Very simple stuff:
Proven fact: humans need water to survive
Poor argument against this proven fact: some humans have drank water in the past and still died
A strong argument against this would be: examples of humans that have not drank water and have still survived
The argument we are trying to prove: NHL teams need to (tank, have elite superstar #1C, get lucky, etc.) to win the Stanley Cup
Poor argument against this argument: some NHL teams have (tanked, had elite superstar #1C, got lucky, etc.) and still not won the Stanley Cup.
A strong argument against this would be: examples of NHL teams that have not (tanked, had elite superstar #1C, got lucky, etc.) and still won the Stanley Cup. (These are all few and far between and have circumstances surrounding them which we can’t reasonably expect to replicate, in my opinion).
Nobody is suggesting the Sharks would instantly win a Cup if they tanked, or had superstars. I’m suggesting the Sharks and other teams that won’t tank/don’t have superstars like STL currently have no chance at a Cup and will never win a Cup unless they acquire superstars and/or tank.