Marty Havlat Who?

I wrote about the excitement I had when the Sharks traded to get Martin Havlat back in the summer of 2011. It seemed to me that Havlat was a major upgrade to Heatley and looking back on the trade, I still think it was. He is still an elite NHL right winger and I think if the Sharks were able to buy him out, it would be a mistake. With two more years left on his contract, there is still a lot of hockey left in him that would benefit the Sharks. And even with the emergence of fellow Czech, Tomas Hertl, there is still room for Havlat to be a contributor.

Martin Havlat did have one of the most embarrassing injuries in all of hockey that was caught on tape when he injured himself on a line change. At first, it was pretty humorous considering how often he gets injured, but he did miss the next 29 games recovering. I’m still not sure how a professional athlete that has made line changes since he was a kid does this, but it does look very painful.

Assuming Havlat is able to come back from his surgery this past summer, he will add a certain dynamic to the lineup that no other current player can. The Sharks are simply a better team with him in the lineup. If he were to return tomorrow, I imagine he would be placed on the third line with Pavelski which would bump either Desjardins or Nieto to fourth line duty. This would only help the Sharks as the third scoring line becomes that much more dangerous.

I may be the only one on Halvat’s side to stay on the team, but I think there is something to be said that he has become the unofficial translator for rookie-wonder Hertl. Eventually, Tomas will learn English better. But it’s always great to have your own countryman talking with you in your native language to feel more at home. This may be a reason why Doug Wilson didn’t move him over this summer, other than the fact that he is a $5mil band-aid boy.

Don’t give up on Martin Havlat just yet. He has a lot more hockey to play at 32 years of age and another two years on his contract. He is still an elite player that would be getting dynamite chances on the third line, similar to Pavelski. Maybe we would even see him and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Hertl on the same line together? Either way, we will see Havlat in a Sharks uniform again and it will be good.

Fun Fact: I once had an Irish Car Bomb with Dan Rusanowsky at O’Flaherty’s after a Sharks game. It was his first ever.

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