Sharks Get Ready To Kick Off 2010-11 NHL Season

According to the folks over at the San Jose Mercury News the Sharks have decided on their scoring and defensive lines. Forgive me if my language is a bit off as my knowledge of hockey doesn’t quite match my football and baseball knowledge.

Line combinations
Marleau – Couture – Heatley

McGinn – Thornton – Setoguchi

Clowe – Pavelski – Mitchell

McLaren – Nichol – McCarthy/Wingels

Defensive Pairings
Murray – Boyle

Vlasic – Wallin

Demers – Huskins

Head on over to Fear The Fin to discuss the lines and everything else about the Sharks heading into tomorrow night’s opener.

As the San Jose Sharks prepare to kick off their 2010 NHL season tomorrow night, they took care of some final matters. This morning they officially announced that Joe Thornton would be the team captain. Additionally, Dan Boyle would be a permanent alternate captain, while Patrick Marleau and Ryane Clowe would split home and road alternate captain duties.

Head on over to Fear The Fin to discuss.

The Sharks official website is reporting the team has signed goaltender Antti Niemi to a one year contract worth $2 million.

The folks over at Fear The Fin are still pondering the move, but in the immediate aftermath they’ve found themselves with three questions for discussion:

1) Are the Sharks better today than they were yesterday?

2) What happens to Thomas Greiss?

3) Is this the Sharks team that will start the season in Stockholm (i.e., no other free agent signings or trades)?

The Sharks appear to be making a splash in free agency by getting another goalie under contract. Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet reports that the deal is done and Antti Niemi is set to sign as early as tomorrow. He reports that it appears to be a $2.0MM base deal over the course of one year.

West coast source has confirmed Antti Niemi will sign with the Sharks as early as tomorrow. I hear 2M base, possibly for just the 1 year.     

The signing comes as a surprise to many fans and analysts alike, the thought of Niemi coming to the Sharks with their limited cap room was one pretty far off, especially once the team brought in Antero Niittymaki. They seemed to be focusing more on the defense and have yet to make serious strides to illustrate that, save for signing Niklas Hjalmarsson.

Still, the fact that it was unexpected (for the most part, but definitely not out of the question to most) doesn't mean it's bad. It's generally a good signing for the Sharks, but again, it's not something that was a hugely pressing matter and it's left many scratching their heads. They're left with very little room to make any other signings this offseason, however.

Fear The Fin has some general speculation about this signing:

Pure speculation here, but could this be a situation where upper management wanted to go in another direction by signing a Stanley Cup winning goaltender, something that Jamison and Wilson were opposed to? The fact that Niemi's signing contradicts Wilson, Pollak, and Pollak's sources raises some questions about why Jamison was stepping down. Announcing a Presidency change at this point in the offseason seems strange to me    

Click the link above for more from Fear The Fin, out San Jose Sharks blog.

CapGeek.com is showing that the San Jose Sharks have reached a two-year deal with Jason Demers. The deal is for $1.25MM per year, which feels like a good price for a player going into his second year of NHL play. The defenseman played well last year, and may play into a bigger role this coming season as the Sharks look for help on D.

Fear The Fin has a couple quick notes:

A good contract for a good young offensive defenseman that could turn out to be Dan Boyle's replacement. Phenomenal on the power play, and with a full year in the NHL under his belt, hopefully the defensive responsibility will come along as well.

In other news, the Sharks have started talks with Joe Thornton on an extension. Thornton is a fan-favorite and a solid contributor to the team, after bringing back Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski, Thornton is another logical piece. 

"The onus is on us to make this a place guys want to play and stay at," Wilson said. "The group of players that we have, that have complemented us as an organization, that's something we hope to continue."

To keep the news rolling, the team is also reportedly close to getting a short-term deal done with Devin Setoguchi, SportingNews reports. Setoguchi got hot in the playoffs, sinking five goals to go on top of his 20 goals for the season.

A short term contract isn't foreign to the Sharks, who have been adamant in signing younger players to shorter deals. Setoguchi especially has shown flashes of great hockey in between spans of doing his best disappearing act. The team is confident that a deal will get done within a week. Setoguchi's agent echoes the sentiments to SportingNews:

"A kid like him doesn't mind rolling the dice on a short-term deal," agent Paul Krepelka told Sporting News. "I'm optimistic we'll get something done."

It was a fun thought while it lasted. Sharks fans toyed with the idea of a defensive unit boosted by Hjalmarsson, but according to Adam Jahns, Chicago Blackhawks beat writer for the Chicago Sun-Times, the Blackhawks will match the offer submitted to the Sharks. Via Twitter:

#Blackhawks will match Hjalmarsson's offer

The offer is worth $14 million and the thought was that the Blackhawks may be too constrained by the cap to match, but now it appears that won't be an issue. Niklas Hjalmarsson will not be a San Jose Shark in 2010. San Jose still has pressing needs on the defensive side of things, especially without Evgeni Nabokov around to bail them out as much as he did. They'll need to look elsewhere, unless they plan on pressing forward with re-signing free agents and the like, in which case I see the fan confidence plummeting.

Adam Jahns, Chicago Blackhawks beat writer for the Chicago Sun Times says over Twitter that the Blackhawks have yet to be in contact with Hjalmarsson:

When I spoke with Kevin Epp, Hjalmarsson's agent, an hour ago, he was yet to hear from the #Blackhawks. He does expect to hear from them.

As noted, one can assume the team will eventually be in contact but it's interesting to note that no conversation has been had as of yet.

Sharks general manager Doug Wilson has signed defeneman Niklas Hjalmarsson to a 4 year, $14M offer sheet. Hjalmarsson is only 23 years old and would provide a much needed on-ice boost to the Sharks defensive unit. Last year, the team had one of the weaker defensive units on the ice when it came to the top tier teams, but with Evgeni Nabokov in net it made the unit as a whole look better than it actually was.

The Chicago Blackhawks currently can match any offer on the young defensive stalwart but cap issues pose an interesting dilemma for them. They've already had to part ways with many good players and could be now faced with losing one of their most promising young players. SB Nation's San Jose Sharks blog, Fear The Fin had some commentary on that:

It's been well documented that Chicago has dealt with major salary cap issues since winning the 2010 Stanley Cup, and they've had to move out a significant portion of their Stanley Cup winning roster-- Brent Sopel, Dustin Byfuglin, Kris Versteeg and Andrew Ladd have all found new homes as of today. However, with a significant amount of money still assigned to Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Brent Seabrook, Cristobal Huet, Brian Campbell, and Duncan Keith, these issues have not subsided. Add into that the approximately $4MM that will count against the cap due to performance bonuses, as well as the upcoming negotiations with goaltender Antti Niemi, Chicago still has a long way to go before they become solvent.

...

Here's where things get interesting. Assuming they move Cristobal Huet to the minors, they free up another $5.625MM, leaving them with $9.225MM to work with. If Niemi signs for somewhere in the $2.5MM range they now have about $6.7MM to fill out their roster. Adding Hjalmarsson into the mix, that leaves them $3.2MM for three forwards, a defenseman, and a backup goaltender.    

It will be quite the victory if the Sharks are able to take advantage of the Blackhawks' cap situation and maybe exact a small amount of revenge on the team that eliminated them from the playoffs this past season. We'll know for sure in about a week.

Defenseman Jay Leach has signed a one-year deal with the Sharks, worth $500,000, CapGeek.com reports. He doesn't factor into a "significant" category in the great scheme of things, but the Sharks are getting a decent player for depth and filler who can contribute levels of play proportionate to the dollar amount.

Also of note is Evgeni Nabokov, last season's primary goaltender for the Sharks, signing with the KHL. "Nabby"  wasn't in the team's future plans and was informed as such before the draft by Sharks GM Doug Wilson. The team couldn't keep Nabokov for a number of reasons, citing a lack of cap space maneuverability as the primary reason.

If you're the type who can read Russian, you can check out the link here - or you can just trust in the guys at Fear The Fin and read what they have to say here. The general consensus seems to be "Thank God we don't have to play against him."

David Pollak of Mercury News has some little snippets of news from the Sharks. It appears that the team will not be bringing back Jed Ortmeyer, who is another fan favorite (there are a lot of those with the Sharks).

My sense is that the decision regarding Ortmeyer, who earned $550,000 last season, was a matter of the Sharks thinking they have other players in the system for that right wing slot.

Ortmeyer said Sunday that his agent learned during the weekend draft that the Sharks would not be offering another contract at this point.

"They said it didn’t look like there was going to be room," Ortmeyer said in a phone interview from his Omaha home. "Financially, it’s not like I’m a bit hit. I guess they’re going with younger players."

As noted in the article, Ortmeyer is coming off a double sports hernia surgery, and although he says he is on track and ahead of his recovery schedule, it probably didn't help his chances of being brought back. Many fans are wondering what is going on this offseason as each good move seems to be followed by a questionable one.

Malhotra's agent is still in talks with the Sharks. He says he's not worried about getting a deal done before July 1st; he'll likely test the market a little, but ultimately his desire to be back in San Jose seems to be legitimate. His agent and the team are reportedly not far off in negotiations.

Fear The Fin takes a look at the recent signings of Scott Nichol and Niclas Wallin and what it means for the Sharks going forward. The team still has notable free agents Devin Setoguchi and Manny Malhotra unsigned, and after the Wallin signing in particular, not a whole lot of cash to be throwing around to make such a signing with relative ease.

Niclas Wallin on the other hand, is quite possibly one of the most confusing situations to occur in San Jose in the last few years. His trade for a second round selection at the 2010 NHL Trade Deadline was questioned by us from the moment the deal became official, and a $2.5MM contract seems like quite the overpayment for a 35 year old who played largely on the third pairing during his twenty nine games in teal.

Wallin's contract will be the highest in his career, a 45% increase from the $1.725MM he made the last four seasons.

It seems like a rather staggering amount for a player who, as noted, was with the third line last year and wasn't much of a contributor. He's not a bad player by any means, but did the 35-year old really play well enough to earn a 45% increase?

CSN Philly is reporting that the Philadelphia Flyers have a verbal agreement with the Sharks to give up one of their seventh round picks in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft if the Flyers can get a deal done with goalie Evgeni Nabokov. Nabokov is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st, giving the Flyers only a short time to get a deal done.

The Sharks made it clear to Nabokov last week that he was not in their plans for the future and that he would not be re-signed. As the article above notes, it could be hard for the Flyers to get a deal done with Nabokov and his agent in such short amount of time, as he might elect to see what kind of market there is for him once he hits unrestricted free agency on the first.

Sharks general manager Doug Wilson has declined to comment on any specifics, but did note that there would be "some nuances", and as the article linked above notes this is likely due to Nabokov playing on the west coast for his entire career, would he want to relocate at this point, being one of the older goalies to hit the market this offseason?

Niclas Wallin, Scott Nichol and Andrew Desjardins will be back wearing the teal next season (barring any trades) at least for one more year. Financial terms were not immediately available. Nichol and Wallin figure to be important pieces to San Jose's depth.

On Nichol:

"We knew when we brought Scott in last season that he was ultra-competitive," said Wilson. "Not only did he meet that expectation, but he also brought a very business-like mentality to the rink each night, stepping up as a leader and an important centerman for us."

On Wallin:

"Niclas is a physical veteran presence and will help solidify our blueline," stated Wilson. "We were proud of the way he battled through a tough injury during the playoffs and are looking forward to having him at full health."

The Sharks now have nine forwards, six defensemen, and one goalie under contract.

TSN is reporting financial details that were previously not disclosed on the Marleau and Pavelski deals.

Marleau, who would have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st, has agreed to a four-year deal worth $6.9 million per year, while Pavelski, a restricted free agent, has also agreed to a four-year contract, one that will pay him $4 million per year.

As noted above, Patrick Marleau is set to make $6.9 million per year, which seems a little high at first glance but isn't too far from the norm. Most are just worried about his inconsistency and tendency to not show up for long periods of time, but it's hard to deny that he's worth that much money when it all comes down to it. Joe Pavelski will be making $4 million per year, a low number that begs the question of whether or not he'll have an increased role to work at yet another contract for more money.

Up next would appear to be players such as Devin Setoguchi and Manny Malhotra. With these deals, the team looks to have another $12.22 million under the salary cap this year to work with.

Update from Fear The Fin:

Heading into this offseason, Doug Wilson's top two priorities were plain for most to see-- sign Joe Pavelski to a multi-year deal, and see if a dollar amount could be reached with Patrick Marleau that was beneficial for both sides.

And as the news dropped today, it became clear that the organization had found those magic numbers. Joe Pavelski inked a four year deal worth $4.0MM per, and Patrick Marleau signed a four year deal as well, coming in at a $6.9MM cap hit annually.

"We are very pleased that Patty and Joe have committed to this organization now and in the future," Doug Wilson told sjsharks.com. "They expressed a strong belief in the direction this franchise is heading but also understand the challenges to keeping a talented group like ours together."

Keeping that core group together has been a priority for the organization following a successful playoff run to the 2010 Western Conference Finals. Fighting through some major setbacks against Colorado that saw two fluke goals go against San Jose throughout the series, and dispatching the arch nemesis Detroit Red Wings in a mere five games, the Sharks were poised to make a statement and finally break through to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance.

Chicago had something to say about that however, dispatching the Sharks in four. Although ten years from now the record books will callously indicate that a sweep abruptly ripped the dreams out of an entire city, the series was much closer than it appeared-- San Jose competed hard for the majority of the time, and a bounce here or there could have tilted the tables in the Sharks direction.

With the core locked up under contract, the attention now turns towards the compensation both Marleau and Pavelski received in these deals, and what that means for both the near and long-term future. We had previously slotted Pavelski in the $4.2-$4.5MM range after looking at some market comparables-- for him to sign a four year deal at $4.0MM flat is a great success for the organization, locking up one of the best young two-way centers in the game today until his 29th birthday. The penalty kill, powerplay, and even strength contributions Pavelski brings to the table are well worth that type of money.

Marleau's contract at $6.9MM is one that, at face value, seems to be on the high side when many were hoping for a long frontloaded deal that would extend to eight years at $5.0MM. But with Doug Wilson staunchly opposing these types of contracts due to the fact that they violate the intended nature of the CBA, it's likely that this type of contract was never on the table. It's hard to say Marleau isn't worth that type of money considering his all around prowess, and along with the 44 goals he scored this season, you're paying market value for a player who deserves to be compensated as such.

It's not a hometown discount persay, but when coupled with Pavelski's contract, Doug Wilson definitely had a successful day just twenty four hours before the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

With the NHL salary cap announced to be $59.4MM next season, San Jose currently has $12.225MM to work with when attempting to sign four forwards, one defenseman, and a goaltender. Restricted Free Agent Devin Setoguchi still requires a contract, and with most estimates pegging him in the $3.0-$3.5MM range after seeing Pavelski's compensation, that number will be cut to around roughly $9.0MM for three forwards, one defenseman, and a goaltender.

Provided a pair of young players from Worcester (McLaren, Ferriero) make the roster, along with an unrestricted free agent such as Scott Nichol, the Sharks would be left with around $7.0MM to land a top-pairing defenseman such as Paul Martin, and shore up the goaltending position considering long-time goaltender Evgeni Nabokov will not be returning. It's more than enough money to do so, and unlike last season, will not require a trade to get under considering the bump in the cap ceiling.

However, for a player such as Manny Malhotra to return in this scenario (who should make around $2.0MM per), trading away a roster player could be required if the Sharks wish to bring in some major defensive help. Ryane Clowe is the name that always comes to mind in this situation, but it's unlikely he would be dealt until after July 1st when Wilson has had a crack at the free agent market.

All in all, the Sharks have proved once again why they are a consistently successful organization. Although the team currently has $21.6MM locked up in their big three forwards, with Dan Boyle also making $6.66MM per year, the time to compete for the Cup is now. Joe Thornton's contract expires next season, but after that, the remaining three players are all under contract until 2014.

The implication? San Jose arguably still has a four year window to compete for the Stanley Cup. Taking into account the regular season muscle they have flexed during the last five years, that makes a decade of being in a position to legimately contend on hockey's grandest stage.

Hard to say Wilson isn't one of the better GM's in the game today.