Feb 19, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; San Jose Sharks defenseman Brad Stuart (7) and goalie Antti Niemi (31) defend against St. Louis Blues right wing Vladimir Tarasenko (91) in the second period at the Scottrade Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

So who are the real Sharks?  Probably somewhere in the middle.  In my Western Conference predictions, I had the Sharks finishing 9th in the West, on the outside of the playoffs for the first time since 2002-03 and only the second time since 1997-98.  I felt that although Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau might not be over the hill, they are certainly past the peak of the mountain and are on the decline.  They got off to a tremendous start, and propelled the Sharks to the 7-0 record, but since then have struggled to provide offense.

The Sharks are in a difficult salary cap position in that they have the 5th highest payroll in the NHL, and have almost $54 million of the $64.2M salary cap committed to just 13 players for next season.  That leaves just $10M for 10 players on the roster.  They have over $23M committed to 4 players (Thornton, Marleau, Joe Pavelski and Dan Boyle) who will become unrestricted free agents after the 2013-14 season.  Logan Couture will be a RFA after next season, but he is the only big name forward that will not be unrestricted.

The Sharks need to do something to free up salary and bring in some young talent, but what?  Should they fall out of the playoff race, look for lots of Boyle, Thornton and Marleau trade rumours, but what teams that are contending will have the cap space to add $6 or $7M to their cap for an extra season?  The Sharks could use the amnesty buyouts to clear some space in the off-season, but is the talent out there, or in the system to replace them?  The Sharks have not drafted overly well and there are not a lot of top-end prospects in the system, so they cannot really afford to give up a Thornton or a Marleau for nothing.  But keeping them just seems to be delaying the inevitable rebuild.  They have a couple of younger building blocks in place in Couture  (23) and Pavelski (28) along with Brent Burns (27) on the blue line.  Surrounding them with younger talented players is essential but easier said than done in today’s environment.

Thornton and Marleau are both 33 and Boyle is 36, and their days of leading the charge are waning.  They could be complementary pieces in another environment, but this group didn’t get the job done in their prime and there is no reason to believe that they will get it done now.  Couture and Pavelski are the future for the Sharks, but they can’t take over the team while the Boyle/Thornton/Marleau group is still there.  That leadership group couldn’t provide the means to get over the top in the playoffs and that shadow is still cast over the franchise.

Lots of question, with not many answers in San Jose.

St. Louis Blues players swarm goaltender Brian Elliott as they celebrate their round one victory at Scottrade Center. Credit: Scott Rovak-US PRESSWIRE

The St. Louis Blues became the second team to advance to round to, joining their central division rivals the Nashville Predators. The Blues knocked out the Sharks in 5 games, winning their first series in ten years. Last night’s game was a big one for the fans in St Louis, but also a nerve-racking one.

Blues thrived all year off strong defense and superb goaltending but their offense hasn’t always been as reliable. They saw that last night as 50 minutes in they still couldn’t find an answer to Niemi. Sharks had the only goal at that point, Joe Thornton scoring on a scramble in front of Brian Elliott.

Down 1-0, the anxious crowd at Scottrade Center awaited a goal from their Blues. Sharks had collapsed into their zone for most of the third, trying to defend their lead.  Jamie Langenbrunner gave them something to cheer about. With just over 8 minutes remaining in the game the veteran tied it up. Blues weren’t done. Less than a minute later David Perron tipped a Pietrangelo shot past Niemi and all of a sunden the Blues were leading.

Sharks had to find a way to get back to thinking offensive and quick. They put pressure on but the Blues defense were resentless throwing their bodies down in front of every shot. And if it did get through, regular season save percentage leader Brian Elliott was there to stop it. Blues’ Andy McDonald gave the team some insurance with an empty netter in the final minute, ending the game 3-1. The Blues came back from a hard game one loss to win the series 4-1.

St. Louis Blues goalie Brian Elliott (1) and Blues center Jason Arnott (44) are congratulated by San Jose Sharks goalie Antti Niemi (31) and Sharks left wing Patrick Marleau (12) at the end of the game. Credit: Scott Rovak-US PRESSWIRE

The San Jose Sharks who made it to the conference final the past two years, were officialy eliminated. They were the second team to be eliminated following the Detroit Red Wings.

Blues now have to wait to learn the round two opponent but should things hold in the Kings series (LA has a 3-1 lead) they will face Los Angeles in next round. LA plays this evening so the Blues organization will certainly be keeping and eye on that game.