As James covered yesterday, the San Jose Sharks have some very difficult decisions to make this summer. With so many of their players scheduled to hit free agency this summer, there is perhaps no more important player the team needs to make a decision on than Patrick Marleau. Of course, Marleau himself has a decision to make as well: does he want to stay in San Jose?
From David Pollack of the San Jose Mercury News, it’s not something that Marleau is in a hurry to decide on:
“There’s lots of time to think about that,” Marleau said. “We love San Jose. We’ll see how every thing works out.”
Is Marleau ready to move on to another team with perhaps a brighter future? The Sharks have allowed an incredible amount of great chances to pass them by in the past six seasons, and have personified postseason disappointment for this generation in hockey.
This past season was likely the last true chance the Sharks had, after trading for Dany Heatley and with a bit of rebuilding ahead of them. Marleau can stay, hoping that perhaps the Sharks can somehow find the answer for why they fail each postseason, while there are a number of teams with higher ceilings out there willing to pay for his services.