Monday, May 9, 2011

Jeremy Roenick Calls Sharks Marleau "Gutless"


Every other hockey blog and article has thrown their two cents out there on this matter, so why not zelePUCKin?

Jeremy Roenick is one of the few guys who says what is on his mind in front of the cameras. Other guys pull punches. JR does not. He has a history of loving the limelight and going over the top. He cried when the Blackhawks won the Cup last year. Some cited his acting skills, others felt moved by his connection to the windy city and his respect of the team's ability to do what he couldn't help them do in the early 90s.

But love JR or hate JR as a hockey analyst, the man was right on this.

Maybe it was a little unprofessional to harp on the topic, but I don't care about that. Everyone sticking up for Marleau is ignoring the simple facts of this debate. Marleau has had a bad playoffs. He hasn't led by example, he has yet to get a point in a 2nd Rd playoff matchup that is 5 games old. He made the crucial turnover on the game deciding goal in Game 5.

In the past, the Sharks have always come up small when it matters. They haven't been to the Cup and their stars usually shrink under the playoff lights. The one constant of the team that shows this is Patrick Marleau.
He isn't the captain anymore. And for good reason. The guy just has yet to be a force in the playoffs.

Big Joe and Little Joe have stepped up. Setoguchi and Couture have stepped up. Ryan Clowe has stepped up. Antti Niemi has definitely stepped up. But where is Patrick Marleau.

It's not just about points. When you aren't scoring, you have to bear down in other aspects. You have to start playing a stronger defensive game, have to start taking the body, have to try to get momentum to your team another way. But he has not done that.

End of the day, Jeremy Roenick called Marleau out for lacking the heart to win in the playoffs. What are you going to do to disprove that, Marleau? Because right now, JR is right.

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