Phoenix, More like Colorado than Dallas

Hoo boy, the game last night was boring. If it weren't for Grier and some others buddies over, complete with beer and pizza, I don't know if I would have stayed awake for the whole thing. There were only a handle of quality scoring chances for either team in the game it seemed, and a broken play (Thornton was really looking for Roenick) resulted in the game's only goal.

Like the Avs game, the Sharks seemed to recede into a bit of a shell late in the game, with extra drama inserted by Rissmiller's completely retarded penalty. I know it was a total accident, just bad luck really, but taking an offensive zone penalty with two minutes left in a one goal game has to be infuriating for the coaching staff. The 6-on-4 last minute was pretty tense, but no great scoring chances came about.

That's enough of that- even reading about that game is giving me the yawns.

In other news:

• We were flipping around various games on Center Ice, and we watched some of the last of the Dallas-Ottawa matchup. First of all, I LOVE CENTER ICE. Second of all, if Ottawa is doing their thing, and there were only flashes of it that I saw, nobody in the NHL could hang with them. I know they've lost a bunch in a row, but they get their ass in gear, they'll give anybody in the playoffs all they can handle. Even Detroit. I can't say the same about the Sharks right now.
  
• Recchi was claimed by Atlanta. They still have the same problem they had yesterday- if Kovalchuk goes cold or gets hurt, Atlanta is in a world of hurt. And even if he stays healthy, they could start sucking again at any time. Hmm, kind of like Nabby and the Sharks.
• Things have quieted down in Toronto for the time being, nothing like winning a few. I'm still stunned that for all the trade rumors that have been floating around, none involved Tucker. Could it be that he's the name that GM's have been keeping under their hats, trying to throw JFJ and the press off the scent?
  
• Listen to the Teal Spiel tonight if you can- Randy Hahn will be on taking questions. I might try to call in, but I'm probably meeting friends for dinner before tonight's game.
  

The Fourth Line

The grinders. The grit. The muscle. These are the guys who you usually find on the ice on an NHL 4th line. The offensive line of a hockey club, doing the thankless work that rarely shows up on the stat sheet. Winning a key face off, delivering a meaningful hit, intimidating an opponents star player. The Sharks lack a truly effective 4th line. We have seen different versions of it the past few weeks, but the combination usually revolves around Goc, Bernier, Brown, Rizz and now the new and improved LW Rob Davison. While Bernier has shown flashes of life and physical play as a 4th liner, the others have rotated in and out of the line up and haven't performed the duties described above with any consistency or fire. The 4th line is just the collection of players that suck enough to not be on the top two lines, but good enough to avoid being scratched.

I'm not a big Rizz guy - Mike and I both agree that he does everything average and we've seen everything there is to see from him. Good guy, tries really hard, but we know what we know about the Rizz. He needs to be replaced. I certainly don't think he is in the Sharks long term plans. Send him to the press box. I suggest rolling Bernier-Brownie-Davison for now, but this is an area DW needs to address before season's end.

A few other comments/notes

- Toronto continues to implode. Maybe Mike and my wish for Darcy Tucker could become a reality??? He has never played out West and maybe he has no desire to. We will see...

- Eklund has gone off the deep end, I've decided. Today he commented that the Sharks and Ducks are asking Montreal about Huet. Huet now? What do the Sharks want with another #1 goaltender? The Ducks just got rid of one - so now they want Huet? Nonsense. I enjoy reading his blog for fun but his rumors are going sour...

- Hey Ron Wilson? Please no more rolling out seven defensemen please. I would rather see the Sharks call up Kaspar or Armstrong than endure another game of seven D.

See you at the Tank on Wednesday!

Me, the GM

I called into Teal Spiel again this past weekend, and spoke a little bit about what I think the Sharks still need. I've written about it in this space before, but now you can hear me in my eloquent glory here. Here's the embedded player again:

Comments welcome.