Grieving, Part II

Read Part I here.

If your car was stuck in a muddy ditch, you wouldn’t just keep revving the accelerator, spinning your tires, would you? You wouldn’t take a hammer to a square peg, trying to jam it into a round hole, would you? You would stop, consider your options, and take a different course of action.

The San Jose Sharks have been stuck in the muddy ditch of failure for five consecutive postseasons. Revving the tires one more year will only lead to more failure. Something big has to change.

Doug Wilson has taken some heat for the team’s postseason failures and lack of impact from deadline acquisitions. Despite that, he has put a winning team on the ice every year since becoming the General Manager. Wilson cannot be held completely accountable for the team’s on ice performance, especially when the players and coaches have been given every tool needed to succeed. Doug Wilson, don’t go anywhere.

One year ago, Ron Wilson was ousted as head coach and replaced by Todd McLellan. Under Coach McLellan, the Sharks took a more offensive-minded approach to the game, focusing on big shots from the blue line banged in by forwards on the doorstep. The system lead to San Jose’s most successful regular season in team history. It also led to the Sharks first round ouster. The team’s wildly successful start to the season was followed by injuries and disappointing performances in the second half. It’s reasonable to assume rookie head coach McLellan wasn’t ready to modify his system once defenses started to adapt to the new Shark style, or that he was unable to correctly adjust for the wave of late-season injuries (GREAT article by Mike Chen here). Rookies make these kinds of mistakes, but McLellan has shown incredible promise. Good luck in your second year, coach.

That brings us to Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton, and Evgeni Nabokov. I love you guys. I really do. My first ever personalized jersey is a #19 Joe Thornton. There’s nothing like seeing Patrick Marleau take 3 strides and completely burn past the defender on a breakaway. Nabokov has made the fans in the Tank scream countless times with an incredible sprawling save. I love watching you guys, it’s been incredible following you these past few years, which makes it so tough to say – it’s time for some of you to no longer be San Jose Sharks.

I’m not questioning your talents. Those are indisputable. I’m not questioning your heart. I know you all desperately want to win the Stanley Cup, to shake the stigmas attached to your careers, to be Champions.

Simply put, there’s too much baggage, too many negative thoughts and feelings, and too little faith in the San Jose Sharks to keep you together any longer.

Check back Monday at noon for the third and final installment.