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Post by Tankdriver on Jun 10, 2014 19:55:06 GMT -5
The problem with being a setup man is if you team mates don't put the puck in the net, you end up being useless if you can't do it yourself. Joe wouldn't fit here as I don't think we have enough finishers her. Thornton and Kessel - that could be a dangerous couple.
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Post by PTH on Jun 10, 2014 21:31:30 GMT -5
The problem with being a setup man is if you team mates don't put the puck in the net, you end up being useless if you can't do it yourself. Joe wouldn't fit here as I don't think we have enough finishers her. Thornton and Kessel - that could be a dangerous couple. Not sure. Kessel's game is based on transition and speed, Thornton's is based off the forecheck, and most certainly not off of speed... |
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Post by Skilly on Jun 11, 2014 7:41:24 GMT -5
On a somewhat related matter ... from the Hockey News
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Joe Thornton would accept a trade if “the fans didn’t want him in San Jose”
Remember when the San Jose Sharks held a 3-0 series lead on the Los Angeles Kings and were outscoring them 17-8 in the series?
Good times, those.
Of course, the Sharks lost the next four and the Kings have imposed their will on everyone else as they now glide across the Stanley Cup finish line. Meanwhile, San Jose is in complete panic mode. Is Antti Niemi able to bounce back and win with this team? How will the Sharks replace Dan Boyle, beyond moving Brent Burns back to the blueline? Is this team a real contender, or should it get blown up?
Conventional wisdom is that something needs to change to answer such a miserable exit. Boyle is already gone and Havlat will be bought out at some point – but lately the conversation has shifted towards a much bigger star.
Do the Sharks need to trade Joe Thornton?
The soon-to-be 35-year-old – who had 65 frickin’ assists this season by the way – is a popular target after each playoff shortfall. But this year is different. This time, something must change and the perennial playoff underachiever tops a lot of people’s trade lists.
The problem is, Thornton just signed a three-year extension with the Sharks this season, which has a no-movement clause. So if the Sharks do trade Thornton, he’d have to accept it first. There’s no reason to believe Thornton would want to go somewhere that would give him less of a chance to win the first Stanley Cup of his career – and why would San Jose want to trade him to another contender?
Today, Thornton’s agent and brother, John, spoke out about the trade winds by suggesting Joe would consider moving on if he felt the fans no longer wanted him around.
From the San Jose Mercury News:
“If he felt the fans didn’t want him in San Jose, he might re-think things,” John Thornton said when asked if his brother would want to play where it was apparent he was not wanted.
Without naming names, general manager Doug Wilson has stated that younger players will now be given a bigger leadership role in the wake of San Jose’s epic loss to the Los Angeles Kings in the playoffs, and that it might be time for older players – no-movement clauses such as the one Thornton has notwithstanding – to depart.
That, John Thornton said, has not changed his brother’s resolve to stay in San Jose.
“He’s perfectly happy there right now,” John Thornton said. “He wants to stay there and win the cup. He believes they still have enough talent.”
So now we sit back and watch how this one plays out.
But, really, trading Thornton over this loss is a crazy panic move that would be very uncharacteristic of Sharks GM Doug Wilson. Thornton is a regular, effortless 70- or 80-point guy who creates all sorts of chances for his linemates. He was a top 20 corsi relative player this season, finishing with the highest mark among all Sharks forwards.
Who the heck wouldn’t want this guy?
If the Sharks really want to make a change and do it with a substantial player on the current roster, they should first look to Brent Burns, who will be moving back to defense from forward next season. But after the loss of Boyle, what the Sharks need is another reliable minute-munching defenseman who can stare down the top players in the Western Conference, not a project. Burns can be used to try and get that proven entity.
And if not Burns, how about Joe Pavelski? His versatility and contract (signed through 2018-19) makes him valuable. Add in the fact he led the Sharks with 41 goals this season and San Jose could have a lineup of teams willing to shell out all kinds of assets for him. Could San Jose get a defenseman or two, plus a good prospect for first round pick? What could they get for Pavelski? It’s worth exploring, because at 30 years old, odds are he won’t score 40 again, especially since he’d only hit 30 once before. So sell high.
Meanwhile, odds are Thornton will hit 50 assists again. And, heck, why not 60 again too? Dominant, offense-creating, 6-foot-4, 230-pound centermen don’t come along very often, so you keep them when you get them.
And you especially don’t trade them away when they have complete control of the situation, when you’re in panic mode, and when at least four other top-level pivots are available on the market. Wrong time, wrong place for a trade. The Sharks already made a commitment to move forward with Thornton when they signed him.
Who would you trade out of San Jose this summer?
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Post by Skilly on Jun 11, 2014 8:10:34 GMT -5
The problem with being a setup man is if you team mates don't put the puck in the net, you end up being useless if you can't do it yourself. Joe wouldn't fit here as I don't think we have enough finishers her. Thornton and Kessel - that could be a dangerous couple. This is true. I sound like a huge Thornton fan, when I am really not. If he landed in Montreal, I wouldn't be upset however. The stats show that Thornton is one of the most productive players in the league, even at 34-35 yrs old. How good was Joe Thornton last year? For starters he was in the top 20 in the league in Corsi, which means he was generating offense. Even his playoff Corsi, he was second behind Logan Couture on the Sharks and his relative Corsi was +5.4%, which indicates he was generating offense. He was also 17th in the league in even strength points per 60 minutes of play. The best reason I can see to try and re-sign Tomas Vanek is that Vanek was 9th in the league in this stat, and our next best two were 76th and 122nd. To show how good a set up man Thornton is, he led the league in even strnegth primary assists and was 2nd in the league in primary assist per 60 minutes of even strength play. If Thornton is on the market, I can't see us NOT being interested. He is signed to a three year deal, so we won't be locked in for too long. I wont be upset either way, but we need to find someone capable of generating offense. |
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Post by Cranky on Jun 11, 2014 13:55:22 GMT -5
The problem with Thornton is that he will cost one of Beau/Tinordi plus a goaltender plus......
No thank you. I don't want to give up future for the next three years of maybe more success.....or not.
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Post by christrpn on Jun 11, 2014 18:34:24 GMT -5
Thornton seems to put up DD like numbers if DD played with Thornton type wingers. Problem is that he's 35. We NEED younger impact players. We need our centers to be young and fast. The road to the cup passes through Boston. If we want the energy to continue afterwards, we need speed AND size.
Does anyone think we would be doing any better against the Kings than the Rangers are? Size and speed. Thats the key.
That being said, there are rumblings that Richards in LA might be available at the end of the season, Kings might either trade him or buy him out. expensive fourth liner. Any takers? Definite upgrade on Pleks if you ask me.
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Post by GNick99 on Jun 12, 2014 15:06:20 GMT -5
Thornton be good for a team like Chicago. Who already are deep down the middle
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Post by christrpn on Jun 12, 2014 16:40:27 GMT -5
Thornton be good for a team like Chicago. Who already are deep down the middle Spezza is another center thrown in the mix. Could you Imagine Spezza making his way to Chicago? |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Jun 12, 2014 21:13:08 GMT -5
Thornton be good for a team like Chicago. Who already are deep down the middle Spezza is another center thrown in the mix. Could you Imagine Spezza making his way to Chicago? I thought about Brian Murray and Doug Wilson talking about Spezza ($7 million)/Thornton ($6.75 million) ... SJ adds $250,000 in salary but only for a year ... after that they could decide whether to re-sign him or not ... on Murray's part, he saves salary the first year, but he's stuck with the rest of the contract to an aging veteran ... I don't think he wants that, more so after getting fleeced on the Bishop deal ... #wheresthedoorCheers. |
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