Michalek-Thornton-Cheechoo
Marleau-Pavelski-Clowe
McGinn-Mitchell-Setoguchi
Shelley/Frazer McLaren-Nichol-Staubitz

Vlasic-Blake
Huskins-Boyle
Ehrhoff-Murray

Well, that lineup puts the Sharks at $59.5M plus whatever amount Staubitz gets as an RFA. If that really is the linup Todd has penciled in for his team, he didn’t learn a damn thing about the cap from his time in Detroit because I’m guessing the League’s not gonna allow that.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 07/25/09 at 05:07 PM ET

None of that matters.  Here is the portion of the lineup card that does:

Nabokov.

Posted by HockeyinHD on 07/25/09 at 05:33 PM ET

Expect that our brillant GM Doug Wilson will pull the Kyle McLaren move with Cheechoo this year, because really he has no other choice. Wilson will send Cheech down to the AHL to give the sharks needed cap relief and then hope that someone anyone will give him a bag of pucks or a 6th round draft pick for Cheechoo. Right now our brillant GM has painted himself into a corner by signing players such as Murray and Michalek to overpaid contracts.

Wilson is too dumb to make a trade at this stage, instead he will wait until the season starts and then try and dumb off Cheechoo and then wait until the deadline where he will once again mortgage the sharks future by trading off yet another first round pick for a rental player who will succeed in doing nothing to help the Sharks win the Stanley Cup.

Erhroff for Chimera a great deal for the Sharks and cap relief also.

Heatley to the Sharks! LOL! no chance in he** that will happen so just forget that one. Will never happen guaranteed.

Posted by FireDougWilson on 07/25/09 at 08:22 PM ET

You have my sympathies, FDW. Seriously. We loved Todd McLellan when he was here in Detroit and it looked like he was poised to out-Babcock Uncle Mike last year, but it didn’t turn out that way. So, when you look up the organizational ladder and see Wilson there (instead of a guy like Kenny Holland), I get your frustration. But when it comes to this…

GM Doug Wilson will pull the Kyle McLaren move with Cheechoo this year, because really he has no other choice. Wilson will send Cheech down to the AHL to give the sharks needed cap relief and then hope that someone anyone will give him a bag of pucks or a 6th round draft pick for Cheechoo.

...it ain’t gonna happen. If the Sharks put Cheechoo on waivers, any team that might give them a “bag of pucks” for the guy, will either take him for nothing on the way down to the AHL or get him for half price if the Sharks ever try to recall him. But if he does go to the AHL, at last you’ll get just enough cap relief to make it under the $56.8M ceiling.

For Todd’s sake and yours, I hope the Sharks do well this year. And I hope they make it to the Western Conference Finals…where they’ll lose to the Wings in an epic triple-overtime game.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 07/25/09 at 08:49 PM ET

where they’ll lose to the Wings in an epic triple-overtime game.

I agree with you about everything but that.  My heart can’t handle a triple-OT conference finals-deciding game.

Posted by Garth on 07/25/09 at 10:48 PM ET

I agree with you about everything but that.  My heart can’t handle a triple-OT conference finals-deciding game.

Here here, especially if those damned water fowl are waiting for the Wings in the SCF…again…

Posted by mrfluffy from Long Beach on 07/25/09 at 10:58 PM ET

I agree with you about everything but that.  My heart can’t handle a triple-OT conference finals-deciding game.

As long as the Wings don’t have to go through the goons of Anneheim to get to the WCF, the Wings can handle it just fine…especially this coming season. The 2009-2010 Wings are going to be much tougher than last year’s team. Of course, in part, I’m basing that prediction on Mike Greer being the final addition to the team. [That ought to drive Primis right through the wall. ]

But seriously, I do hope the Sharks make some sort of respectable showing this year. I think Todd McLellan is a great guy and I want to see him suceed as far as he can without preventing the Wings from reaching the Stanley Cup Finals.

And if we face the flightless birds in the SCF, I hope it goes to seven games again (with a completely different outcome, of course) because I think Dan Bylsma is the second best coach in the NHL.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 07/25/09 at 11:21 PM ET

There’s still a whole two months before the season starts so there’s a lot of time left to make decisions.  I’d rather wait awhile to make sure he’s making a rational decision instead of knee-jerk reactions.  He’s thinking it out right and I think we’re going to see quite a different line-up when we get started.  Patience, my friends.  Mr Wilson has done an admirable job.  He will build the best team he can.  It’s up to the highly talented lineup to finish it.

Posted by Matt Fry from Winnipeg on 07/25/09 at 11:33 PM ET

the Wings can handle it just fine

Hah, I’m not saying they can’t handle it.  I’m saying *I* can’t!  I had 100% confidence that the Wings would beat the Ducks this year, but I still almost had about 300 heart attacks between the trip OT game and game 7…

Posted by Garth on 07/25/09 at 11:45 PM ET

Sorry Matt,

I ve seen this Wilson song and dance game over and over again, and the end product doesn’t change much. Its gonna be a move such as dropping Cheechoo or Lukowich, and putting a Couture in the lineup that’s all that is going to happen. Wilson and his song and dance act is old really old. We know what to expect which is what we have already gotten this off-season lots of nothing. Blaming and dropping players who didn’t even play very much in the playoffs. Yes Dougie we understand it was Marcel Goc’s and Mike Griers faults that we lost in the playoffs ok.

The only move that Wilson could make now is to get a player such as Heatley on the team, otherwise this team is going nowhere come playoff time. While Wilson preaches patience (he does that because he knows San Jose Fans will forget what he said at the end of season talk with season ticket holders). Every other NHL team is getting ready to start their season. With the possible exception of 1 or 2 teams nobody is going to make any major moves in August, it just doesn’t happen.

Wilson’s only move will be to once again trade away the teams future by trading away draft picks to acquire some player at the deadline who will in the end make no difference.

What Wilson won’t tell the fans is that deadline deals for big name players don’t work, and seldom make any difference at all. It’s the players that go through training camp and play an entire season under a coaches system that are the most valuable players come playoff time. Wilson doesn’t get it, but Holland gets it.

Posted by FireDougWilson on 07/26/09 at 12:21 AM ET

Sorry… Forgot about Guerin and Recchi this year?  They played fantastic for their new teams in the playoffs.  Yes, we haven’t had much success in trade deadline deals and I don’t personally think we should even get into deadline deals.  They usually don’t work.  But like I said, there are still two months until the season starts which means lots of time to “fix” the team.  Plus, Remember, he got Thornton in a November deal and Boyle in a summer trade.  Like I said, the players need to step up and we’ll be flying.  If anyone, I think we need to get rid of Thornton.  IF we can get the the WCF without him, we can do it again.

There’s no way I would even WANT Heatley on the team.  The way he’s handled this Ottawa Situation, not a team player.  We don’t need another 7 million dollar man on the team.

Posted by Matt Fry from Winnipeg on 07/28/09 at 06:15 PM ET