San Jose Sharks Unpopular Opinion: Time to Move On from Thornton
The San Jose Sharks are stuck between a team on the rebuild and a contender. Moving on from Joe Thornton should make that decision easier.
Joe Thornton is one of the most popular players in the league. He is perhaps the most popular in the Northern California area. Heck, Thornton might well be the best player to play in California since Wayne Gretzky. His laid-back attitude helped make him an ideal captain for the Sharks and he’s a great locker room presence. It also doesn’t hurt that Thornton won a Hart and an Art Ross with the San Jose Sharks despite being traded in November. He is one of the best passers in NHL history.
However, the Sharks are in a time of transition. Thornton is easily the best player in franchise history and they wouldn’t be where they are today without him. But it’s time for the Sharks to move on from him.
Why Move On
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Thornton isn’t worth the contract the San Jose Sharks gave him. They paid him for his past performance and not future. That’s one of the biggest mistakes a GM can make in the salary cap era. Ironically, it’s a very common mistake as well.
$8 million a year for seven goals and 50 points isn’t a worthy investment. Especially when Thornton looks like he might score fewer points this year.
With 16 points in 26 games, Thornton is no longer a point-per-game player. It’s more because of his age more than anything. Thornton’s turning the puck over more often, has grown slower, and is playing fewer minutes. He’s not a guy who can play 20 minutes consistently anymore. Again, that isn’t worth the eight million.
Thornton is seventh on the team in Corsi For percentage, and his relative Corsi is eighth on the team. What makes this a red flag is Thornton used to be among the top five at worst, and usually the top three. He’s still a great two-way center, but his production is leaving him.
Thornton’s been on the ice for more goals against than scored at even strength, and that’s despite a 61.8% offensive zone start rate. He is fifth on the team in time on ice against the stiffest competition, and that’s despite playing with the best teammates. Simply, Thornton is not a number one center anymore.
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How This Helps
Because for what seems like a decade, the San Jose Sharks’ brass has been saying that this is Logan Couture’s team. Joe Pavelski is the captain now. The leadership has its own experience, and while Thornton helped to foster that, he’s not a key part anymore. The Sharks need to fully hand the keys to the franchise over to Couture and Pavelski at last.
Moving on from Thornton would also free up money to give younger players who can play with more energy and at a faster pace. Couture is finally playing more minutes than Thornton. There aren’t many players in the minors who can be a top six center for this team, but that’s why free agency exists.
It would let the rest of the team decide if they’re a contender or if they should enter a rebuilding period. Either way, with Brent Burns’s and Marc-Edouard Vlasic’s contracts, the Sharks need to find future money wherever they can. It might be difficult for every party involved, but Thornton leaving San Jose would be best for everyone.