When the NHL lockout ended this past spring, teams had to decide if they could afford their star players anymore. The Boston Bruins were one of the first teams to jump on their franchise player, as they signed superstar Joe Thornton mere days after the end of the lockout. Thornton was to be their captain, their leader and the rock to build their team upon. Apparently, that wasn't good enough.
On Wednesday, the Bruins traded Thornton to the San Jose Sharks for center Wayne Primeau, left wing Marco Sturm and defenseman Brad Stuart. The trade came on the heels of the Sergei Federov trade the week before, but its was even more surprising. Joe Thornton was to Boston hockey what David Ortiz is to Boston baseball. He was the Bruins' biggest attraction, and now he is gone.
The first game following Thornton's absence was against the red hot Ottawa Senators on Thursday. The Bruins shut out the Senators for the first time this year, 3-0, as newcomers Sturm and Stuart had a combined three points. The Bruins then beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 in overtime on Saturday to continue their winning streak before falling to the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday. Each of the three former Sharks played critical roles in each game, as the Bruins emerged from losing nine of 10 games.
Thornton has found a home in San Jose, as he tallied four assists in his first two games as a Shark. San Jose has a host of young talent, and the addition of the veteran Thornton may be just what the Sharks need for these players to excel. Thornton's four assists have come to two players: 26-year-old Patrick Marleau and 25-year-old Jonathan Cheechoo. Both have spent their careers in San Jose and have emerged as dominant young talent in past years. With Thornton now as the Sharks' center, watch for a dramatic increase in their offensive production.
Meanwhile, the rest of the league begins to play the opposite coast. With the new NHL schedule, division rivals play each other eight times a season and conference rivals four times a season. This leaves little room for inter-coastal competition. Eastern Conference teams will face Western Conference teams rarely throughout the season. This has created a National League-versus-American League mentality that most players don't really seem to mind.
Phoenix Coyotes' coach Wayne Gretzky said the best thing about the new schedule - especially for Western teams - was that it minimized travel.
"It's so much easier on the players," he said.
Only in the past week have Eastern Conference teams begun to play those of the Western Conference. The biggest matchup will be the Ottawa Senators versus the Vancouver Canucks on Friday, a battle between the top two spots on the ESPN Power Ranking list.
