Blackwood & Zetterlund Headline Sharks Fan Survey & Forum Results
Thank you to all San Jose Sharks fans who participated in this survey and forum!
Robert Edwards-USA TODAY Sports - Blackwood & Zetterlund Headline Sharks Fan Survey & Forum ResultsThank you to all San Jose Sharks fans who participated in this survey and forum!
Here are the results of all the questions from my survey! All results were anonymous and did not contain names.
1. Who is the Sharks MVP so far?
In a not-so-surprising result, goalie Mackenzie Blackwood is the overwhelming pick. His season has been excellent, and it's visible to anyone who watches a single period of hockey.
His .902 save % doesn't do him justice, as he has been the main reason the Sharks stay close in many games.
Tomas Hertl has started to produce the offense and become the powerhouse No. 1 center Sharks fans have come to know.
2. Who is the most surprising player?
There were many players to pop up on this list. I am glad I put it so fans can put whoever they'd like. Here are the top three picks I saw:
1. With 35 responses, Blackwood, yet again, is the No. 1 answer. He has been playing elite, and after a couple of rough, injury-filled seasons with the New Jersey Devils, Blackwood has returned to the form that got him into the NHL.
2. Fabian Zetterlund comes in with 32 responses. Zetterlund went from not scoring a goal after his acquisition to tied for the team lead in goals.
Yes, he only has six on the year, but his play and ability to shoot the puck are apparent night in and night out. He brings a sneaky physical style to his game that compliments his elite speed well.
Once Zetterlund got on a line with Hertl, he took off. He is continuing that trend with Mikael Granlund.
3. A combination of Mike Hoffman and Marc-Edouard Vlasic was used for the third answer.
With Hoffman, there could be a bit of a recency bias in response. It could've also been surprisingly bad if he hadn't started scoring.
As for the surprisingly bad, that is where Vlasic slots in. Yes, he is aging, and his play has dropped off, but Vlasic has been a healthy scratch in five of the last six games. For a guy with that contract, being in the press box night in and night out is surprising.
3. How optimistic are Sharks fans about the team's future?
This question is self-explanatory. Given where the team is in the standings, the optimism should only get higher. Top prospects like Quentin Musty and Will Smith are exciting, but more is needed for full hope.
4. Rank these Sharks prospects
This was the question I was most interested in seeing. Everyone views prospects differently.
My biggest surprise is seeing Kasper Halttunen down at No. 5. That isn't to knock the other players rated above him, but his success in the OHL gives me more encouragement for success at the NHL level than I had when he was drafted.
Henry Thrun's struggle to start the year may have caused some responses to be low, but his average was 5.47, meaning that he did get some higher ranks.
5. How many points will William Eklund finish with?
Fittingly, William Eklund got 72 votes to finish in the 26-40 point range. The slippery winger has shown flashes of his elite offensive IQ.
His eight points in 22 games this year fit the scale of him finishing in what is being predicted. I still think there is a chance he ends in the 41-45-point range.
6. How confident in David Quinn and his coaching staff are you?
Despite the horrific start to the season, David Quinn and his staff have the Sharks playing much better hockey.
There are questions about how the front office and Quinn handle the development of young players, but so far, I think they are doing the right thing. The Sharks are in no way close to competing for something big. Eklund and Zetterlund are in the top 6, and Quinn has shown no signs of taking them out of that role.
7. Which player has been the best under-the-radar player?
Much like question two, I expected a multitude of answers. There are no graphs for this answer, as there are all kinds of different picks.
Ty Emberson and Calen Addison are two primary responses to this question. Addison has started to grasp the Sharks' style of play and has begun to put up points.
Emberson just potted his first NHL goal and earned an assist in the following game.
Another name that popped up was Nikita Okhotiuk. The physical defenseman has struggled at times but is a steady third-pairing player. He continues to look more and more comfortable. Don't forget he missed a lot of time over the last year dealing with injuries.
The last answer I want to point out is Ryan Carpenter. Carpenter has solidified the fourth-line center role and provided solid penalty-killing skills. He is a plug-and-play player every night.
8. Besides goaltending, what has the Sharks' biggest strength been?
It is hard to pick something other than goaltending. The Sharks sit fifth in the league in faceoff % at 53%.
That and shot blocking are the two main answers fans put to this question.
Other answers include the players gelling as a team, Eklund adding an edge to his game, and Hertl acting as the captain while Logan Couture is out.
9. What is your favorite Sharks Memory of all time?
For these answers, I will copy and paste some of my favorite ones I have read.
"Gonna be tough to top Game 7 vs. Vegas, was going to leave the arena if VGK got the fourth. Didn't leave :D Honorary Mention: Game 7 vs. Detroit in 2011, nervous as all hell after being up 3-0 and letting them come all the way back Honorary Honorary Mention: Game 3 at Vancouver in 2013, Raffi Torres OT winning goal, stifling the shouts with a friend in the upper deck after driving up from Seattle earlier in the day Honorary Honorary Honorary Mention (because I can't help myself): Andrei Zyuzin OT winner against Dallas in G4 in 1998, five-year-old me got scolded by my dad for letting go of his hand to jump up and down as we walked through the mass of people leaving the arena"
"Ryan Clowe's shootout move. and Rafi Torres."
"Game 7 against the knights. I was in the third row and Pavs'' injury happened right in front of me. I have never seen the tank that loud before. I was riding off the high of experiencing that in person for days. Go sharks!"
"Brad Staubitz Vs Jordan Tootoo fight from 2009"
"Owen Nolan's' called shot at the All-Star Game"
"I was at the 2016 Western conference finals when the Sharks advanced to the Stanley Cup final for the first time in game six. I will never forget Danny Miller announcing "see you all in the Stanley Cup final!" Absolute goosebumps all I could think about is finally we were going to win the cup after all of my years of fandom since I was 12 in 2002. Obviously we didn't in that part is terrible"
"first game, home opener 2006 versus the blues. Cheechoos foot went THROUGH the boards and stopped the game for like 15 minutes while they fixed it. was my first game and they won in ot 6-5."
10. What content do you want to see more of on The Hockey News?
To everyone who answered this, I thank you for your input.
I hear the calls for more prospect talk and more San Jose Barracuda content. When I return from this road trip, I hope to do more stories about the prospect pool and the 2024 NHL Draft.
Now that I have been around the guys for 22 games, I feel like I can connect with some of them more. With that in mind, I will try to get more content out of their lives away from hockey.
To those who said they enjoy what I have on the site, I want to thank you for being an avid reader and fan of my work!
Once again, thank you to everyone who participated! I will most likely do a similar survey around the 42-game mark!
Make sure you bookmark THN's San Jose Sharks site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.
- Follow Max on Twitter: @Real_Max_Miller
