NHL free agency as a method of team-building often seems to be regarded with suspicion by the hockey community. The perception that a limited pool of available talent on July 1 means those players who make it to market often require more money and longer-term contracts than prudent general managers can afford to commit is not entirely inaccurate.
Yet it’s also undeniably a way for a team with money and a good eye to improve itself. For the San Jose Sharks, the road to a 5-2 Game 6 win over St. Louis and a trip to the Stanley Cup Final depended heavily on general manager Doug Wilson’s work in July.
To be sure, the primary reason that San Jose is headed to the final round of the playoffs is the same reason the team has been good for so many years. Players like Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Logan Couture, Brent Burns and Patrick Marleau are still key contributors, still vital to the team’s success. They deserve much of, if not most of, the credit for San Jose’s deep postseason drive.
Yet the reinforcements Wilson added were vital in their own way.
Joel Ward&r ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Jonathan Willis
Sharks Newcomers Provide the Edge to Seal Long-Awaited Stanley Cup Breakthrough
May 25th, 2016 by Jonathan Willis Leave a reply »
Advertisement