Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Another early exit

Thanks for a great series. The Wings showed a lot of heart and, gulp, experience by winning this series. We will be rooting for the Wings to take out the Ducks, that's for sure.

I agree with Mike - no excuses. Wings were the better team. It will be interesting to see what Dougie Wilson does in the offseason to improve the roster. I don't see a major roster blow up, there is no reason to panic. Here are four hot offseason topics for us to ponder....

1) Scott Hannan
Will Wilson resign him? Will Hannan take the blame for lack of leadership and be allowed to leave. Do we really need Hannan as a shut down defensemen when we have a younger version on hand with Vlasic? We know Wilson has tried to land a big ticket defensemen the last two off seasons. He has tried to make it a priority. He swung and missed with Neidermeyer and Chara......will he hit the jackpot with Souray or Rafalski? I say let Hannan go, keep Rivet and make a run and Rafalski or Souray.

2) The man in the middle
Has Patrick Marleau lost his "C"? Will Wilson take a long, hard look at Ryan Smyth? I think he has to. The Sharks lack a vocal leader and his track record speaks for itself. Smyth was the heartbeat behind the Oilers Stanley Cup run and then he willed the Islanders into the playoffs this year too. It will cost a bundle, and Wilson would not be able to get Souray and Smyth. Which will he set his sights on first.....

3) Ron Wilson
Is he still the man for the job? Has he lost the players ear? I'm not sure there is a better candidate out there, but Wilson has been on the bench for all three early exits, failing to live up to expectations. Will he take the fall?

4) Toskala vs. Nabby
One needs to go. Can the Sharks get value for one of their netminders? The open market really only has Giguere and Backstrom on it - and you have to figure Tampa Bay and Los Angeles are going to be major bidders. Can the Sharks addresss the need for a second line scorer or puck moving defensemen with dealing a goalie?

Doug Wilson will not stand pat. We know this. How can we take the next step? I hope he has the right formula in mind.

Go Wings. Boo Ducks.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think a vocal driven leader might be a better fit for San Jose, as the team seems to be very good at drafting and developing talent, including defensemen. The cache that would come along with a Ryan Smyth is incalculable.

Anonymous said...

Apple had its Lisa. San Jose has the Sharks.

Meh…that’s pretty weak, I admit.

This would’ve been the place for me to really thrust the proverbial knife into you and give it a good hard twist. But for some reason, my heart’s not into it. Obviously, there’s something wrong with me. I’ll have to have that checked out.

See you next year.