San Jose Sharks

[dyzfunctioned]

yeah Dyz, old news lol. Sharks fans have been guessing Pavs goes to top line while Havlat replaces Heatley on second with Couture and Clowe. I think it could be pretty sweet top 6.

Well I've been overseas for the past month almost, it's news to me! haha.

[tgraveline]

Well then your lapse in knowledge has been explained and the planetary alignment is back in order. I am most pleased.

[bballplyr321]

Welcome back Dyz. Glad you made it back ok

[bballplyr321]

Some quick predictions cause now is the time.........Now to be fair, I am not super familiar with the East but here's what I see

West
Central
Hawks (6) - I'm worried about PKane's wrist but getting out from under Campbell has at least bought them some room to breathe.
Jackets (11)- The only question I have here is will the NHL allow this team to play with two pucks on the ice at the same time? One for Nash and one for Carter
Wings (5) - They are the wings. They will be tough to beat.
Preds (7) - Who is Weber going to be traded for and what are the Predators going to get?
Blues (2) - Young team, stacked with talent. Is this finally the year?

Northwest
Flames (15) - Not sure what direction this team is going. Up? Down? Sideways? I really don't know
Avalanche (9) - They are putting together a pretty solid group of guys there in Denver. A year away from dethroning Vancouver as the best team in the WORLD, or just their division.
Oilers (14)- Another year, another year to get better. But playoffs? Not quite yet.
Wild (12)- SJ north, I mean Minn should be better offensively this year.....right?
Canucks (3) - Worst division in hockey. They would finish third in any other division.

West
Ducks (8) - That top line can go toe to toe with any line in hockey and I would not bet against them.
Stars (13) - Loss of Richards is going to set them back a bit
Kings(4) - LOVE the additions from a hockey standpoint. Hate the additions from a Sharks fan standpoint. But this is the first time the Kings and Sharks have both been good at the same time.
Phoenix - (10)Took a pretty big step back losing Bryz. Still no offense though. But they have the pieces to build
Sharks (1) - Hometown bias? Bet your ass but is there a better top 6 defense in the NHL? The biggest threat to them is LA though IMHO

East
Atlantic
Devils (7) - Hope they are more competitive than last season. Geez.
Islanders (8) - Young team building the right way
Rangers (11) - Which number will be greater? Number of games missed by Gabby or goals Gabby scores?
Flyers (2) - Talk about blowing it up and starting over
Penguins (5) - Still a good team even if Crosby and Malkin do not play.

Northeast
Bruins (6) - I feel like they won it all last season cause they got hot at the right time. Sort of like my Giants
Sabres (3) - Building from the blue line out. How is that going to work out for them?
Canadians (9) - Paging the offense. Offense. Are you there?
Senators (10) - I got nothing here. Sorry
Maple Leafs (13) - I'm sure Paul can help me out here but who is on this team to get excited about? Seguin? Oh, too soon?

Southeast
Jets (15) - Winnepeg Jets. Since 2011
Hurricanes (14) - Still need a couple more pieces to really be competitive
Panthers (12) - Spent a lot of money. But did they spend on Quality or Quantity?
Lightning (4) - Great front office. Good product on the ice. Playoff team for some time to come.
Capitals (1) - This one comes down to OV. Is he in shape or is he as fat as I would like everyone who picks in front of me to believe

[Pengwin7]

Joe Pavelski looks like he'll officially get first crack at RW on the top line.
Pavelski was my 8th/8 keepers that I decided on for our Sept. 1st deadline.

I think he has the talent to put up 80pts if he plays 80games.
Scored 39pts in 38games in calendar year 2011.

Link to McLellan's line comments:
http://www.mercurynews.com/sharks/ci_18898580

[ross10019]

Joe Pavelski looks like he'll officially get first crack at RW on the top line.
Pavelski was my 8th/8 keepers that I decided on for our Sept. 1st deadline.

I think he has the talent to put up 80pts if he plays 80games.
Scored 39pts in 38games in calendar year 2011.

Link to McLellan's line comments:
http://www.mercurynews.com/sharks/ci_18898580

As a big Joe owner I'm loving this. Pavelski and Marleau on his wings spells a big bounceback year, even perhaps back to the century point mark. Pavelski will take a ton of shots and wreak havoc, and Marleau and Thornton will benefit.

[bballplyr321]

Here are the lines for the first practice today.

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/sharks/...training-camp/

Hey, that's what everyone said three months ago. God I am so ready for hockey

[dyzfunctioned]

Joe Pavelski looks like he'll officially get first crack at RW on the top line.
Pavelski was my 8th/8 keepers that I decided on for our Sept. 1st deadline.

I think he has the talent to put up 80pts if he plays 80games.
Scored 39pts in 38games in calendar year 2011.

Link to McLellan's line comments:
http://www.mercurynews.com/sharks/ci_18898580

This is great news. Own him in two leagues and this may mean he gets c/rw as well.

Im looking for 70 out of him this year, anything above that is gravy.

[dyzfunctioned]

Welcome back Dyz. Glad you made it back ok

Just saw this now - thanks man.

[tgraveline]

I'm actually quite excited about this season. I think the Sharks are going to go further than before, which is hopefully more than just 2 wins in the conference finals. I've always felt the Big Pavelski had the skills to play on the top line, but was always held back because he's a center. Shoot that whole top line plays center. That's some versatility right there. I just hope that means Big Joe doesn't lose faceoffs for me as I have him. I don't think I can get Pavs in my league as one of my buddies has him and he loves the guy. With the lines set as they are today, that's how I honestly see them panning out once the preseason ends. Though, if Pavs and Havlat switched I don't think that would be a bad thing either.

[loco man]

What's Demers gonna do this year?

Second PP time I'm guessing. What is reasonable to expect?

[tgraveline]

I'm going to peg him at around 32 points unless he somehow works his way into more time. He's not going to get great ice time as he'll be on the third unit and Justin Braun is one to challenge that as well. They want a lot of grit and he's not that type. He'll get better, but don't expect too much from him. The second PP unit will be as good as a lot of first units when you count guys like Clowe, Couture, and Havlat could all be on it. But anything above 32 is gravy (as Dyz would say).

[bballplyr321]

Agreed with tg here. 35-40 points seems reasonable. He is the weakest link and Braun will be challenging him but he will be a fixture on that PP2. With all the questions on the bottom 4 for the Sharks, I can see them dressing 7 defensmen a LOT this season. So even though Demers might be the weakest link, the Sharks have made a commitment to working with him and letting him mature. He should be good for 75 games this season barring a major injury. He's not going to get you a ton of other stats in a roto league such as hits or blocks or even PIMs but he will be middle of the pack or slightly below that.

[kluu]

35-40? I'd say 25-35. Here hoping for a huge Vlasic breakout.

Demers showed some toughness in the playoffs. Don't think he can carry it all season long, but the ability is there. Getting a few pounds of muscle would help.

[bballplyr321]

Got a chance to check out the Sharks scrimmage today. Here are two up, two down

UP - Mitchell. Absolutely the best player on the ice today. Whenever he was out there, things happened. He used his speed and vision to create for those around him and always seemed to be in the right spot at the right time. I think this could be a good season for him.

DOWN - Hamilton. Not impressed at all. He was slow and turned the puck over. He seemed a step off all day. I know he has more talent than he showed today but overall, I was not that impressed.

UP - Doherty. The man is an absolute beast and you can see his offensive skills really starting to develop. He pushed the puck up the ice and got off a couple of good shots. I doubt that he really becomes a scoring threat but I can definitely see him as a punishing defensemen with some offensive pop.

DOWN - Acolatse. I have heard that Acolatse outplayed Doherty in the rookie tournament. Well I would not have guessed that based on today. He was definitely pressing. There were three or four times that he tried to skate through three guys and turned the puck over into an odd man rush going the other way. He was out of position countless times and just looked lost.

So there you have it. Two up, two down. Hope this helps.