Sharks sign Couture

The Sharks wasted little time inking their first selection in last month's NHL Entry Draft, signing Ottawa 67's center Logan Couture, as per the team's official website. Doug Wilson, being a former Ottawa junior defenseman himself, kept his infatuation with 67's players alive by going through painstaking means to obtain the 9th overall pick with which he selected Couture. Having no first-round picks at the beginning of the day, Wilson parlayed Vesa Toskala and Mark Bell into Toronto's first selection, the 13th overall pick, then swapped that and a second-rounder with St. Louis's ninth overall selection.

A solid two-way player with average skating ability, Couture put up 26 goals and 78 points last season with the 67's despite battling mononucleosis. Before his bout with the condition, Couture was seen as a consensus No. 1 overall pick. With Sharks captain Patrick Marleau becoming a UFA at the end of the 07-08 season, it's a distinct possibility Couture is being viewed as the Sharks' second-line pivot as early as the 08-09 campaign. Time will tell, but it's doubtful he'll make the team out of training camp this year.