Yes and no. I would say skating is somewhat fixable. Defensive instincts are harder, and that's what he should be working on. I think he might have even been quoted saying he was told that.

The fact that he did not get a shot at the NHL doesn't really say much with the minor mishandling of the roster this season. I'm sorry, when you can't crack 2 goals a game, you don't start Viel or Gadjovich together, maybe not even one of them unless it is a game against Vegas or Edmonton. Both are solid people and will give you what they have, but offensively that isn't going to move the needle.

Blichfeld has an NHL caliber shot, and the kind of killer instinct you need for a goal scorer. I don't think he would have stuck with the NHL either, but you at least give him an opportunity so you can be more confident about not bringing him back.

Also, it was a little unusual towards the last couple games. If you are going to have Meier-Hertl-Barabanov, and Balcers-Bordeleau-Gregor as two lines next season, play them. Why not play Nieto-Bonino-Reedy, and get a couple of games to look at next year's fourth line? Same situation as Blichfeld, if he was able to skate, why not get a couple more games to look at Dahlen?

In the grand scheme of things, all of the above doesn't matter all that much. But you need to use every opportunity to make your team better, and the Sharks missed out on a couple of bullet points.