Petshark: Talking Stick
Entries with the tag: Jason+Demers
Jason Demers and other game day thoughts
by petshark on 03/31/12 at 06:30 PM ET
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This morning, Brent Burns was skating with Colin White. No one skated for long, but that’s what I saw. Predictably, the other two pair were Boyle with Vlasic and Braun with Demers. Forward lines pretty much the same as in the last game. From David Pollak’s observations, don’t expect to see Douglas Murray. Niemi starts. I mean, I assume he will. He left the ice first and there’s been no breaking news to the contrary.
The Stars, as could be expected since they played last night in Vancouver, mostly didn’t skate.
“The players know where we’re at. The time crunch is on them. They know what’s left. They know what the standings are. We can pretend it’s game 31, but it doesn’t feel that.” -Todd McLellan, Working the Corners
Neither team has an edge in the “we feel really pissed off about losing in our last game” standings. They should both be a little testy tonight. Have at it, fellas.
Yesterday, Kevin Kurz tried to answer the question of “What’s gone wrong with the Sharks?” His general points seem sound enough, but I was surprised to see which two defensemen he singled out as problems:
Filed in: , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Jamie+McGinn, Jason+Demers, Joe+Thornton, Justin+Braun, leadership, veteran,
Red Wings @ Sharks, pregame notes
by petshark on 03/17/12 at 03:50 PM ET
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Red Wings at HP tonight. Datsyuk in, Lidstrom still out. Franzen maybe but he didn’t skate this morning. The Red Wings are on a losing streak, some say it a sign of things to come for post-Lidstrom hockey in Detroit. Lidstrom may not be playing tonight but the Red Wings are not “post-Lidstrom” yet. Besides, Datsyuk is back. I am overwrought with concern for his health, quite appalled that they would let him play so soon after his surgery. He should by no means be playing yet, he should wait until Monday.
Too bad.
Even with Wingels’ recent injury, the Sharks are healthier than they’ve been in a while. If indeed neither White nor Vandermeer are injured even a little, playing Demers and Braun together may signal a real shift in philosophy for the Sharks. I like it.
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Tags: Detroit+Red+Wings, Jason+Demers, Justin+Braun,
Quicksand and Passing
by petshark on 02/13/12 at 01:00 PM ET
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I didn’t expect rain last night. When I heard it coming down, I worried that I may have left things out. It was so unexpected that I couldn’t even remember what I needed to bring in, I didn’t know where to start battening down the hatches.
I think the Sharks had a similar experience in St. Louis. Maybe they didn’t skate long enough in the morning to figure the ice out. Maybe they didn’t practice hard enough to notice. The result was a bunch of guys who all looked like they were skating with broken feet on dull skate blades. Once they were in the game, it was too late to fix a problem of that magnitude. Despite all that horrible bad luck and maybe a touch of poor preparation, the Sharks did some admirable things in this game.
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Tags: Brent+Burns, Douglas+Murray, Jason+Demers, Jim+Vandermeer, Joe+Pavelski, Michal+Neuvirth, Mike+Knuble, Ryane+Clowe, Washington+Capitals,
Win for the road
by petshark on 02/12/12 at 05:45 PM ET
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In just over an hour, the Sharks will hit the ice for their first of nine road games. That’s a long road trip, even for a team used to a lot of travel. McLellan says he doesn’t put much stock in the theory of road trip bonding, but he does see the benefits of getting away from the distractions of home life:
“Some of the players will get more rest on the road,” McLellan said, “maybe get an afternoon nap when the little ones aren’t jumping on you. The family activities obviously don’t exist on the road, so there is a chance to get a little more rest for some of them.” -Mercury News
That’s why people go on vacation or work retreats, to get away, be in the moment instead of the past and future and all the things other people need from them. Maybe I need to get away again, my brain is flying in six different directions right now, only a few of which have anything to do with hockey. At least a few of them do.
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Tags: Chicago+Blackhawks, Jason+Demers, Jim+Vandermeer, road+trip, St+Louis+Blues, Tommy+Wingels,
Dinner with Douglas Murray: 21k. Burns back in the lineup: priceless?
by petshark on 01/31/12 at 04:00 PM ET
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At the last minute I got a break on some tickets to the Sharks Foundation benefit at Club Auto Sport, San Jose (sponsored by Porsche and Joseph Georges wines). It seemed like the sort of thing I should check out if at all possible so I did. Granted, I have a moderately bad reaction to wine, and I’m no petrolhead, so it wasn’t the kind of event I would normally attend. Even so, there were some good wines and a lot of pretty cars that even I could appreciate after I got over the flushed, feverish sick feeling that hits me when I drink wine. Even a tiny bit of wine, it seems. They tasted good anyway. And how can you not love a DeLorean tricked out as a time machine? Yes, fun and pretty cars.
There were a lot of photos being taken but I didn’t see any autographs being done. That lent a casual, friendly air to the event. Of course I could have missed them if they were discreet. A reliable eye-witness I am not. I didn’t see anyone climbing inside the cars, it is possible that this was not permitted. I did not ask. In the back there was a little Ferrari room, with Ferraris in it.
The silent auction sold mostly large bottles of wine that had been autographed by the team. The live auction featured the ever-popular dinner for four with Douglas Murray. The high bid for that was around 21k. Um. Wow. I’m going to guess the event raised a whole lotta money for the Sharks Foundation.
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Tags: Columbus+Blue+Jackets, Jason+Demers, Jim+Vandermeer, John+McCarthy, Ryane+Clowe,
Welcome to the Year of the Dragon
by petshark on 01/23/12 at 04:30 PM ET
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Luck and legend distinguish the Dragon from the other symbols in the Chinese and Mongolian zodiac. It is said to be the very luckiest birth year, the sign of the emperor. Unlike the other symbols, a dragon is not the sort of critter most of us will see in our lifetimes. Since there are twelve signs in this system, that is a little surprising. The year starts today and ends around this time in 2013.
As someone who grew up in San Francisco, I guess I should say something about the Niners. They lost. Bummer for Niners fans. I wasn’t all that anxious for them to win because I feel that trips to championship finals disperse geographically in such a way that if the Niners had gone on, this would have been bad news for the Sharks. Look what happened with the Giants- the other Giants I mean. Condolences to Niners fans, may the loss not be in vain.
The Sharks begin the year in Edmonton. I don’t know if any of them attended a parade, but a big spectacle like an NHL game should do. Wow… that would be cool, if someone brought a paper and silk dragon to the game and sent it around the stands… I know, that probably won’t happen.
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Tags: Dan+Boyle, James+Sheppard, Jamie+McGinn, Jason+Demers, Joe+Thornton, Logan+Couture, Patrick+Marleau, Thomas+Greiss, Todd+McLellan, Tommy+Wingels, Year+of+the+Dragon,
Almost half way there
by petshark on 01/12/12 at 03:30 PM ET
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One of the things that stuck out for me in the Sharks’ Tuesday loss to Minnesota was how many times Niemi got run into or buried under bodies. He seems like a sturdy fellow but that has to be kind of tough on a goalie. That’s a special kind of failure to defend. That was just one symptom of breakdowns from the Sharks. There were enough such to have McLellan shuffling the lines and looking very cross. I just hope Niemi didn’t get banged up, bent wrong or otherwise harmed under there.
The television cameras gave us a good indication of why Ryane Clowe will be wearing a cage for the next week. Apparently the treatment of bleeding noses makes good tv.
Of course the last-minute comeback to push the game to overtime was fun also. That those goals came from the team’s usual suspects made me wonder about a couple of things.
Filed in: , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Anaheim+Ducks, Dan+Boyle, Jason+Demers, Justin+Braun, LA+Kings, mid-season+standings, Patrick+Marleau, Winnipeg+Jets,
Sleep with anger
by petshark on 11/29/11 at 02:59 PM ET
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-Last night-
To go to sleep angry is something you shouldn’t do. So I was glad that CSN showed the new Shark Byte right after that appalling game in LA. It was chock full of fun and cute things and happy cheerful banter. Something other than what was probably going on in the Sharks dressing room and on the plane home tonight. I hope, but that’s because I’m still a little mad. Maybe I should watch it again. The Shark Byte, not the game. That wallaroo was adorable.
I thought the Sharks would give a few strong performances here, since they were facing teams they should take seriously. The Canucks game was depressing but McLellan said it was a good effort. He’s the expert, so I’ll just believe him. But this game in LA was painful to watch. The team could not have been more disjointed if they had itching powder in their gloves and helmets. They were so very much out of sync, it was hard to tell who wasn’t making hasty wrong decisions and bizarre choices.
Filed in: hockey, , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Andrew+Desjardins, Andrew+Murray, Antero+Niittymaki, Brad+Winchester, Frazer+McLaren, Jason+Demers, Thomas+Greiss,
Red Card: Sharks @ Stars
by petshark on 11/20/11 at 11:00 AM ET
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I don’t know exactly what a red card is but I suspect it has to do with misbehaving in a soccer game. So I think it’s kind of ironic that I watched the Sharks @ Stars game at a sports bar called Red Card. I usually lean toward older, danker places where the wood (there’s got to be lots of wood) was steeped for years in cigar smoke and the leather upholstery is a bit alive with the scent of many bodies.
Red Card isn’t like that. It’s got shiny metal highlights and a lit bar that changes colors. It also has exposed brick walls and black and red leather upholstery. You know it’s a pub, even if the chairs and bar stools are of a distinctly modern design. It also has a bunch of satellite feeds so it gets pretty much any sports event you need to see.
I order soup and beer and watch the Sharks game begin.
Filed in: hockey, , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Antti+Niemi, Brad+Winchester, Brent+Burns, Jamie+McGinn, Jason+Demers, Jim+Vandermeer, red+card, Ryane+Clowe, Todd+McLellan, travel,
On the road again
by petshark on 11/19/11 at 02:00 PM ET
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I was surprised by how difficult it was to find a place to watch Sharks or Flyers games the first day I was here. I spoke to bartenders, hostesses, a hotel concierge and one bar-restaurant manager, and none could answer me the simple question: where can I watch a Sharks/Flyers game?
Answers I received:
-“We might show that if it’s on CBC and nothing else is on. But I can’t promise anything.”
-“Right upstairs”, to which upstairs responded “what channel is it on? Oh, no, we only show Canadian teams.” To which downstairs retorted “I used to work upstairs, I know they have a lot more hockey channels than we do down here.”
I did not go back upstairs to pursue this matter.
Filed in: hockey, , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Andrew+Desjardins, Andrew+Murray, Antti+Niemi, Brad+Winchester, Colin+White, Jason+Demers, Marc-Edouard+Vlasic, Todd+McLellan, travel,
Remember the 3rd, Sharks, remember the 3rd!
by petshark on 11/12/11 at 02:00 PM ET
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Tonight the Sharks play the Coyotes. Greiss will be in net. Wow. I mean yay! and also wow. Maybe the Coyotes games will be Greiss’ games this season?
The Coyotes are in 8th place in the Western Conference right now. That’s four spots behind the Sharks but only two points behind. I could say the Coyotes are nipping at the Sharks’ heels but sharks don’t have feet.
I don’t think many people thought Mike Smith was a great replacement for Ilya Bryzgalov, but considering Bryz was given the elite streets of gold treatment last Summer, I don’t think replacing him was ever in the cards for the Coyotes. But I also think a lot of people underestimate Smith. He made a pretty good showing in the playoffs for Tampa Bay. Combined with the Yotes’ tendency to show up and work hard, Smith and company might be one of those teams you have to be very careful not to take for granted, even if your last meeting was a blow-out in your favor. Remember the 3rd, Sharks, remember the 3rd!
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Tags: Colin+White, Dany+Heatley, Devin+Setoguchi, Douglas+Murray, Jason+Demers, Justin+Braun, Marc-Edouard+Vlasic, Mike+Smith, Minnesota+Wild, Phoenix+Coyotes, Todd+McLellan,
The green coats are coming!
by petshark on 11/09/11 at 05:30 PM ET
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The Minnesota Wild are here. It seems strange for that to be an alarming thing, but surprise, surprise they’ve won 5 in a row. Their penalty kill and their goalies are vying for bestest ever in the universe. Yes, the sky could fall.
That pk has been perfect for at least 5 games in a row, 21 or 23 successful penalty kills or something. But against who? Eeek! The Red Wings? Twice in a row no less? And the Canucks? Nobody panic. The Wild were feasting on the bleeding body of a Red Wings losing streak. The Canucks? Well who knows with them. Also the Blues fell in there, shortly before their coach was fired, and the Flames are in a muddle too. Also, the Minny power play hasn’t been as strong as the penalty kill. So, that five game winning streak and flawless penalty kill might be misleading. Certainly Yeo seems to think so, he was not happy with the team in their 3-0 shutout last night:
@Russostrib: Yeo very unhappy with #mnwiId play tonight - scoring chances allowed, penalties taken, lack of physicality”
Um… yeah.
Filed in: , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Brent+Burns, Colin+White, Jason+Demers, Jim+Vandermeer, Justin+Braun, Marc-Edouard+Vlasic, Minnesota+Wild,
The Kings’ new clothes
by petshark on 11/08/11 at 04:59 PM ET
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Here’s what’s been said about last night’s game against the LA Kings: “Sharks hold court over Kings in 4-2 win,” “Sharks learn from mistakes, trump Kings 4-2,” “San Jose Sharks defeat Los Angeles Kings 4-2.” Now that’s more like it, Sharks.
During the second intermission, I heard a man say behind me “3-1, huh? Isn’t that what the score was last time…” But another man cut him off saying “What the hell… saying that…. What are you trying to do?!?”
I kept telling myself “lightning never strikes the same spot twice, right?” Of course we all know that isn’t true, especially if you set up a lightning rod.
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Tags: Colin+White, Dan+Boyle, Douglas+Murray, Jason+Demers, Justin+Braun, Los+Angeles+Kings, Marc-Edouard+Vlasic,
Huh? Why? 5-0
by petshark on 10/30/11 at 08:00 PM ET
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They weren’t in Hawaii, but they were visiting Islanders, and now the Sharks are 5-0 on this trip. Their performance last night was lackluster. They won anyway, them’s the breaks, no point asking why.
@PollakOnSharks: Couture on #SJSharks 3-2 OT win: “I didn’t think we were very good, but good teams find a way to win games when they’re not at their best.”
A few things did have to work. Like Pickles. While the rest of the team seemed fairly convinced that they were tired, Vlasic doesn’t believe in tired. Probably he does believe in it, he just doesn’t believe he is old enough to suffer from it. We saw a clever and energetic performance from him. Vlasic is on a tear, isn’t he?
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Tags: Jason+Demers, Logan+Couture, Marc-Edouard+Vlasic, Thomas+Greiss, Todd+McLellan,
Sharks Training Camp 2011, Day 2
by petshark on 09/18/11 at 07:00 PM ET
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Sunday morning, Sharks Ice
I spent Saturday feeling like a rat in a kitchen, and I don’t mean an “ooh goody I found a bag of oatmeal next to this big wheel of cheese” happy rat. For the record, no one tried to stomp me, it was just a state of mind I get into when I’m in new situations. That level of crazy has subsided, partly because there is nothing scheduled that might involve me falling into a situation that is so insanely foreign to me that I start chewing on the walls. Another part of it is: they let me back in. I guess I didn’t break anything.
I’m sorry I don’t have a decent report from yesterday. I actually wrote a lot about that but it all boiled down to a drawn-out scream of “what am I doing here?” and had nothing to do with the Sharks. You can’t choose which part of the lake they throw you into, and you can’t learn to swim any faster for being thrown in the deep end. First time in the water, not drowning is a win.
Today it is almost like normal me being at practice, except that I don’t absolutely have to sit on the cold benches by the rink. I probably will go out there anyway, because not being able to hear the skating gives me the jitters. I ventured into the building without a coat. It’s like running around naked.
Filed in: , San Jose Sharks | Petshark: Talking Stick | Permalink
Tags: Benn+Ferriero, Colin+White, Jason+Demers, Justin+Braun, training+camp+2011,
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