Yet another mediocre start to the post season for Joe Thornton may translate into another early exit for the San Jose Sharks. (CP Images)
Here's a shocker. Once again, the smiling face of Joe Thornton is plastered on milk cartons at breakfast tables throughout the Silicon Valley.
Hold on, not so fast. There may have been a sighting last night in Calgary. Yep. Game winner, final ten seconds. Cue the band.
Hey, when that monkey you need to shake off your back is about the size of King Kong, you have to start somewhere, right?
Say it ain't so, Joe.
All right, so as a crutch I refer to is some time-worn line from nine decades ago when a snot-nosed kid snivelled to Shoeless Joe Jackson after the White Black Sox decided the World Series wasn't all that important after all. San Jose Sharks fans could be forgiven for wanting to steal the patent on those five prophetic words.
You see, once again, Big Joe Thornton is doing his best snow blower routine, disappearing without a trace once the tulips start to bloom.
Think death and taxes are the only two sure things in life? Here's a third. As soon as the warm weather hits, the fat guy in the Speedo down at the beach will have a better chance of scoring than Thornton.
A tad dramatic? Yeah, right. In three regular seasons out there in Northern California, Thornton has racked up 302 points in 222 games. Impressive stuff.
But, even factoring in his brief revival last night, Thornton has managed a whopping 25 points in 26 playoff games with the teal and black, bumping his career playoff point total to a whole 43. In 61 games.
Maybe Mike O'Connell knew more than we thought when he shipped Mr. October to San Jose. Conventional wisdom tells you O'Connell was fleeced. If the Sharks bow out early yet again, can an argument start being made the other way?
If their leader doesn't find a way to get into gear, it won't be long before the Sharks are once again floating face down. A strong Game 3 does little to change that if Thornton pulls his disappearing act in Game 4.
Big Joe? Pfft.
Thornton is looking a lot like a trusted pair of longjohns. Useful from about October to April.
After that, not so much.