Season Preview Question Time: What Will We Get Out Of The Sharp-Shooter?

by SamFels on Sep 17, 2009 1:22 PM CDT

Ah, Shooter. Well, we know what's for certain out of him, that would be goals and goals, and a lot of moistened underwear (all of which would be McClure's). But there's more to it than that, as Patrick Sharp is not all that he appears to be.

Let us go back to Sharpie's breakout season of 07-08. 36 goals, dynamic play in both ends of the ice, and a budding understanding with Kane that eventually would border on hallucinagenically good (not even close to spelled right, but fuck it). He also saw time on the PK, was amongst the league-leaders in short-handed goals, and otherwise was a fine killer, both of penalties and of hearts.

To last year, despite the injuries, the goals were still there, but where was everything else? Coach Q took Sharp off the penalty kill, leaving it to the bottom half of the roster of forwards. We saw a few more lazy penalties, leading to a famous benching in Phoenix. But most disturbingly, we saw a fair-amount of floating, waiting for Kane to hit his tape in the crease. The most damning number for #10 is that in 07-08 is Behind The Net Rating was +.82, which for a forward is very strong. Last year, that plummeted to -.42. Sharp was bordering on a liability in his own zone.

Why? Did being off the kill snuff out his two-way forward instincts? Had the new contract gone to his head? Certainly playing at center for a large portion of the season didn't help. Especially when Bolland picked up all the checking assignments, leaving Sharp as a pure scoring center.

Let's be honest here, Sharp is a wonderful player. He only needs one chance to score, has a high hockey IQ. But he's capable of so much more. His career path in 07-08 suggested one that could eventually bend toward a Selke Award nominee, and the Hawks will need that one back. Sharp can be physical when need be, and he can be excellent in his own end, when he wants. As we discussed on Third Man In, a fully operational Sharp makes the Hawks immensely better.

Being put back on the kill would be a good start. It will remind Patrick of skating hard in his own end, as well as provide a threat to keep opposing power plays more on their heels. What we marvel at about Scum is every forward's effort on both ends of the ice. We get that from Toews. And Bolland. And Hossa. And Ladd. At times, Versteeg. The Hawks need Sharp to rejoin that list from the get-go.

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Patrick Sharp is a very handsome man.

HOCKEENIGHT.COM...home of FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS and the HOCKEENIGHT PUCKCAST!!!

by Forklift14 on Sep 17, 2009 1:43 PM CDT reply actions

Tell me about it.

www.secondcityhockey.com

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a goddamn shame.

by McClure on Sep 17, 2009 1:48 PM CDT up reply actions

Meh

I know he’s the one who the ladies are all supposed to go gaga for, but honestly he doesn’t do much for me.

That ball hit deep! Way back! You can put it on the boooaaaard...YES!

Long drive into deep right center field! This ball is OUTTA HEEERRRREE!
R.I.P. Harry Kalas 4-13-09

by HappyHuman on Sep 17, 2009 5:59 PM CDT up reply actions

My wife says Adam Burish is the best looking and sexiest on the Blackhawks

"Cubs will win 79 to 83 games." BLou (7/21/09)

by BLou on Sep 17, 2009 6:14 PM CDT up reply actions

Oh yeah...I love Burish!

That ball hit deep! Way back! You can put it on the boooaaaard...YES!

Long drive into deep right center field! This ball is OUTTA HEEERRRREE!
R.I.P. Harry Kalas 4-13-09

by HappyHuman on Sep 17, 2009 9:08 PM CDT up reply actions

Sandwich, anyone??

I’d love to be sandwiched between the both of them .. with a little Dunc on the side!!

by Fattylobo on Sep 18, 2009 9:40 AM CDT up reply actions

Sounds like one big Blackhawks bukkakke party. Who’s videotaping?

www.secondcityhockey.com

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a goddamn shame.

by McClure on Sep 18, 2009 10:00 AM CDT up reply actions

Tripod

We’ll put it on a tripod so you could join in too!!! My how the mind gets sidetracked … nice little diversion, for me anyway!!! Vivid imagination is a wonderful thing!

by Fattylobo on Sep 18, 2009 11:35 AM CDT up reply actions

Sign me up

I’ve usually got about 8-10 ropes to contribute to such an event.

www.secondcityhockey.com

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a goddamn shame.

by McClure on Sep 18, 2009 12:38 PM CDT up reply actions

On no other hockey blog

Could you find that kinda in your face coverage.

by NKLHD on Sep 18, 2009 9:07 PM CDT up reply actions

Sam’s been known to pull out phrases like “cum on tits sweet” and “porn star splatter accurate” and it’s a reason this site is bookmarked for me.

http://accordingtwomey.blogspot.com

by hawksfan21 on Sep 18, 2009 10:10 PM CDT up reply actions

Was it the injuries? Or was he just lost?

Pretty accurate assessment of Sharp, SamFels. I was attributing his dropoff in play purely to the injuries. But it seemed like late in the season, he just looked out of place. What you call “floating” I called LOST. I’m not sharp enough to stay on top of these things, but how many different line combinations did he have? How much did his ice time go up and down? It almost looked like he didn’t fit in.

Having said all that, I’m hopeful that he’ll be used in more situations this year—and I think you’ll see his play get markedly better. (Not to knock Coach Q, but he’s got to put the top forwards on the PK. How many shorties did we score last year, compared to under Savvy? Being offensive minded on the PK helps to KILL the penalty!)

And yeah, Sharp is a looker…. (Just don’t tell my wife I said that.)

by Preacher000 on Sep 17, 2009 9:43 PM CDT reply actions

'Cause every girls crazy 'bout a SHARP- dressed man

There are times when it seems that Patrick Sharp can do no wrong. Shorthanded goal here, PP goal there, one-timer goal everywhere there are those times you get the feeling that Patrick Sharp has all the tools to become a 50-goal scorer, but then there are the other times when he’ll go 10 or more games without a goal resulting in bad penalties and a lack of defensive effort and that is what worries me the most about Sharp, for when he is not scoring his overall play tends to suffer with it like a hitter on a slump taking his frustrations onto the field. This is why his play at times can be so frustrating to watch for we all know the talent is there for during his hot-steaks Sharp tends to play with a tenaciuos edge and carries a quiet confidence about himself, but when he isn’t his play deteriorates and becomes quite soft.
Whether it’s the fact that he needs to be on the PK full-time and/or needs to be paired with Daydream Nation on a consistant basis there must be something to keep Sharp subsequently “happy” to sustain his top-level throughout the long and rigorous season. In my opinion, leaving Sharp on the PK unit with Burish (his good buddy) would go a long ways in keep Sharp refreshed mentally throughout the season for Sharp tends to go stale when being paired with Toews and Kane at times, however keep in mind those ‘stale times’ tend to be few and far between. Making Sharp a priority on the PK and other important areas of the game will go a long ways in making Sharp’s contributions become more consistant- and that’s what we all can hope for out of Sharp.

Personally, I find the Ice Girls and (at times) the shoot-the-puck girl better looking than either Sharp or Burish….but that’s just me…that’s all.

It's never about the eventual destination, but rather the long journey and its challenging obstacles that are presented and what it takes to overcome them, that makes the taste of success all the more worthwhile!!!

by hawks61 on Sep 17, 2009 9:49 PM CDT reply actions

Someone said it best during the season

(paraphrasing) “I like my shoot the puck girls to be skanky”

by NKLHD on Sep 18, 2009 9:09 PM CDT up reply actions

Sheeeit

Lalime was dead sexy. Is he dead now? My lady be liking toews fine ass. She even liked those whack ass sideburns. Or to put it another way, she likeded them shits.

by ZootSuitZombie on Sep 17, 2009 11:35 PM CDT reply actions

Sharp

Has been paired with Kopecky and Buff during scrimmages. I know it’s only training camp, but there is something about this line that I like. Seems like it could do some damage…

by AirTrafficAJ on Sep 18, 2009 2:06 AM CDT reply actions

On the kill or at even strength as a full line? And if as a line, who’s centering that mess? That combo doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. Two (ostensible) puck-winners and a finisher. No playmaker.

www.secondcityhockey.com

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a goddamn shame.

by McClure on Sep 18, 2009 10:04 AM CDT up reply actions

Kopecky

Has been centering apparently. Seems like Q is pretty high on the guy, and Sassone reports that he’s got more ability than your typical grinder…perhaps he was underused over in Detoilet.

by AirTrafficAJ on Sep 18, 2009 11:11 AM CDT up reply actions

interesting

reading the initial post, i agreed with mcclure, just don’t see who’s going to be making the plays on that line – but i guess they’ve got time to figure out the best combinations, its only camp… maybe it’ll work out

"...but the devil lives inside this kid, I swear it. It rises out of him in a mist, this baby-faced defiant wrathful version of Pat Kane, escapes his bodily confines to perform satanic miracles all over the offensive zone. The only thing more fearsome than that assist was the keep-in preceding it. The only thing more unholy than his face is his black magic." GMH

by Illini0509 on Sep 19, 2009 1:40 PM CDT up reply actions

It may also have something to do with Bolland being out with a back injury lately. Something tells me Dowell isn’t going to hang on as a 4th line center anyway.

http://accordingtwomey.blogspot.com

by hawksfan21 on Sep 19, 2009 4:11 PM CDT up reply actions

Dowell

May be a career Rockford guy.

by AirTrafficAJ on Sep 19, 2009 8:15 PM CDT up reply actions

Excellent Analysis

Big Sharp fan here. The key question have been identified – can we look past the injuries and bouncing around last year and hope for a return to the 07-08 trend?
(BTW- the guy had some HUGE moments nonetheless, particularly his return when we were on the mat in Vancouver.)

My guess is that Q will fiddle with Sharp early on. Let’s hope he figures something out quick. More PK time a must, and keep him out of the circle.

Would they consider him taking Havlat’s spot and skating with Bollan and Ladd on what was the only stable line last year?

It seems to me that some combination of these three, plus Daydream and eventually Hossa, should be our top two lines.

IF Sharp takes it to the next (JHC?) level, our chances look very good this year.

by cliffkoroll on Sep 18, 2009 10:20 AM CDT reply actions

Nice Entry

I never thought that the drop-off in goal production last season could be attributed to his lack of time on the PK. I think/hope we’ll see the 07-08 Sharp return.

by ldengis on Sep 18, 2009 11:49 AM CDT reply actions

kane-sharp

game 2 vs. flames. Kane to Sharp on the backhand with speed. its goals like that when i cringe thinking about splitting those two up.

"...can i have a glass of whiskey and a slice of bread?"

by west_fulton on Sep 18, 2009 3:51 PM CDT reply actions

Can someone explain Behind The Net Rating for me?

What’s good? What’s bad? What are we looking for?

Albert Pujols for Cubs Starting 1B in 2012

by heine41 on Sep 18, 2009 4:48 PM CDT reply actions

behindthenet.ca

Though his stats pages are a little hard to read, there’s a pretty solid explanation on that site. Basically, it’s trying to improve upon the +/- rating, which is flawed. So it measures your team’s +/- when you are on and off the ice, and the Rating is the difference between those two. It also measures quality of opponents and linemates, so you can get a real sense for a player’s worth.

www.secondcityhockey.com

by SamFels on Sep 18, 2009 5:01 PM CDT up reply actions