Is 2011 Going to be the Year that San Jose Sharks Win the Cup?

The San Jose Sharks made a lot of moves during the offseason which included additions of Martin Havlat, Michael Handzus, Brent Burns, James Sheppars, Colin White and Jin Vndermeer; and also deletion of Devin Setoguchi, Dany Heatley, Scott Nichol, Kyle Wellwood, Charlie Coyle, Kent Huskins and Ian White. Overall, the changes worked out in the team’s favor.

The new players in the team could well be the ones who will help the Sharks win the Stanley Cup. White, Burns and Vandermeer are the best in NHL and they are all with Sharks now.

Burns has great offensive potential with his dynamite shot. Burns and Boyle will quarterback the power play and Pavelski will play forward. Vandermeer and White are excellent at defense. This sturdy pair will block many shots that will help the Shark significantly improve defense and inch their way closer to victory. If you check the last few seasons, you will see that defense was the Sharks’ nemesis. Mistakes in defense have often hurt the Sharks really bad during playoffs.

With experienced defensemen guarding the team, Jason Demers, the younger defenseman of Sharks, will have the chance to watch them in action and mature to be a better player. Center Michael Handzus, is not only good in scoring goals, but he is also excellent in blocking shots. This further strengthens the Sharks’ defense.

The second line of Sharks will be as good as the top line of many other teams. Martin Havlat, Ryane Clowe and Logan Couture are likely to be the second line. These are all players who can comfortably score 25 goals or more. Logan had a great rookie season in 2010 where he scored 32 goals. Havlat, Clowe and Couture are likely to feed off each other and up each other’s games and also the final points tally.

All in all, this year seems to be the most favorable one for the San Jose Sharks to bring home the coveted Stanely Cup.