from Kevin Kurz of CSNBayArea,

“We can’t keep what we have, or at least keep the same approach. Something has to change,” Todd McLellan said on Friday. “It’s two years in a row losing to that team, and it’s a very good team, too. Let me make that very clear.

“But, it’s two years in a row losing to them. And, in fact, when we thought we had improved our group – which I believe we did – we got a weaker performance (in 2014) than we got the year prior.”...

The more intriguing options are up front in Pavelski and Burns, both of whom are under contract for the next several years at reasonable prices and are in the prime of their careers.

Pavelski is coming off of a 41-goal season, third in the NHL. If there were ever a time to sell high on the 29-year-old, this would be it, as the majority of Pavelski’s goals came on the wing of Thornton. His five-year, $30 million contract extension (that includes a limited no-trade clause) kicks in this summer, and the Wisconsin native could get a huge return if he became available.

As for Burns, who just completed his first full NHL season as a forward, his streaky play carried over into the playoffs. There aren’t many players in the game like the six-foot-five, 230-pound 29-year-old, who can take games over with his physicality and shot when he’s playing well. He also brings with him the option of returning to the blue line, where he didn’t work out in San Jose. Maybe he could fit in somewhere in the Eastern Conference, where teams typically play a less structured style. He’s set to make $5.67 million for the next three years.

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