Darryl Hunt: WorSharks Open 2008 Training Camp

The Worcester Sharks opened their 2008 training camp yesterday at the Hart Center on the campus of The College of The Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. As with day one, day two featured a scrimmage between the "black" and "gray" teams.

Team Black consisted of two players from last season's team: Frazier McLaren and Ashton Rome. They were joined by former Worcester IceCat Brendan Buckley and free agent signees Ryan Vesce and Matt Fornataro, along with several players on amateur or professional try out contracts.

Team Gray had four WorShark players on it: P.J. Fenton, T.J. Fox, Matt Jones, and Patrick Traverse. Free agent signee Brett Westgarth and others on amateur or professional try out contracts filled out the roster.

The three goaltenders in camp, Ryan Daniels, Derek MacIntyre, and Kile Jones, rotated in for both teams.

Team Black got on the scoreboard first when Wes Clark (ATO, NCAA-University of Maine) picked a lose puck out of a scrum in front of the net and flipped a backhand over a sprawled Derek MacIntyre (ATO, NCAA-Fenris State).

It looked like Team Black would take that 1-0 lead into the locker room, but Patrick Traverse intercepted a pass in the neutral zone and broke in two on one with P.J. Fenton. Fenton handcuffed Ryan Daniels (ATO, OHL-Saginaw) with a quick wrist shot to knot the game at 1-1.

Early on in the second half Brendan Buckley fired a slap shot directly off a face off win and just past the outstretched right pad of Daniels, now playing for Team Gray, to give Team Black a 2-1 lead.

Team Gray would tie it at 2-2 later in the half with the game's final goal when Nate Bostic (ATO, NCAA-Niagra University) flipped a lose puck past Kile Jones.

Team Gray had the only power play during the game, and didn't record a single shot on goal.

CAMP NOTES
The first half was played fairly wide open, with all three goaltenders making decent saves. The second half was much more physical, with big hits being recorded by both sides.

Andrew Desjardins (PTO, CHL-Laredo) looks to be the cream of the try out crop, with several big hits during the game. He also shrugged off a couple of hits while he had the puck, and skated well throughout the game.

Jamie Carroll (PTO, IHL-Port Huron) is another player that had a very good game. He skated very well and has good puck presence.

It was funny to watch some of the younger players try and deke around Traverse. As he enters his 15th professional season it's safe to say Traverse has seen just about every move there is, and he picked the pocket of at least half a dozen Team Black players.

The few fans gathered to watch the scrimmage thought they were going to see a fight between Frazier McLaren and Brett Westgarth after McLaren crashed the net looking for a lose puck. They jawed for a few moments, and then both broke into huge smiles. McLaren's first pro fight last season was against Brett's brother Kevin, who played for division rival Manchester.

Dan DaSilva (PTO, AHL-Lake Erie) was unable to participate in camp for the second straight day because his equipment had not yet arrived. "It's tough because I'm playing on a try out and can't earn a spot sitting here" he said during the scrimmage's half time. His frustration had eased from yesterday as his equipment had finally been located, and was supposed to be arriving some time this afternoon.

The lines, as listed on the roster handed out and in no particular order, were:

Team Black:
Clark/Desjardins/Travis
McLaren/Fornataro/Rome
McEwan/Cleaver/Carroll
X/Vesce/X

Kinch/Buckley
O'Hanley/Youngclaus

Team Gray:
Fenton/Fox/Jones
Osman/Esner/X
X/Guyer/Bostic

Traverse/Westgarth
Rawlyk/Burke
VanderVeeken

During day one, Team Gray won the scrimmage 6-4.

The WorSharks open their preseason schedule tomorrow against Hartford at Trinity College. The players scheduled to play are:

Forwards: Rick Cleaver, Dominic Osman, Frazer McLaren, James McEwan, Bryan Esner, Gino Guyer, Andrew Desjardins, Wes Clark, Dan Travis, Jamie Carroll, Ashton Rome, Nate Bostic.

Defense: Jamie VanderVeeken, Rory Rawlyk, Brian O'Hanley, Matt Burke, Phil Youngclaus, Brett Westgarth.

Goaltenders: Derek MacIntyre and Ryan Daniels.

Player movements announced 9/29

Not yet announced by the San Jose Sharks, but Tomas Plihal and Alexei Semonov's contracts have been finalized.

San Jose Sharks signed D Jason Demers, 2008 7th round pick, to a NHL three year entry level contract. As Jason is 20, he will most likely spend time in Worcester this season.

On Monday, the San Jose Sharks announced the assignment of seven players to the Worcester Sharks camp, and released one player. The AHL Worcester Sharks camp opened on Monday; schedule and preliminary roster can be found here.

Current body count: 36 in NHL camp; 32 in AHL camp

Early parade to penalty box key in Vancouver Canucks 3-2 preseason win over San Jose

#33 BRIAN BOUCHER MAKES A SAVE IN THE 3RD PERIOD

SAN JOSE SHARKS DEFENSEMAN #5 ROB BLAKE EVADES #17 RYAN KESLER

#11 MARCEL GOC AND #55 MIKE MOORE PLAY THE PUCK UP ICE

Notes from the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 win over the Sharks on Saturday will be posted soon.

Paul Newman 1925-2008

PAUL NEWMAN WITH 2005 SAN JOSE GRAND PRIX CHAMP CAR TROPHY

Paul Newman died Friday of cancer at the age 83. Over the weekend, many took a long look back at his film career and the growing legacy created by his Newman's Own charity. Newman was a genuine icon in Hollywood, with seminal roles spanning decades. The Hustler (1961), Cool Hand Luke (1967), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), The Sting (1973), Slap Shot (1977), The Verdict (1982), The Color of Money (1986), and the Road to Perdition (2002) were just a handful of memorable roles Newman portrayed during 53 years in front of the cameras.

It would be hard to overstate the impact Slap Shot had on the NHL and hockey. Newman's Reggie Dunlop character held the offbeat film together, and offered role models and stories to help build a new generation of hockey fans. The Arizona Republic's Bob Young called Slap Shot the standard for sports movies, and ranks it ninth alltime on his top 10 sports movie list. Phoenix television analyst and former NHL goaltender Darren Pang notes that he has seen the movie at least 25 times, and that Newman's portrayal of a grizzled veteran captured a seledom seen slice of professional hockey.

After participating in the 1969 racing film Winning, Newman caught the racing bug. He began racing in 1972 in Connecticut, and later won the 1976 amateur championship in a Triumph TR-6 according to the Mercury News. Along with 2 other drivers, Newman finished second in the 1979 24-Hours-of-Le-Mans endurance race in Dick Barbour's Porsche 935. He created the Newman/Haas Champ Car World Series racing team with Carl Haas in 1983. Above, Paul Newman celebrates the win of Newman/Haas driver Sebastien Bourdais in the inaugural San Jose Grand Prix in 2005.

[Update] TSN posted an extensive video tribute on Paul Newman's auto racing legacy and his work with the Hole in the Wall Gang charity on behalf of sick children.

Sharks-Vancouver preseason game live broadcast on Canucks.com

The San Jose Sharks vs Vancouver Canucks game tonight starting in a few minutes will be streamed online for free at canucks.com. Vancouver pregame show is broadcasting right now.

Starting lineup for San Jose: Marleau-Thornton-Clowe-Blake-Vlasic, Brian Boucher is in net. Also in the lineup: Douglas Murray, Marcel Goc, Mike Grier, Tomas Plihal, Logan Couture, Tom Cavanagh, Steven Zalewski, Mike Morris, Mike Moore, Brad Staubitz, Jason Demers, Jamie McGinn, Derek Joslin and Thomas Greiss.

Starting lineup for Vancouver: Pyatt-Raymond-Demitra-Baumgartner-Ohlund, Roberto Luongo is in net. Also in the lineup: Lukas Krajeck, Mike Brown, Ryan Kesler, Jeff Cowan, Alexander Edler, Jason Krog, Jason Jaffray, Jannik Hansen, Rick Ryplen, Jyle Wellwood, Nathan McIver, Matt Pettinger and Cory Schneider.

Sharks hammer the Anaheim Ducks 5-2 at HP Pavilion

EVGENI NABOKOV MAKES 1 OF 16 SAVES

NEW SHARKS HEAD COACH TODD MCLELLAN BEHIND THE BENCH IN SJ

With no San Jose radio or television broadcast of the Sharks-Ducks game on Friday night, here is a belated liveblog from the game:

San Jose started a healthy mix of 10 regulars and 8 prospects with Evgeni Nabokov in goal for the second preseason game against the Anaheim Ducks Friday night at HP Pavilion. With the top line of Marleau-Thornton-Clowe and the Blake-Vlasic pairing scratched, the focus shifted to the second line of Michalek-Pavelski-Cheechoo and Dan Boyle and Christian Ehrhoff on the blueline.

Anaheim backup goaltender Jonas Hiller struggled with traffic in front, but the top line of Perry-Marchant-Miller and the physical play of right wing Bobby Ryan down low improved as the game wore on. Chris Pronger was boo'd almost every time he touched the puck, making it easy to keep an eye on his play.

Jonathan Cheechoo opened with an early hooking penalty on Todd Marchant. Corey Perry misses center Andrew Ebbet with a pass in front, Drew Miller called for holding the stick to negate the rest of the man advantage. Sharks 2007 1st round draft pick Logan Couture easily stickhandles around defenseman Brian Salcido on the left wing, resulting in a low percentage shot short side.

Later in the period, defenseman Jason Demers takes a nice feed on the point from defenseman Mike Moore and unloads a low slapshot that rebounds up high in the slot. Milan Michalek knocks the puck down, but Joe Pavelski hammers it past an extended Hiller for the first goal of the game (assists Michalek, Demers). It was Pavelski's first goal of the preseason.

Derek Joslin, who scored a goal in the first preseason game in Anaheim, fires a hard slapshot from the point that sails over the top of the net and deflects loudly off the glass. Ducks move the puck up ice and into the Sharks zone. Left wing Drew Miller and center Todd Marchant go into the corner with possession, nice play by Logan Couture and Lukas Kaspar to seal off their men, gain possession, and move the puck out. Couture finishes his shift with a hard check on defenseman Steve Montador up against the end boards.

Jonathan Cheechoo leads Michalek with a nice pass at center ice, and Michalek is able to blow by two Anaheim Ducks to direct a weak shot on Hiller. Pronger finishes the play by checking Michalek up against the glass, both teams scuffle briefly as a result. Next shift for Logan Couture, he hit Dan Boyle with a long cross ice pass through the Anaheim slot. Hiller is in position to make the save on Boyle, but Montador is called for a hooking penalty on the play.

Sharks power play unit is starting to click. Ehrhoff pinches on one attempt to fire the puck on net and then follows by sneaking in even furthur. The second attempt by Ehrhoff leads to a Plihal backhand from the crease. Anaheim responds with their best offensive chance of the game to this point, a tip on the doorstep just wide of Evgeni Nabokov.

Second half of the first period, the Sharks break out to a 4-on-1 against Jonas Hiller. Michalek with the puck hesitates, and then hits Jonathan Cheechoo trailing the play for a 1-timer. Hiller gets over in time to smother a shot that was against the grain and back in on his body. Travis Moen is called for charging, earning another Sharks power play.

The Sharks first power play unit consists of Setoguchi, Morris, Roenick, Ehrhoff and Boyle. The Ducks first penalty kill unit consists of Pahlsson, Niedermayer, O'Donnell and Pronger. Boyle, a right shot on the left side, and Ehrhoff, a left shot on the right side, are a dynamic defensive pairing. Mike Morris hits Setoguchi with a hard pass in the slot, but Setoguchi's stick is checked on the play and he can not control the puck. Boyle unloads a heavy point shot on the left side, puck deflects wide. On the opposite point, Ehrhoff fires another point shot. Hiller is in position to make the save. Michalek tried to tip a low shot, with Michalek and Cheechoo collapsing on net for a rebound, but Michalek is checked to the ice by O'Donnell. No explanation for O'Donnell and Michalek drawing roughing penalties on the play, it should be either one player or the other earning a call. Michalek's penalty should read 2 minutes for hitting the ice too hard. Boyle and Ehrhoff at this point look like they can play an entire 2 minute power play without much of a problem.

Anaheim center #48 Andrew Ebbett, who scored 18 goals and 54 assists in 74 games played for the AHL Portland Pirates last season, danced around a Sharks defenseman to get a shot on goal. Excellent display of skill. Sharks earn another power play on a Steve Montador interference penalty. A very quick Riley Armstrong breaks into the zone and snaps a shot on Jonas Hiller. Sharks keep it in the zone, and Derek Joslin unloads a heavy shot from the point that deflects off Hiller. #55 Mike Moore is called for interference. On the ensuing faceoff, Cheechoo is checked by O'Donnell up against the glass near the photographers. Next sequence Roenick bobbles the puck as a lane closes, but he skates 5 feet up ice to find a new lane and hits Mike Moore with a long cross ice pass. Moore shoots the puck into the body of Hiller. Second attempt by Setoguchi in close shortly after.

The heavyweights George Parros and Jody Shelley drop the gloves at 17:30. Two hard rights by Parros start the fight as the crowd cheers loudly. Jody Shelley lands several glancing blows as Parros starts to jab with the hand holding Shelley's jersey. Shelley opens a cut on Parros with a hard punch that connects square, but Parros is busy throwing wildly. Refs seperate a fairly even fight, but the crowd roars when a bloody Parros is shown on the giant video screen skating off the ice.

Devin Setoguchi is called for a penalty with 1:23 remaining, 2 minutes for hooking Logan MacMillan. Boyle, Moore, Michalek and Pavelski are the Sharks first penalty kill unit. Ryan, Miller, Perry, Pronger and Salcido are the first power play unit for Anahiem. Perry shot/pass from the right side finds Ryan in front, Nabokov covers the net low and makes the save. Anaheim gets the puck back over to Perry on the half boards, who fires another shot/pass which deflects off Nabby's left leg pad. Ebbett is there to hammer the rebound home for Anahiem, game tied 1-1 (assists Perry, Pronger at 19:59).

Both teams were held scoreless in the second period, with San Jose outshooting Anaheim 12-6. Perry-Marchant-Miller line strong early in the second period. After an extended cycle, Jeremy Roenick takes a hooking penalty. On the penalty kill, Joe Pavelski gains possession on the right side, pulls up and misses a streaking Michalek in the slot.

A hard check by defenseman Mike Moore on Travis Moen to keep the puck in the zone starts a scuffle. Moen is a veteran in the fight game going up against a young defensive prospect looking to open eyes on the NHL ice. Several hard punches by Moen land early, he keeps up a high work rate. One off balance looping shot by Moore lands and stuns Moen briefly. Moen jabs with his hand wrapped in Moore's jersey, and eventually takes him down.

The scoring onslaught picked up in the third period. The Sharks scored 4 unanswered goals before George Parros finished the scoring late in the period. Milan Michalek drives with the puck past the net to the left, and tries to pass to Joe Pavelski in the crease. Pavelski is tied up, and the puck deflects directly to Dan Boyle who fires a shot passed Jonas Hiller for his first goal as a San Jose Shark (assists Pavelski, Michalek). Shortly after the goal, Joe Pavelski is called for a 2 minute hooking penalty on Logan MacMillan.

The crowd is loudly booing Chris Pronger each time he touches the puck, and several times when it just looks like he is going to receive a pass. A shot by #53 Brett Festerling pinballs off of two sticks and is turned into the corner by Nabokov's last second kick save. Later in the period, #55 Mike Moore receives a pass on the point and quickly releases a shot on net. Logan Couture sets up a screen in front with his stick high in the air, and the puck beats Hiller 5:29 into the third period (assists McGinn, Joslin).

The Ducks top line is dangerous on every shift. Correy Perry takes an entry pass into the offensive zone, and two quick strides give him seperation on the defense. Perry snaps a low shot wide, with a rebound off of Nabokov landing in the crease. Perry tries to lift the puck high, but Evgeni Nabokov is all over it with his glove. Crowd starts chanting Nab-by, Nab-by, Nab-by.

Reserve defenseman Alexei Semenov scores his first goal of the postseason at 6:42, with assists by Mike Morris and Tomas Plihal. Semenov fires from 15 feet inside the blueline with Plihal screening Hiller in front. The shot clears Jonas Hiller's right shoulder with no reaction from the Swiss goaltender, a good tell that he had no look at the puck. The Ducks answer on the next play, with Perry setting up in front of Nabokov. Left wing Drew Miller fires a shot/pass which is deflected by Perry up into the safety netting.

The pace of the third period has picked up considerably. A quick pass from Kaspar to Plihal results in a Plihal wrist shot. Sean O'Donnell checks Plihal hard after the play starting another scuffle. As the refs try to seperate the mass of players, Semenov comes flying in, reaches around two officials and ties up O'Donnell, who is trying to goad the much smaller Plihal into a fight. Fans start chanting Ducks suck, Ducks suck, after the play.

Sharks left wing Jamie McGinn scores the final goal of the game for San Jose at 12:21 (assists by Jonathan Cheechoo, Dan Boyle). A hard point shot by Boyle is directed in front of the net by Cheechoo. McGinn, planted in front of Jonas Hiller, spins and deposits the puck in the back of the net. A little over 2 minutes later, George Parros finishes the scoring at 14:50, with assists by Steve Montador and Brett Festerling. San Jose wins the second game of a home-at-home preseason series with Anaheim 5-2.

[Update] Boyle makes splashy debut with Sharks - SJsharks.com.

Lineups for SJ-ANA pre-season game tonight

Starting lineup for the San Jose Sharks: Christian Ehrhoff, Devin Setoguchi, Dan Boyle, Jeremey Roenick, Mike Morris and Evgeni Nabokov. Also on the roster tonight for San Jose: Joe Pavelski, Milan Michalek, Jonathan Cheechoo, Alexei Semenov, Tomas Plishal, Riley Armstrong, Logan Couture, Lukas Kaspar, Jody Shelley, Mike Moore, Jason Demers, Jamie McGinn, Derek Joslin and Thomas Greiss.

Starting lineup for the Anaheim Ducks: Steve Montador, Travis Moen, Rob Neidermayer, Brett Festerling, Petteri Wirtanen and Jonas Hiller. Also on the roster tonight for Anaheim: Corey Perry, George Parros, Drew Miller, Sean O'Donnell, Todd Marchant, Chris Pronger, Samuel Pahlsson, Eric Boguniecki, Logan MacMillan, Andrew Ebbett, Brian Salcido, Brendan Mikkelson, Bobby Ryan and David LeNeveu.

A report on the SJ-ANA game, and an update on the China Sharks and the opening of the 2008-09 Asia League Ice Hockey season will be posted soon.

Hockey Notes - September 26th

KYLE MCLAREN VS AARON VOROS LAST SEASON AGAINST MINNESOTA

- One of the big stories out of training camp was news that the Sharks held veteran defenseman Kyle McLaren out of practice and scrimmages as an organizational decision. With 7 NHL defenseman under contract (not including Alexei Semenov), the Sharks remain $225,000 over the salary cap according to NHLscap.com.

General manager Doug Wilson told the Mercury News that it was simply a numbers game after offseason acquisitions of defenseman Dan Boyle, Brad Lukowich and Rob Blake. The 5-year mainstay on the Sharks blueline added a physical element the Sharks needed, but groin and knee problems cut short McLaren's season last year. McLaren was reportedly 100% healthy heading into training camp.

- The Sharks offered an update on the condition of checking center Torrey Mitchell who suffered two broken bones in his leg during an injury in training camp. The injury occured after a collision in front of the net which sent him into the post. A fan attending training camp posted a video of the incident on youtube here.

In addition to finding a short term replacement on the checking line, the Sharks will have to look for other players to provide the energy and the spark that Mitchell brought to the ice at the start of last season. During a rough October where the Sharks stumbled out of the gate to a 5-5-0-1 record, the rookie center was notable for his speed and tenacious defense. The pressure on the Sharks and the new coaching staff will