San Jose Sharks face a number of questions for upcoming season -NHL Update
San Jose Sharks faced a tough time last season as they failed to get past the 2012 National Hockey League (NHL) Stanley Cup Playoffs with St. Louis Blues ousting the seventh place team in just five games.
With the next regular season quick approaching and not many new faces that would make a difference on the squad, it will be interesting to see how the upcoming hockey year plays out for the Stanley Cup yearning California team.
Now with Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks past the Stanley Cup milestone, San Jose Sharks are also looking for a way to get that cup above their shoulders, being the only California team now not to have one under their belt.
Inconsistent players, injuries were some of the biggest issues they had last season.
One of the biggest expectations that the Sharks have for the upcoming season is veteran right winger Martin Havlat and their optimism that he will return to his 60-plus points scoring average and eventually, get them to that Stanley Cup.
"Marty is an important player for us," general manager Doug Wilson told NHL.com. "If you look at our record with him in the lineup, it was very good. We missed him. … Having him back 100-percent healthy will make a big difference. He's trained all summer and looks tremendous. He's an important part of this team."
San Jose is also looking forward to the contribution of a number of other players like Joe Thornton, Partick Marleau, Ryane Clowe, Joe Pavelski and Couture as well. Giving a reference of how Los Angeles Kings and New Jersey Devils used all of their lines to maximum potential, GM Wilson is confident of a great season up ahead.
"You take a look at the fourth line from New Jersey where you've got [Ryan] Carter, [Stephen] Gionta and [Steve] Bernier," Wilson said. "Look at Los Angeles, [Jordan] Nolan and [Dwight] King came in, [Colin] Fraser and [Trevor] Lewis.
Sharks were also one of the best teams in regards to killing the penalties but are slowly coming off track. There will be a number of things next season that make the difference, which makes it even more exciting to anticipate.
Tags: