“Thoughts on Thoughts” is a feature that looks at Elliotte Friedman’s terrific weekly post “30 Thoughts.” Justin Bourne selects his 10 favourite tidbits, and elaborates.

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Friedman’s column, May 6th: Sharks in rough waters

Opening: No opening this week.

7. A thought from Kelly Hrudey: Linden's mentioned Boston's four-line approach as something he wants to emulate. Shawn Thornton is a free agent this summer. It would be an over-35 contract, which can be tricky, but that's an intriguing theory. (And that's all it is, a theory.) Kelly gets 1/30th of my pay this week.

I very much agree that in today’s NHL, you need four lines you can trust to be a legitimate Cup threat. You can’t be in a position where you’re running down your stars, and you’re going to have injuries in the playoffs, which means you’re going to need capable players to fill those spots farther up the lineup. If you don’t at least start with 12 functional skaters, you’re kinda boned.

But a 35-year-old Shawn Thornton? I know he wants to emulate Boston, but actually getting Thornton to be a part of your bottom six? He plays his role well, but the man doesn’t have a half a step to lose at this point, and he’s losing it. With that will go his “functional” tag. I’d be awfully surprised if that’s a name the Canucks went after. (Love you though, Kelly.)

9. There's another reason: "Shea Weber is someone other players want to play with," Poile said. It's clear he believes the Predators are better positioned to find the scoring forward they crave with Weber, not without him. "We have [Pekka] Rinne and Weber. If we can get a forward along those lines, we're there." Not an easy task, but I can understand the thinking.

Not an easy task is a bit of an understatement. And yeah, of course the logic is good, but c’mon now Mr. Poile. "We have Rinne and Weber. If we can get a forward along those lines, we're there."

The Predators have been around since 1998 and their all-time leading scorer averaged .59 points-per-game during his tenure (David Legwand). The most goals a Predator has ever scored in a season is 33 (Jason Arnott). It ain’t easy finding “Shea Weber’s forward equivalent,” as the Preds know as well as anyone.

What a crazy thing to add after making a fine point about guys wanting to play with Weber. “All we have to do is add one of the league’s best players, and we’ll improve.”

10. Poile said there's a strong physical comparison between Weber and Seth Jones. At 19, the WHL's Kelowna Rockets listed Weber at 208 pounds. He's now at 234. Jones, 19 years old at the start of this season, was 210. If he goes to 234-ish, that'll be fun for the rest of the Western Conference.

Man, that does sound miserable.

I would point out though, that as long as I’ve seen Shea Weber play (since he was 15), he’s always been built like that - just, monstrous. His head is the size of a recycling bin. And he’s kinda mean. I don’t know that Jones, who seems more of the Tyler Myers build, will ever carry the type of 234 Shea Weber does.

15. Did ask around for a couple of "different" coaching possibilities, guys who don't get mentioned much. Teams with current openings wouldn't answer, but there were a few suggestions. Willie Desjardins, who coached at AHL Texas, was a multiple mention. Also included: Tampa associate coach Rick Bowness, with five NHL lead jobs on his resume. And, Anaheim's Bob Woods, named because he's played a big role in developing some of the Ducks' impressive young defencemen. That group is coming pretty far pretty quick.

I was lucky enough to meet Bob Woods for five minutes when he was the coach of the Hershey Bears and I was at camp. He was so interested in me as a person and player in our first conversation I’d have ran through a wall for him after just meeting the guy. I don’t know what that’s worth, but it’s probably a pretty good sign. He won an AHL championship there, he runs a mean practice, and just seems like someone that’ll eventually run an NHL club.

17. Florida GM Dale Tallon said on Prime Time Sports last week that it's no guarantee the Panthers keep the first-overall selection in June. In a follow-up conversation, he was asked how far down the team would be willing to move. "We'll make the final decision in our scouting meetings, but probably between seven and 10," he said. What would it take for another team to get the top selection? "Also to be determined, but probably a young player who can help us."

I don’t hate the idea of the Panthers moving their pick.

They’ve currently got 13 players 29 or older on their roster. They have 11 guys 24 or younger. They’ve got nothing in the middle. That’s a five year gap on their team (which interests me from a social standpoint in the locker room and out of it. I wonder how that plays out in Florida). Attendance is beginning to become a problem, they just traded for a 33-year-old goalie… I think they need to get a guy on the younger side to plug into that age gap (or be on the young side, but ready to contribute) to get some use out of their older players, and should try to be competitive now. If you draft another young kid and allow him to develop, you’re looking at him being ready as guys like Brian Campbell and Roberto Luongo are tailing out.

18. Tallon was also asked if the Panthers have any untouchables on their roster. "[Aleksander] Barkov," he said, right away. "Our young core. [Jonathan] Huberdeau, [Erik] Gudbranson, [Nick] Bjugstad. I guess you always have to listen, but it would take a lot."

Those are four impressive names. You can see how moving the pick for a guy on the verge producing for awhile - I dunno, say Nail Yakupov so the Oilers can draft Aaron Ekblad and shore up their defense - could turn the Panthers team into one worth watching. (Totally spitballing on the Yakupov thing.)

21. There were a few Dallas players who impressed, showing more than expected against Anaheim. The Cody Eakin-Ryan Garbutt-Antoine Roussel line was at its annoying best, and much more disciplined than normal. Other coaches would point out during the season how that trio could be its own worst enemy, causing the Stars as much penalty trouble as it caused opponents. If this is a real change, that's a big step.

That line is built to drive people crazy in an “Oops, am I driving you crazy?” kind of way. They’ve got good wheels, they’re young and getting better, and they will punch your face if challenged. I really like what Dallas has with this trio. If they can learn to stay out of the box and play that way, they’ll be twice as valuable. Facing those guys in a seven game series would be maddening.

23. Like how both Ken Holland and Mike Babcock raised the bar for the Red Wings, saying the goal had to be more than just extending the playoff streak. It's transition time for Detroit. The organization will benefit from the experience their young players received this season, but Holland says a major question now will be if they can ease the wear and tear on Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, just like those two did a few years ago.

Gustav Nyquist, Tomas Tatar, Tomas Jurco will take some of the production pressure off those two, and will take more ice time than they have in the past. Those are good things for Datszerberg.

My other random thought on this is, with those two getting older, do you think the Wings would ever, ever trade either of them? Just asking here (let me know here). Get off your fainting couches, Wings fans, and ask how long until their names are worth more than their ability to contribute. They’d fetch a haul. The Wings certainly don’t have a history of moves like that, but it’s a fun scenario to imagine.

25. As for the next group of prospects, Holland indicated defencemen Mattias Backman and Xavier Ouellet may be NHL-ready. But QMJHL scoring sensation Anthony Mantha appears headed to the AHL, and it would be a surprise if they'd want goalie Petr Mrazek limited to 25 games backing up Jimmy Howard. Can't see Detroit offering Jonas Gustavsson more than a one-year contract, though. Might have to look elsewhere if he wants longer term.

Mantha: 57 goals in 57 games. Over two points per. QMJHL scoring leader by 13.

AHL.

The Red Wings, man.

29. P.K. Subban's game continues to evolve. In Game 1 against Boston, he scored on a quick wrist shot from the point. Look at his 12 goals this year: six one-timers, three wrist-shots where he drove towards the net, and one slapper that was not quite a one-timer. That leaves a couple, both on these quick "wristers" -- the first of which was stopped by Jonathan Quick, but bounced in off Jarret Stoll. Those are two of his last three goals. Teams are crowding him, and even though he does a great job of getting it through, the quicker the better. He's definitely trying it more.

That’s just another reason to love P.K.

Some guys are one-trick ponies, and become defendable (I’m still baffled teams don’t do a better job against Ovechkin on the PP. Baffled.) Subban takes what’s given to him because he can do everything. He really can. Skate, hit, shoot, pass, it doesn’t matter. I believe he’ll be one of the best in the game for a long time because of his flexibility.