12
Just when you thought not much of anything was happening on the third day of NHL free agency, along come the San Jose Sharks to make an intriguing move, one that will undoubtedly convince some people (me included) that they are legitimate Stanley Cup contenders again.
The Sharks, of course, disappoint on a more regular basis than any other NHL team. For years, they've been poised on the cusp of a playoff breakthrough — and every year in the past four seasons, they've been in the NHL's final eight, something no other team can claim.
But that's been the problem. Once they get close, the Sharks generally find a way of coming up short. It happened again this past season when, after just sneaking past the Calgary Flames in seven games in the opening round, they lost to the Dallas Stars in the second round, despite home-ice advantage.
The Sharks have made a habit of this lately — falling flat on their collective faces. Close but no cigar should be the team motto; maybe they can get a manufacturer of quality Havanas to sponsor them next season.
Still, just when you think they're ready to take a step backwards, the Sharks stepped up Thursday and made a surprise signing — getting defenceman Rob Blake, most recently of the Los Angeles Kings, to come north and sign a one-year, $5 million contract.
Blake compared the move to San Jose as "similar" to when he joined the Colorado Avalanche in 2001 and helped them win a Stanley Cup right away.
"You go in there and you want to fit in and you want to help them in any way possible," said Blake.
Truth is, the Sharks and Blake always looked like a match made in playoff hockey heaven. The Sharks were oh-so-young on the blue line and oh-so-inexperienced in learning how to win games when it mattered. Blake is a former Stanley Cup champion and a perennial Norris Trophy candidate who midway through last season, started to play like a kid again, after working through some issues with his chronically sore hips.
So how come it took so long for Blake and the Sharks to hook up?
Pressed for details, Sharks general manager Doug Wilson would only say he'd been pursuing Blake for a long time, likely two years, at two separate trading deadlines.
That he finally landed him Thursday helps to fill the void caused by Brian Campbell's departure as an unrestricted free agent. Campbell cashed in with an eight-year, $56.7-million deal with the Chicago Blackhawks, the biggest contract thus far in the current season of free-agent lunacy.
"We've been looking to add pieces to help us get to the next level and the one thing Rob has is that he's won a Stanley Cup," said Wilson. "You need people that will perform and can get into a playoff situation and guys can look at him and say he's been there and done it. There's a bit of a theme you're seeing. Our head coach (Todd McLellan, as an assistant with the Red Wings) won a Cup a little while ago, Rob Blake won a Cup. It's a couple of pieces we needed to add to this team to get to where we want to get to."
In Blake, the Sharks get a better all-around player than Campbell, with a winning history that cost them considerably fewer dollars. Blake's presence in the line-up doesn't necessarily guarantee playoff success, but he sounded motivated by the change of scenery Thursday and perhaps a little disappointed that the Kings didn't try harder to keep him.
"I made a decision about a month ago that I wanted to play again," said Blake. "When that wasn't going to happen in Los Angeles, obviously I had to look elsewhere and San Jose was a team I've always admired. They have a ton of potential. They're on the verge of being right there every year.
"So the exciting part was just moving up the road a little and playing for a championship again."
Wilson thought that in the second half of last season, Blake played some of his best hockey of the recent past, a function he said of being healthy again.
"Early in the season, I had some issues with health," acknowledged Blake. "When you get up a little bit in age, and you have those major surgeries in the off-season, it does take time. That's what convinced me down the stretch — I still wanted to continue playing, that I still had a drive. To watch the Stanley Cup playoffs and see how exciting it is, you definitely get your body back into that rhythm."
In the Pacific Division, Blake saw a lot of the Sharks, the Anaheim Ducks and the Dallas Stars, three teams that have all had some playoff success in the past half-dozen years.
"Obviously, San Jose's had a couple of disappointing, frustrating playoff losses in the past couple of years," said Blake. "Sometimes, you need that to make the next step. I see this team as a very hungry team. I think their leaders in Patrick (Marleau) and Joe Thornton are hungry to get to that next level of winning. If I can come in and help provide a little spark, all the better."
Blake went on to say about the defending champion Red Wings: "If you look at Detroit last year, they were dominant from start to finish and they showed it in the playoffs again. But I think the more you take cracks at it, the more you understand.
"The Sharks have played a lot of playoff games in the past four years, right up there with the likes of Detroit. They've taken those steps. Now it's time to take that next one. If we can get everything together, it's a great challenge, but I think the team's ready for it."
Some of us might argue that it's been ready for quite awhile.
