Jeremy Roenick Sharks tale deserves storybook ending
But
even those leading the anti-J.R. brigade have to admit that the
San Jose Sharks
are looking like geniuses for rolling the dice with the old man.
Getting Roenick to check his oft-inflated ego at the door may have been the largest coup of all for Doug Wilson and Co., and may pay even larger dividends once the post-season begins next week.
Forget Theodore and Kovalev for a moment. Is there a player more deserving of the comeback player of the year than J.R.?
Most observers felt Roenick had played his final NHL game prior to his signing with the Sharks. Not only has he accepted his third and fourth line assignments without a peep, but he is proving to be pretty clutch.
In case you missed it, J.R.'s ten game-winning goals had him tied for the league lead with some guy in Washington you may have heard of. Well, until that other guy scored his 11th last night.
Roenick has long been a sportswriter's dream, but now there is more to the 38-year-old than a bit of flash and a set of loose lips.
Now J.R. is willing to take one, perhaps more, for the team.
A couple of weeks back, seconds after Minnesota's Kurtis Foster was hammered into the end boards to end his season, Roenick was one of the first at Foster's side, whispering encouragement in his opponent's ear as he was about to be carted off the ice on a stretcher with a severely broken leg.
Oh, he also scored once in regulation and added the shootout winner that night as well.
Maybe Roenick is just tired of the sideshow and wants that elusive championship before he ends his career. If so, the news couldn't get any better for the Sharks.
You have to know there won't be the same rallying cry for Roenick to win a Cup ring as there was for the likes of Ray Bourque, Steve Yzerman and Dave Andreychuk.
Given what he has done for the Sharks this season, that itself is a bit of a shame.
Copyright 2008 Hockey.com