3. Will the goaltending be better or worse in 2020-21?
Goaltending has been a major problem for the San Jose Sharks for a couple of years, and bad play between the pipes has acted like Kryptonite to this team and their hopes of winning a Stanley Cup.
Since emerging as a hero during that run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2015-16, Martin Jones has regressed dramatically and he appears to be broken after going 17-21-2 in 2019-20 with a 3.00 Goals Against Average and a .896 Save Percentage.
That’s not what you want.
So, what did the Sharks do to try and remedy a major problem? They went out and acquired another broken goalie.
Yes, you heard that right. San Jose sent a 2020 Fifth-Round pick to the Minnesota Wild for Devan Dubnyk during the offseason, who also suffered a disappointing season last year with a 3.35 GAA and a .890 SV%.
What are the San Jose Sharks doing?!
It is a good question and we will see if Dubnyk can resurrect his career in California and get back to being a solid NHL starter, while it will be interesting to see if the veteran’s presence lights a real fire under Martin.
One thing is for sure and that’s the fact that if the San Jose Sharks are to somehow bounce back and secure a return to the postseason, then they are going to need much better goaltending in 2020-21 and it will fall on to the shoulders of Martin Jones and Devan Dubnyk to deliver exactly that, or else it could be another long and disappointing year.