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How can a star produce when he's not getting ice time? And how does a coach rationalize giving increased ice time to a player who isn't producing?
Those are key questions Sharks winger Teemu Selanne and San Jose coach Darryl Sutter are wrestling with these days.
Selanne's modest numbers -- two goals, seven points and a glaring minus-5 --
are less than one might expect from a $9.5 million skater after 11 games. Then again, considering Selanne ranks only fifth among Sharks forwards in ice time, it's hard to expect better stats.
"I better be careful what I say," Selanne said. "He (Sutter) likes to play a four-line rotation, which is fine. But I feel I need a way to get more ice time."
Selanne averages 15 minutes, 43 seconds per game, a significant drop from what he received in nine years with Winnipeg and Anaheim. He averaged 21:34 in 61 games last year before the Mighty Ducks -- tomorrow night's opponent -- dealt Selanne to the Sharks for Jeff Friesen and Steve Shields in March.
Selanne enjoyed 25:04 against Detroit in his home debut on March 18, but that is the only time he has eclipsed his Anaheim average while wearing a San Jose sweater. This season, Selanne has cleared the 20-minute mark just once. However it took a full overtime game on Oct. 6 against Minnesota for the 31- year-old to accumulate 20:16 of ice time.
"I think my career average is about 23 1/2, (so) when you take eight or nine minutes away, it's really hard," Selanne said.
Selanne was on the ice just 14:05 during Saturday night's 2-0 win over Columbus. Going into last night's games, Selanne ranked 248th among 670 skaters in the league in appearance time. Nonstars such as Trent Klatt, Darcy Tucker, Scott Walker, Robert Kron, Matt Cullen, Grant Marshall and Stu Barnes, plus former Sharks Dave Lowry and Ulf Dahlen, are averaging more time on the ice.
"Maybe it's not the minutes he's used to, but it's a different type of team, " Sutter said.
The Sharks are strong on right wing, Selanne's natural position. Captain Owen Nolan averages a team-high 21:44 among forwards. Fellow right wing Niklas Sundstrom is close behind Selanne at 15:37 because his line, which includes Mike Ricci and Scott Thornton, often draws defensive assignments against opposing top lines.
Besides Nolan and Sundstrom, center Vincent Damphousse (20:23) and left wing Adam Graves (16:30) are averaging more ice time than Selanne, who doesn't kill penalties. On a couple of instances lately, he's been left off the top power-play unit.
"There is a reward in it," Sutter said. "The better you play, the more you play. Right wing is a tough position for us. Hey, he has to play a lot better to play more. It's that simple."
The Sharks walk a potentially destructive tightrope here. Selanne is in the final year of his contract, and if he's not happy with his ice time in San Jose, there's no need to discuss an extension before July 1. Then again, the Sharks would like to see more than the 33 goals the Finnish Flash has produced in each of the past two seasons.
"I'm a positive guy," Selanne said. "As long as the team is winning, it's not that big a deal. But when you're not winning, it's extremely hard for someone like myself.
"With 14 minutes of ice time, I can't help this team as much as I would like to. That's the tough part about things right now."