At the end of last season, the San Jose Sharks had reason to believe Jason Demers was ready for a breakout season.
Demers had two goals and an assist to help the Sharks to a six-game, first-round victory over the probable 2012 Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings.
(Just like Jim Morrison said, "The West is the best!" And I know that the Kings will be the first team to win the Stanley Cup as an eighth seed, but can we limit the "You only need to get in to win" comments to the final weeks of next season?)
But more than his three points in the first round, the way San Jose struggled to get the puck into the attacking zone without him against the Vancouver Canucks spoke to his importance.
Instead of playing a larger role this season, Demers was mired in competition, keeping him from a major role after the trade for Brent Burns. Now in the last year of a contract paying him $1.25 million, Demers will turn 25 before being able to test the restricted free-agent market.
A good season probably means he'll be made a long-term member of the Sharks' blue line and will double his salary. A bad one will probably get him a pay cut and bury ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by MJ Kasprzak
2011-12 San Jose Sharks: Jason Demers Report Card
June 5th, 2012 by MJ Kasprzak Leave a reply »
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