SB Nation - Marc-Edouard Vlasic

Kings-Sharks Recap: Booyah!

RudyKelly — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 06:26:05 -0000

More photos » by George Nikitin - AP

I take it all back: I love Evgeni Nabokov on the Sharks. (AP Photo/George Nikitin)

First thought: woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-Drew Doughty is awesome. His assist to get Kopitar off the schneid was a beautiful play. He patiently held onto the puck until the Sharks overcommitted then slid the puck between two defenders to a wide open Kopitar. His goal was just straight heat. I always thought it was kind of bullshit when he talked about how he felt more comfortable because he changed his stick blade, but maybe that actually worked.

-Ted Purcell, Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown all broke 10+ game droughts. Good thing the Sharks had a shitty goalie in, otherwise they still might be waiting for their goal.

-You know who's good? Marc-Edouard Vlasic.

-You know who's not? Erik Ersberg.

-Michal Handzus had a pretty bad game, picking up 3 particularly brutal penalties. The Kings managed to win the special teams battle, however, and staved off the powerful San Jose power play. The Kings penalty kill still kind of sucks by the percentages, but it should be better and hopefully this game is a sign that it's going to start improving.

-The Kings have another tough game tomorrow night against the Coyotes, although Ed Jovanovski is suspended for tomorrow's game because the NHL head office still doesn't understand Pronger physics. Quick will be in for that game, so it should be a good one.

-The Kings are 3 points out of 1st in the Pacific. Just saying.

Final thought: wooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Defenseman Cometh

Mr. Plank — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:30:29 -0000

Fact: Crankshaft caused 72% of underwear accidents nation wide during the 08-09 season

Twelve game in the books for the San Jose Sharks, and a 7-4-1 overall record coming out of a six game road trip.

Not too shabby.

During the course of October, many questions have been raised about the performance of the team as a whole, but none more prevalent than the strength of the blueline. Without the luxury of available cap room, it's doubtful Doug Wilson pursues an upgrade via trade lest he sacrifice scoring depth amongst the forwards or deplete the strength of the organization's prospect pool. It is likely we will live and die with these band of brothers until the 2009-2010 season rings it's final bell.

Which begs the question- how good have they been thus far?

To start things off, let's take a look at the location of where the defenseman are starting their shifts following a whistle. While by no means a defining measurement of worth, it does provide us a glimpse into the mind of Todd McLellan- who does he trust the most in the defensive zone?

Even Strength Faceoff Locations

Player	GP	Defensive	Offensive	Differential	% Defensive
Vlasic	12	66	40	+26	62.26
Blake	12	62	41	+21	60.19
Demers	12	38	32	+6	54.29
Huskins	12	39	43	-4	47.56
Boyle	12	42	54	-12	43.75
Murray	11	35	48	-13	42.17

Takeaways: The Vlasic/Blake pairing takes a lot of draws in their own zone compared to the rest of the unit, while Boyle drags Murray along for those luscious offensive zone opportunities. Demers and Huskins fit right into the middle. It's safe to say that Vlasic/Blake are going to have fewer scoring opportunities than Boyle/Murray due to this role.

One thing that jumped out at me is the fact that McLellan has leaned heavily on the Vlasic/Blake pairing in the defensive zone, even with their less than impressive numbers thus far (more on that shortly). My guess is that he's locked into the notion that they are his shutdown pairing and is planning on giving them the benefit of the doubt for the time being. Is that the right decision? I'm not sure. The need to get Boyle a lot of looks in the attacking end is understandable, but McLellan is utilizing Murray in a highly offensive role directly off the draw the majority of his starts. Preseason hat-tricks notwithstanding, this goes against everything the Swedish behemoth stands for*.

*Namely liquefying bones and raising the dead from their graves.

If Blake/Vlasic are struggling at this point in the season why not ease off on the gas pedal and tap Boyle/Murray a bit more in front of Nabokov? Blake can still provide a big shot from the point to generate scoring opportunities in the offensive zone. You lose some defensive acumen with Boyle, but not a significant enough amount where you see the team as a whole take a huge dive- Murray's presence will help here. I think it's a strategy that needs to be explored until last year's shutdown pairing manages to find their game.

*****

Next up is even strength play. For a refresher course on the importance of this part of the game, or for those who are new to Fear The Fin, this article from last season should serve as a good place to get your feet wet.

Empty net goals have been discluded in both the GF and GA categories.

Even Strength +/-

Player	GP	EV TOI/G	GFON	GAON	GFON/60	GAON/60	EV DIF.
Demers	12	11.66	8	3	3.43	1.29	+2.14
Huskins	12	14.50	11	6	3.79	2.07	+1.72
Boyle	12	17.92	9	7	2.51	1.95	+0.56
Murray	11	15.88	8	8	2.75	2.75	0
Vlasic	12	17.50	7	12	2.00	3.42	-1.42
Blake	12	16.10	5	10	1.55	3.10	-1.55

Takeaways: Huskins and Demers have had the most success here, with the Sharks outscoring opponents at a much greater rate whenever they are on the ice at even strength. And, as expected, Blake and Vlasic have clearly had a great deal of trouble keeping pucks out of their own net.

Admittedly, I haven't been the biggest fan of Huskins the last couple months. From the initial signing to his porous play during the preseason, I've worried aloud about the defensive depth in San Jose and how it would affect the team's ability to win hockey games.

Turns out he and Demers have been a pleasant surprise. Yes, they have seen sheltered minutes. Yes, I would like to see Demers clear the puck up the boards more often as he's prone to force his breakout passes and turn over the puck in the center of the defensive zone. Yes, Huskins could stand to lay on the body around the net. However, these are minor gripes at best- as ElvisVF101 and Evilducks have noted, they aren't getting paid a monetary sum that would cause us to expect much more than what they have provided. And that's a real bright spot for a team who has struggled at times in the defensive zone.

At the heart of the issue lies Vlasic and Blake. If the Sharks want to do some legitimate damage this season, it's essential these guys get going. As mentioned above, I think relieving them of the lion's share of d-zone draws might be a good short term solution- give them an opportunity to put pucks on net and create offensively. Blake seems like he's been fighting to find shooting lanes, and he's lost a bit of lateral quickness when moving at the point. Some more time in the easy part of the ice may get that big shot back it's net nose.

*****

The last thing on the docket today is special teams play. Demers hasn't logged sufficient enough minutes per game on the PK to warrant consideration (0:14), and has thus been left out. On the PP side of the ice, Murray (0:05) and Huskins (0:15) are in the same boat.

Penalty Kill (4v5) Plus/Minus

Player	GP	SH TOI/G	GFON	GAON	GFON/60	GAON/60	SH DIF.
Huskins	12	1.17	0	0	0.00	0.00	0.00
Vlasic	12	3.19	1	2	1.57	3.13	-1.56
Blake	12	3.01	1	2	1.66	3.32	-1.66
Boyle	12	2.71	0	6	0.00	11.07	-11.07
Murray	11	2.48	0	6	0.00	13.19	-13.19

Power Play (5v4) Plus/Minus

Player	GP	PP TOI/G	GFON	GFON/60	PP DIF.
Vlasic	12	2.29	7	15.27	+15.27
Blake	12	2.15	6	13.96	+13.96
Demers	12	3.24	7	10.81	+10.81
Boyle	12	4.70	10	10.64	+10.64

Takeaways: It's hard to take too much stock into these numbers right now considering a fluke goal here or there can alter them quite a bit (with special teams time less frequent than even strength), but here's a few general observations:

Vlasic is giving up fewer goals per 60 minutes shorthanded than he is at even strength. Sample size is obviously a big factor here, but maybe McLellan should just have a forward cherry pick at the redline whenever he and Blake are on at evens.
Huskins hasn't been on the ice for a shorthanded goal against. He's gotten roughly two shifts a night, but that is still moderately impressive.
Boyle and Murray have been horrendous on the PK thus far. The average differential per sixty for defenseman who played at least 50 games and 1:30 per night last season was -5.54. They're both currently double that.
On the flip side, last year's defenseman who played at least 50 games and 1:30 per night on the power play were, on average, +5.66 per sixty minutes. All qualifying Sharks are at least close to double that.
If you expected Jason Demers to be second in PP time amongst defenseman before the season began you are either a pathological liar or related to Miss Cleo.
Towards the middle of last season teams began to pick up on what the Sharks wanted to do on the power play and started aggressive pressuring the puck-carrying blueliners. Might be repeating myself here, but I have been impressed with the defenseman's reads in these situations. They haven't forced many shots and therefore haven't had a problem with blocks above the circles turning into shorthanded opportunities going the other way.

*****

Inconsistent is the one word I would use to describe the Sharks blueline thus far, and hopefully they can use the two upcoming home dates to build on a good performance last night against Philadelphia. Even with a 7-4-1 record there's a lot of unanswered questions on how everything will eventually play out.

And I'm not expecting many concrete answers anytime soon.

Go Sharks.

San Jose: Heatley's final suitor?

PeterR — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 13:44:11 -0000

More photos » by Ryan Remiorz - AP

Browse more photos »

Reports in both the Ottawa Sun and the Silicon Valley Mercury News discussed the possibility of Disgruntled Dany Heatley (possibly his next book title) being traded to the San Jose Sharks. The gist of both stories is that Ottawa will make this trade if it makes sense, and Sharks GM Doug Wilson may still be looking to shake up the Western Conference's response to the Ottawa Senators... by acquiring a player who's asked out of Ottawa.

The Sun had the more interesting article, stating that San Jose had already offered a package of Jonathan Cheechoo, Christian Ehrhoff, and a first-round draft choice for Heatley, but that that deal was nixed by Ottawa, says Bruce 'Malkin to the Kings' Garrioch:

"The Senators don’t want anything to do with winger Jonathan Cheechoo, who has been offered as part of a package along with defenceman Christian Erhoff and a first-round selection."

Not sure how San Jose could have afforded to even discuss that possibility given their current cap situation, but it poses an interesting possibility.

In the Mercury News, there were no 'concrete' reports of possible trades, but author Mark Purdy did suggest that a package equivalent to that offered by the Edmonton Oilers could look something like this:

"You're probably wondering what the Sharks have to give up for Heatley. The Oilers' aborted attempt might provide a clue. It was widely reported that the Edmontons offered Ottawa a package of three players — Dustin Penner, Andrew Cogliano and Ladislav Smid. This would be the rough equivalent to the Sharks offering up Milan Michalek, Jonathan Cheechoo and Marc-Edouard Vlasic."

A much more enticing package, if you ask me, but it would once again put the Sharks in salary cap hell. And Ottawa wouldn't be too far off, with the steep and long-term cap hit of $4.33M until 2013-14 for Michalek, $3M per year for the next two for Cheechoo, and $3.1 for three more years for Vlasic.

(Read more... )

It remains unclear what the asking price would be for the Senators, but it would probably have one thing involved: Two top-six forwards. The Edmonton deal had that (Penner and Cogliano), and it's chief among the Senators' needs for the upcoming season if they're going to find a way to compensate for losing Heatley's production by building greater scoring depth. To make the numbers work, those forwards may have to be younger players on their first or second contracts.

If this deal gets done, I'll be pretty amazed. It just seems like we're destined to have a catastrophic season with a built-in excuse.

In other news, Purdy did report something new on the Heatley front:

"Heatley has raised hackles in Ottawa since last spring, when word leaked that he had demanded a trade. Heatley was reportedly dissatisfied with Senators Coach Cory Clouston over diminished ice time. Another story was that Heatley had demanded to be named team captain."

I had never heard that report yet, but if that's among the problems, then Heatley's even farther removed from reality than originally thought. This is a team that has an established captain who's not going anywhere, not even in favour of Zdeno Chara as captain; if the thought is that after an off-year when he barely spoke to the media, took stupid penalties, and suffered dramatic point reduction (although so did everyone else) he would deserve the captaincy, the it's nuts. Almost as crazy as the report that Heatley was looking to escape the rampant drug use in the Senators' organization.

If the final partner is indeed the San Jose Sharks, who do you want in return from them? What package do you think is reasonable?

San Jose Sharks @ Phoenix Coyotes Preview - Can We Forfeit?

OdinMercer — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 19:22:52 -0000

13 games left everyone! Let's hope these ones are at least prettier than the last game. Tonight we get the Sharks and our nasty habit of playing up to the level of our opponent. San Jose is 11-2-2 against us in the last 15 games though so they have that going for them. As well as, you know, being second in the West. Can't we just give them the points and hang out and play some playstation or something? That sounds like a good plan.

Five for ~~Winning~~ Doing Something

Shoot!: 8 shots through 2 periods is pretty weak. Even for us. at least look like you're trying guys! Not saying they all have to go in, but at least make the other goalie break a little bit of a sweat. Or at least keep him from running to get some nachos during the game...

Skate: Public skate rules: go around in a clockwise motion. Or look like you're expending energy and want the puck. Choose one.

Lines: Hey Wayne, are you sure we have enough guys to make a fll team? Oh wait we have 26 guys on the roster! Seriously? None of them would be better served getting playing time in San Antonio? Whatever. Just do something crazy and roll set lines. What do you have to lose? Not your job apperently...

Save!: Bryzgalov played lights out last game. Maybe he can step it up again against the fins. Either that or he's still going to be ticked off about it and just sit in goal eating hot dogs. That's what I'd do.

Hit: Anything. JR is still skating around. ne. How about you hit him? Or Clowe or Pickles (Vlasic) anyone really. just make things interesting for a game. I'll still take the tank, but effort is nice.

GO YOTES GO! (For Tavares)

For more cartilage fish coverage check out the previews at Fear the Fin and Battle of California. Sharing links amkes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. I should get that checked out...

The Rod Langway Award leaders

James Mirtle — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 05:55:06 -0000

It's been nearly two months since I took at look at the top defensive defencemen, so it's high time for another run through. Big assist to Behind The Net for the data.

Here's what we've got as the season winds down:

	NAME	TM	GP	QCMP	EVGA	SHGA
1	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	64	0.09	1.98	5.07
2	PAUL MARTIN	N.J	57	0.07	1.68	5.12
3	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	60	0.08	2.00	5.35
4	NICK SCHULTZ	MIN	65	0.05	1.98	3.74
5	ROB SCUDERI	PIT	66	0.08	2.10	5.78
6	JAN HEJDA	CBJ	66	0.09	2.15	5.83
7	SEAN O'DONNELL	L.A	66	0.04	1.89	5.50
8	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	67	0.08	2.04	6.43
9	M-E VLASIC	S.J	65	0.03	1.97	5.17
10	MIKE GREEN	WSH	55	0.01	1.82	2.69
11	KIM JOHNSSON	MIN	64	0.03	2.24	3.22
12	NICK LIDSTROM	DET	64	0.11	2.15	6.65
13	ROB BLAKE	S.J	62	0.02	1.69	4.72
14	ANTON VOLCHENKOV	OTT	51	0.07	2.20	6.13
15	JOHN ODUYA	N.J	66	0.04	2.22	5.35
16	BRUNO GERVAIS	NYI	52	0.05	2.51	4.37
17	DENNIS WIDEMAN	BOS	66	0.03	1.74	6.13
18	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	65	0.06	1.79	7.25
19	ROBYN REGEHR	CGY	64	0.03	2.33	4.67
20	KEVIN BIEKSA	VAN	56	0.04	2.44	4.65
21	MIKE COMMODORE	CBJ	65	0.09	2.38	6.58
22	TONI LYDMAN	BUF	63	0.06	2.58	4.95
23	CHRIS PHILLIPS	OTT	64	0.07	2.66	5.36
24	KIMMO TIMONEN	PHI	58	0.07	2.43	6.16
25	GREG ZANON	NSH	66	0.03	2.17	5.79
26	MARC STAAL	NYR	64	0.06	2.71	4.58
27	JAY BOUWMEESTER	FLA	65	0.10	2.26	7.80
28	KARLIS SKRASTINS	FLA	63	0.08	2.14	8.53
29	ANDREW ALBERTS	PHI	60	-0.07	2.08	4.27
30	COLIN WHITE	N.J	60	0.04	2.41	6.04

Seabrook, Martin and Keith are all incredibly close by these numbers, so it's anyone's guess who'll win my fictitious trophy this time around.

It's tougher to get on this list if you play for a team that struggles with its goals against, but a few guys have managed. Gervais plays for the god awful Islanders and against tough opposition, while Detroit, Pittsburgh and Calgary are all 20th or worse in goals against and have Lidstrom, (Reliable) Rob Scuderi and Regehr represented here.

As per usual, all of the players listed here have to play a regular role on the penalty kill, have to have played at least 45 games and about 15 minutes a game at even strength.

Players who didn't do so well in this metric (among those who qualified) include Lilja, Staios, Gauthier, Brad Stuart, Enstrom, Havelid, Phaneuf, Jason Smith and Finger.

Oh, and from the looks of just the numbers, Green should win the Norris. He's on pace for a whale of a season.

San Jose Sharks vs Los Angeles Kings photos

pj48 — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 22:36:45 -0000

Here are a few photos from San Jose's 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings last night at HP Pavilion. Jack Johnson looked to take the title of Captain Elbow from Chris Pronger, delivering an elbow to the head of Christian Ehrhoff 3 feet in front of a referee in the second period. Gauthier also ran Patrick Marleau's head into the glass with time ticking down in the third, after Calgary in the playoffs last year that could set off an instant team wide scrum. In back-to-back games with teams physically challenging San Jose, it was interesting to see the Sharks response. They did not overreact. They let the refs sort it out, although there were several verbal confrontations that may lead to heated games down the line. No Jonathan Quick, instead the Kings started Ersberg. I think at this point Los Angeles is trying to hide him from me.

Dan Boyle and Christian Ehrhoff on the blueline could be the best skating defensive pair in the NHL. Pavelski's assist gives him a 5 game point streak (4G,1A), he also finished 14-3 on faceoffs and lead the team blocking 4 shots. No TV for Los Angeles, no LA Times or Daily News reporters attended the game either. Brad Lukowich and Jeremy Roenick may return Sat against Atlanta, Mitchell and Goc are longer term. Tomas Plihal is close to returning as well.

More photos and notes from the game are up here.

The good, bad and ugly contracts in the Pacific

jamestobrien — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 17:19:50 -0000

One of the most talked-about columns this week involved the "scariest" contracts in the NHL. (Pour out a 40 for my homie Alexei Yashin)

Even before that, when I was taking a look at the could-be-improving future of the New York Islanders, crunching numbers at NHLSCAP.com became a mild obsession. Why not take a look at each team in the division, then?

Anaheim

It could be time to brace for a whirlwind of change in Duckville next year. With only Chris Pronger under contract D-wise (not counting minor leaguers), the personality of their blue line could change drastically. It's hard to imagine Scott Niedermayer coming back again, so could the Ducks be an unexpected spot for a guy like Jay Bouwmeester?

Even though the post-Burke Ducks have plenty of questions to answer, their cap situation is pretty damn impressive. Ryan Getzlaf kind of looks like a douche bag, but he's also one of the best centers in the NHL. Where he ranks on that totem pole is hard to say, but at $5.325 million per year through 2012-13, he might just be the best bargain in the league.

Corey Perry comes at the same price too, which is a brilliant brushstroke by Burke. The Ducks' two cornerstone forwards can rest assured that their feewings won't be hurt.

Teemu Selanne doesn't get enough credit for his putting-the-team-first contract decisions. He's been very cheap considering his second tier production, at a ridiculously low $2.6 million next season.

The Ducks are in a nice spot at $34 million. As Sleek mentioned, J.S. Giguere and Jonas Hiller combine for $7.3 million next season, which might be the worst value on a squad that ranks high in "bang for the buck." Then again, with a weak goaltending market, the Ducks boast one of the best big game goalies in Giguere and a very solid backup in Hiller. Cannot complain too much there.

Once the Ducks sign Sammy Pahlsson, they can focus on improving the team's offensive depth or adding another stud D. What direction should the Duckies go in next year?

(And should they trade Pronger? I'd say "no" but it's certainly an interesting topic ...)

Dallas

The scary thing for the Dallas Stars is that, compared to their Pacific competition, the window might be closing. It's not all bad in Dallas, just pretty damn bad. OK, it's almost all bad.

Let's start with the ones that are promising. The closest answer the Stars have to Perry-Getzlaf is Mike Ribeiro and Brenden Morrow, in both productivity and value. Morrow's contract is the best: he'll be only a $4.1 million cap hit until 2012-2013. Ribeiro's not too bad himself, providing a point per game type output for $5 million per year (also ending in 2012-13). Those years should cover the last prime years for both players with Ribeiro being 28 and Morrow 30.

The other solid deals run out soon but provide crucial value. Not sure if Stephane Robidas is a full-on All-Star, but for $1.5 million next year he's a steal. Trevor Daley also has a decent contract, making $2.3 million next year.

Matt "Richard" Niskanen and Nicklas Grossman will finish their rookie contracts next year, so that gives the Stars four decent starting defensemen. With a tight cap coming up (about $40.5 million devoted to 15 players), it might not be reasonable to target a Bouwmeester type blue chip.

Depending on price, the Stars might be wise to shoot for a good veteran like Mattias Ohlund.

Offensively, the Stars are stunted by some dead weight and some rough deals. Sean Avery's $3.87 million cap hit was listed as the Stars scary contract and with good reason. It is a waste of money in every sense of the word.

But Brad Richards still has one of the worst contracts in the NHL, despite decent production. If getting a superior talent in Vincent Lecavalier at nearly $1 million less per year (Vinny L's hit is $6.9) counts as frightening, then how scary is Richards' $7.8 million cap hit?

Between Richards, Avery, Morrow and Ribeiro the Stars have just a hair under $21 million committed to three solid forwards. What happens if the salary cap falls?

Considering the state of the Pacific division, it would be hard for the Stars to justify being within a stone's throw of the cap ceiling if they don't make the playoffs this year.

Los Angeles

The Kings absolutely have a bright future to look to. There's no doubt about it. The team is just chock full of budding D and bargains (with a few bumps and bruises).

My favorite contract has to be Dustin Brown's. His cap hit is only $3.175 million per year through 2013-14. Considering Brown's penchant for head bussin' and his improving scoring ability (not to mention his recent All-Star appearance), it might be the best deal in the division. If not the league.

The one good thing about Jack Johnson missing most of the season is that it might make the perennial prospect more affordable. It will be interesting to see what kind of deal the Kings sign him to. (Dare I ask if Johnson is tradeable with all the other great blue chip D in their system?)

Anze Kopitar is not worth $6.8 million just yet, but that could still be a reasonable contract as the Kings improve. Ultimately his deal is market value (in other words, not great but not awful).

The only deals that are "meh" worthy are probably for Michal Handzus ($4 million) and Jarret Stoll ($3.6 million). Still, most NHL teams would be able to live with those contracts.

The Kings look like they'll be going into the season with about $40 million in cap space plus whatever Johnson gets. They'll have to decide what direction they want to go in goaltending-wise (it might be prudent to bring in a decent veteran on a short-term deal).

What's truly interesting is that the Kings could add a legit free agent forward. It sucks for them that Zetterberg won't hit the open market, but maybe Johan Franzen could be had. (I was told that Marian Hossa is out of the question ... why?)

Either way, the Kings look great. As long as they aren't dumb enough to waste their money on Broken Marian Gaborik.

Phoenix

In a world where every team could spend to the cap, the Coyotes would be an absolute force to reckon with. Gotta love the contracts for their top forwards: Olli Jokinen's just right at $5.25 million and Shane Doan is a steal at $4.55 million for three more seasons.

It never hurts to have young, cheap stars-in-the-making either. It will be one year before the Coyotes have to re-upp Peter Mueller ($1.7 mill) and two more for Kyle Turris ($2.7 mill).

He's had some ups and downs in his first full season as a starter, but Ilya Bryzgalov's $4.25 million cap hit is about right for a young no. 1 goalie.

With Derek Morris and his humorous $3.9 million per year hit coming off the books, the only questionable deal is Jovocop's $6.5 million salary. Jovanovski is a nice combination of physicality and offensive talent, but he's just too injury prone for a team that needs to make every dollar count.

The Coyotes might usurp the Kings as the team of the future if it weren't for their oft-referenced financial "troubles." Since my knowledge of their problems is limited and I don't want to piss off the guy from Five for Howling, I'll just stay away from that sticky situation.

San Jose

For a team that was compared to the pre-lockout Colorado Avalanche, the Sharks are still in pretty decent shape going forward.

Much of their cap space will be accounted for next year: they'll be starting at $46.75 million. Really, though, the Sharks have most of their core intact next season. It's the 2010-11 season that will be tough: that's the year both Devin Setoguchi and Joe Pavelski could attract some Kevin Lowe-down offer sheets.

It's not every day that a $7.2 million cap hit is a steal, but it is for Joe Thornton. He took a discount to keep the Sharks competitive. Last year he was the hottest trade rumor gone un-traded, but Patrick Marleau is now quite reasonable at $6.3 million.

The biggest steal is probably Marc Edouard Vlasic's deal which goes for $3.1 million per year until 2012-13. Vlasic's gotten some rave reviews but I'll let our Sharks pundits cover that base.

After putting up a great season, is Dan Boyle's contract really that "scary" after all? Well, it's at least satanic: his cap hit is a devilish $6.667 per year up to 2013-14. The biggest issue is age: he's already 32 years old. It's hard to imagine him being worth that much once he hits his late 30's, but right now it's worth it.

***

As you can see, each Pacific team has its strengths and weaknesses. Overall, the division is chock full of great values (particularly in deals for team captains and power forwards) with only a handful of albatross type deals. Every team is better than the woeful New York Rangers, who better hope they get more out of Scott Gomez, Chris Drury and Wade Redden or they're going to be in the same rut Glen Sather got them in before the lockout.

Which team has the brightest future from next year to five years to 10 years from now? Who has the best contract in the division? I'd like to hear what you cats think on these subjects and more.

Poll

Which player has the best contract in the Pacific division?

Dustin Brown ($3.17 million cap hit until 2013-14)

93 votes

Shane Doan ($4.55 million cap hit until 2011-12)

6 votes

Ryan Getzlaf ($5.3 million cap hit until 2012-13)

60 votes

Brenden Morrow ($4.1 million cap hit until 2012-13)

17 votes

Marc-Edouard Vlasic ($3.1 million cap hit until 2012-13)

83 votes

Other

1 votes

260 votes | Poll has closed

The Rod Langway Award leaders

James Mirtle — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:28:48 -0000

Here's an updated look at the league's top defensive defencemen at the all-star break, based on a look at quality of competition and goals against at even strength and while shorthanded.

Players have to have played at least 30 games this season and a significant role on the penalty kill to qualify:

	NAME	TEAM	GP	QCMP	EVGA/60	SHGA/60
1	NICK SCHULTZ	MIN	44	0.06	1.69	3.87
2	MARC STAAL	NYR	45	0.07	2.17	3.56
3	KIM JOHNSSON	MIN	43	0.04	1.90	2.25
4	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	45	0.09	1.93	5.34
5	PAUL MARTIN	N.J	42	0.06	1.71	5.49
6	ROB SCUDERI	PIT	47	0.08	1.92	5.83
7	SEAN O'DONNELL	L.A	44	0.04	1.84	4.74
8	ROB BLAKE	S.J	43	0.05	1.88	5.14
9	M-E VLASIC	S.J	45	0.05	1.91	5.03
10	PAUL MARA	NYR	45	0.00	1.59	1.24
11	NICKLAS LIDSTROM	DET	44	0.10	2.34	4.49
12	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	46	0.07	1.92	5.95
13	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	47	0.07	1.86	6.39
14	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	41	0.07	1.99	5.99
15	KEVIN BIEKSA	VAN	38	0.07	2.39	4.15
16	ANTON VOLCHENKOV	OTT	31	0.09	2.32	5.63
17	DENNIS SEIDENBERG	CAR	41	0.09	2.46	5.49
18	JAN HEJDA	CBJ	46	0.11	2.17	6.76
19	DAN GIRARDI	NYR	45	0.00	2.01	3.53
20	MATT GREENE	L.A	44	0.03	1.94	5.57
21	MIKE GREEN	WSH	35	-0.02	1.88	2.21
22	GREG ZANON	NSH	46	0.04	2.31	5.56
23	MIKE COMMODORE	CBJ	46	0.10	2.33	6.77
24	ROBYN REGEHR	CGY	44	0.02	2.31	4.19
25	CORY SARICH	CGY	46	-0.02	1.60	4.59
26	DENNIS WIDEMAN	BOS	45	0.00	1.86	5.58
27	TIM GLEASON	CAR	38	0.10	2.05	8.29
28	KIMMO TIMONEN	PHI	43	0.08	2.51	5.99
29	DAN BOYLE	S.J	44	-0.01	2.08	3.61
30	KURT SAUER	PHX	42	0.09	1.96	8.91

Newcomers to the list: Seidenberg, Hejda, Greene, Green, Zanon, Commodore, Regehr, Sarich, Wideman, Boyle

All of the names in the top half of the list have been there for a while, but some of the newcomers make sense. The Hejda-Commodore pairing has been terrific the past month-plus for the Blue Jackets, while Mike Green has terrific numbers in big, big minutes in Washington.

Nick Schultz and Kim Johnsson always post terrific numbers for the Wild, as does Martin from the Devils and Vlasic for the Sharks. Some of the 'surprise' names are guys like Sean O'Donnell and Dennis Seidenberg (who has a poor plus-minus number) but if you talk to people in those markets, they've quietly had strong seasons. You'll hear the same about guys like Zanon and Greene and Sauer.

Regehr and Sarich, meanwhile, have been a big part in helping Calgary rocket to the top of the standings.

Honourable mentions: Phillips, Lydman, Doughty, Ballard, Hamrlik, Bouwmeester

The Mirtle All-Stars

James Mirtle — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 12:00:06 -0000

Forget online voting and Mike Komisarek in your starting lineup: Here are my 42 choices as the best players so far this season. Unlike the NHL's list, I won't make an effort to include all 30 NHL teams, so some top clubs have a lot of representation.

The league will reveal the full all-star teams a conference at a time at noon, one today and one tomorrow.

Eastern Conference

Starters

Evgeni Malkin: The best player in the league this season
Alex Ovechkin: He's not far behind
Sidney Crosby: Hasn't had a ton of help from his linemates

Zdeno Chara: May be his year for the Norris
Mike Green: Hard to argue with nearly a point a game

Tim Thomas: Quite a story (again)

Reserves

Forwards (9): Jeff Carter, Zach Parise, Marc Savard, Mike Richards, Thomas Vanek, Daniel Alfredsson, Alexander Semin, Simon Gagne, Nicklas Backstrom

Defencemen (4): Andrei Markov, Jay Bouwmeester, Dennis Wideman, Kimmo Timonen

Goalies (2): Carey Price, Henrik Lundqvist

Western Conference

Starters

Joe Thornton: As Fenwick points out, he's the guy getting it done
Pavel Datsyuk: Brilliant at both ends of the ice
Patrick Marleau: On pace for a career year

Nick Lidstrom: Talk of his demise is nonsense
Marc-Edouard Vlasic: Probably the most underrated player in the NHL

Nikolai Khabibulin: Unwanted early on, he's been terrific

Reserves

Forwards (9): Ryan Getzlaf, Jarome Iginla, Patrick Kane, Mikko Koivu, Rick Nash, Henrik Zetterberg, Daniel Sedin, Shane Doan, Marian Hossa

Defencemen (4): Shea Weber, Duncan Keith, Lubomir Visnovsky, Brian Rafalski

Goalies (2): Steve Mason, Niklas Backstrom

Eastern Conference
Ovechkin-Malkin-Crosby
Parise-Savard-Carter
Vanek-Backstrom-Semin
Gagne-Richards-Alfredsson

Chara-Green
Markov-Bouwmeester
Wideman-Timonen

Thomas
Price
Lundqvist

Western Conference

Marleau-Thornton-Datsyuk
Nash-Getzlaf-Iginla
Zetterberg-Koivu-Kane
Sedin-Hossa-Doan

Lidstrom-Vlasic
Weber-Keith
Visnovsky-Rafalski

Khabibulin
Mason
Backstrom

Honourable mentions (10): Patrik Elias, Rob Blake, Ryan Miller, Dan Boyle, Phil Kessel, Martin St. Louis, Nik Zherdev, Dwayne Roloson, Henrik Sedin, Ales Hemsky

A Rod Langway Award update

James Mirtle — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 16:30:06 -0000

Just based on what I've seen so far and looking at the numbers individually, I figured Chicago's Duncan Keith would be atop this list at this point. He's had a phenomenal season, and really should be in the running for the Norris Trophy if he keeps this play up.

Instead, however, it's the 'other' Staal brother leading the way. He's another youngster who has had a whale of a start; the Rangers would be sunk without him on the back end given how some of their veterans have struggled.

A look at the top defensive defencemen in the NHL so far this season, based on even strength and shorthanded goals against and quality of competition. Players had to play a significant role on the penalty kill to qualify.

	NAME	TEAM	GP	QCMP	EVGA/60	SHGA/60
1	MARC STAAL	NYR	33	0.10	1.82	2.71
2	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	31	0.10	1.88	4.61
3	PAUL MARA	NYR	33	0.04	1.8	0.78
4	M-E VLASIC	S.J	33	0.08	2	3.99
5	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	31	0.08	1.89	5.16
6	NICK SCHULTZ	MIN	32	0.04	1.83	3.68
7	ROB BLAKE	S.J	33	0.08	2.26	3.45
8	KEVIN BIEKSA	VAN	23	0.08	2.31	3.54
9	NICKLAS LIDSTROM	DET	32	0.10	2.38	4.29
10	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	32	0.08	1.96	6.03
11	PAUL MARTIN	N.J	25	0.08	1.65	6.86
12	A. VOLCHENKOV	OTT	29	0.12	2.37	5.22
13	ROB SCUDERI	PIT	31	0.08	2.17	5.69
14	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	32	0.12	1.96	7.06
15	SEAN O'DONNELL	L.A	32	0.03	2.06	3.65
16	KIM JOHNSSON	MIN	32	0.04	2.37	2.64
17	ADAM FOOTE	COL	23	0.11	2.38	5.81
18	TONI LYDMAN	BUF	30	0.06	2.52	3.28
19	CHRIS PHILLIPS	OTT	31	0.15	2.58	5.26
20	DAN GIRARDI	NYR	33	0.01	2.05	2.89
21	ROSTISLAV KLESLA	CBJ	13	0.03	1.74	6.2
22	KURT SAUER	PHX	32	0.10	1.9	8.34
23	TIM GLEASON	CAR	25	0.07	1.93	7.24
24	BRYCE SALVADOR	N.J	28	0.09	1.89	8.49
25	KIMMO TIMONEN	PHI	30	0.09	2.33	6.65
26	MARTIN SKOULA	MIN	32	0.04	2.6	2.85
27	JOSH GORGES	MTL	29	0.03	1.71	7.03
28	STEVE EMINGER	T.B	31	0.02	2.53	1.95
29	KARL ALZNER	WSH	12	0.20	1.84	13.17
30	JAY BOUWMEESTER	FLA	30	0.10	2.01	8.83

Some of the names here are regulars on this list: The Wild's Nick Schultz, for example, is the top shutdown defender on a great defensive team, and Paul Martin of the Devils is one of the most underrated blueliners in the league. Nick Lidstrom, as always, is high up here — even with his team's struggles in goal — so don't take him off the Norris ballot just yet.

Other RLA regulars: Mitchell, Volchenkov & Phillips, Chara, Johnsson, Sauer, Timonen, Bouwmeester

As for the surprises, how about the Vlasic-Blake pairing in San Jose? Vlasic has emerged as one of the league's top young two-way defencemen, and Blake (so far anyways) has been logging big minutes on one of the top penalty kills in the NHL.

Sean O'Donnell deserves some kudos, too, for playing a big part in the Kings not falling way down in the Western Conference. Los Angeles has been very, very well coached this year under Terry Murray.

It's also interesting to see Capitals rookie Karl Alzner make an appearance here, albeit after playing in only 12 games. At even strength, Bruce Boudreau is giving him some of the heavy lifting and he hasn't been scored on much at all.

Kevin Bieksa counts as a surprise, too, although he's been getting ample time with Willie Mitchell on the Canucks back end.

Players at the bottom in my rating system: Mark Streit, Joni Pitkanen, Nicklas Grossman, Niclas Havelid, Philippe Boucher, Nick Boynton, Trevor Daley, Dion Phaneuf, Jeff Schultz, Brad Stuart

As always, appreciate your feedback on the list.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
Duncan Keith	31	4	13	17	17	18	0	1	1	0	67	6.0