So we look the San Jose Sharks over the past couple of seasons. Who is one of two guys who has stayed with the team the longest? Well, there's Patrick Marleau. And there's also Evgeni Nabokov. Now I ask you; which one left? You would obviously say Evgeni Nabokov who left for the Russia's SKA St. Petersburg. Who knew? But who did GM Doug Wilson decide to bring in as Nabokov's replacement?
Antero Niittymaki.
That's right, kids. So the former Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender will take over the duties vacated by Nabokov. Unfortunately for the Sharks, this is not a guy who has played much in the playoffs. In fact, he only had 73 minutes in the playoffs for his entire career. The rest of that was in the regular season.
So here's a question: Will Nittymakki fare well in San Jose? Well, let me tell Doug Wilson this; could you get any lower? Do you really trust a guy who hasn't even played at the playoff level? Do you think this guy is gonna get you over the hump.
I'm not sure Doug Wilson is pushing the right buttons in his goaltending cue, but I would say Flyers goaltender Brian Boucher and backup goaltender Thomas Greiss could get this team back into the playoffs and win some games in it better than Nittymakki could.
But let's be reasonable. Wilson won't bring Boucher back and Thomas Greiss is not good enough to be a starting goaltender for almost all of the games. So you turn to Antero Niittymaki to carry your load. Sounds like a better choice than both of them at this point, in Doug Wilson's eyes.
Well, I certainly don't think Nittymakki can take this team all the way, but I'm hoping Doug Wilson has made the right decision here. It all could change within a couple of days. Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Antti Niemi is on the market. Maybe another sign for Doug Wilson to bring some experience to San Jose? Possibly because Niemi would probably be a better goaltender than Niittymaki.
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