detroit and if he wants to go anywhere why wouldn’t he go to Edmonton to coach the next Crosby?
The Oilers are the team that actually needs Mike Babcock. Who is going to teach those kids how to play hockey? This guy?
4. Hockey’s Future has a new article up on the Sharks prospect pool. They’ve got Konrad Abeltshauser listed as the “Underachiever…. He was a sixth round pick. Sixth round. The fact he has a contract with an NHL team means he’s a career overachiever in North America. I like Abeltshauser, he was a great captain for the Mooseheads, but let’s not kick a 6th round pick because he was sent to the ECHL.
5. If Doug Wilson hires a coach that he’s buddies with it will be the death of the Sharks organization. With each passing day I grow more concerned the Sharks organization will turn into the old boys club that developed in Edmonton for far too long. That’s not how you run a team. Find great minds, not great friends that may or may not pan out in some capacity within the organization.
6. When the Montreal Canadiens get eliminated from the playoffs and are forced to look at their roster, I wonder if they’ll want anything from the San Jose Sharks to fill some holes. What’s Zach Fucale doing these days? Fucale will be 30+ when Price retires and it’s possible he could be a starter in the NHL. Now, the Sharks could just go out and try to draft Samsonov or Blackwood, but they might not get the chance and I wouldn't mind them looking around the league at teams that have freshly drafted goaltenders that they’ll never realistically use.
I’m talking about goalie prospects that aren't backups that had their tires pumped behind good teams. The Blackhawks fooled the Sharks once with a goalie, it shouldn't happen again. That doesn't help the Sharks out right now, but in case you haven’t noticed the Sharks goaltending pool lately….
Question: What young goalie prospect would you like to pluck from an organization? Condition: You can’t use any current backups that the media has hyped up to be franchise saviors elsewhere.
Thanks for reading.