If only Joe Thornton would just put his clothes back on and sign a one-year contract with the Sharks, this week would be much easier.
If Patrick Marleau would just decide that he absolutely didn’t want to leave San Jose and sign his own one-year deal, the beloved Los Tiburones would be set for the 2017-18 season.
But that’s not how it is going to play out.
For the first time in their lives, at age 38, Thornton and Marleau are unrestricted free agents. They don’t want one-year agreements. They desire two or three years.