Are those all things that are accentuated even more by speed + skill? Sharks have numerous talented players, they have a good system (not great - I believe they have a real big problem with breaking out of the zone), and have a ton of versatility - see Hertl coming up to center the 2nd, Pavs being a center, Marleau being a center, being able to mix/match and juggle lines.
You basically described a slightly better team than the Sharks but the biggest difference maker is the combo of speed and skill.
More speed plus skill always helps.
But it isn't just versatility in terms of positioning. It is versatility in the way players play and adapt.
Overall, at least under TMac, the Sharks approached every game the T-Mac way...conservative play, focus on zone time and puck control, throw shots on net (low, going for rebounds), and produce by cycling the puck and surgically wasting defense systems. As soon as they came across a team that could break their cycle, clear away junk in front, and/or press the play, the Sharks would crumble. No adaption, no change.
Joe Thornton is a fantastic playmaker and a very good two-way forward. But if you ask him to play a stifling, defensive, game, can he? Can he be the goalscorer on a line? Can he screen a goalie and clean up garbage in front? Will he succeed in a game plan with the Sharks playing a up-tempo, North-South, skating-intensive game? If the Sharks focused more on holding the puck vs. passing it, does Thornton have the stick skills to effectively enter and navigate the zone?
Those kind of questions plague the rest of the team. Other than Marleau, not a single top-forward has the speed to play a fast, up-tempo kind of game. Marleau lacks physicality, high-end playmaking, and struggles in creating his own space. Couture is the only forward with good stick skills (if that), and Thornton is the only one who can consistently win board battles. None of the top-6 can screen a goalie or thrive in an intensely physical game.
On defense, Burns thrives with a very good partner, on a certain side, and in offensive situations. Vlasic thrives only when he isn't in the offensive zone. Braun pretty much struggles when he isn't with Vlasic.
Even with their faults, I would probably say that Couture, Vlasic, and Pavelski are versatile enough for secondary players. But that is just it: they are secondary players. If you look at Chicago, everything I questioned Joe Thornton about, Toews can do. Kane is pretty much a swiss army knife in the offensive zone. Hossa is like Marleau with great stick skills. You go look at their secondary and tertiary forwards, and you see the same. Keith, Seabrook, and Hjalmarsson play well with almost anyone. In previous years, they've had multiple D-men who could play the PP and PK. Rozsival is the same as long as he gets easy minutes.
As a coach, that gives you tremendous flexibility. It lets you easily adjust your strategy against multiple teams, it gives you a safety net against a struggling player, and it lets you line juggle with some confidence.
That is the model the Sharks need to emulate going forwards...but I digress
