Once again I find myself preparing for a trip down south to see the San Jose Sharks take the ice live. I was lucky enough to be able to get tickets for a double header against the Vancouver Canucks on the 27th and the Colorado Avalanche on the 28th. I was going to do a full preview of both games like my last blog but some expected events have been happening since the league resumed play a day after the gold medal was awarded at the Olympics. The Sharks have hit a very rough patch with a current four game losing streak as well as massive problems overall. Going into the Olympic break as the number one team, they are now fifth in the league with two teams right behind them. In fact, the Phoenix Coyotes are only a point behind and because they are in the same Division as the Sharks (Pacific Division), the Cotes have the chance to steal the Sharks Division Title and rob San Jose of the threepeat. And yes, I did mean to type "expected events" because most long time Sharks fans know that the Sharks have horrid finishing power. Last year they floundered in the final months, barely getting the President's Trophy and basically surfing into the playoffs from the momentum they built early in the year. With so many teams already in a do or die situation, the lackadaisical Sharks barely put up any effort and were booted out of the playoffs early in the first round.So, is this going to be a repeat of last year? Hopefully not, but the Sharks haven't looked solid since before the Olympic break and there are other numbers that show indicators that the Sharks might fumble this up again. Take their "giving up the first goal" for 14 games straight. With hockey being a game buit on momentum, the first goal is everything providing both confidence and a spark to the team that scores it. There are other stats that have gone off the deep end as well. Take the Penalty Kill, the Sharks are/were one of the best PK teams, usually in the top three teams in the league. Last game, they allowed two back to back goals on the PK. There Power Play, Faceoff Wins, and Penalty Minutes all have shown signs of a sloppy and unmotivated team. While I could list the players from the Canucks and Avs that I think will play a big part in the game on Saturday and Sunday, the way the Sharks have been playing, it could be anyone and everyone. So, I'm just going to single out two players, one per game and what they need to do to help the Sharks get back into the winning column.
Jumbo Joe Thornton, number 19, one of the best passers in the league and was number one with 64 assist until Henrik Sedin from the Canucks overtook him. When Joe stopped getting the big number assists, the Sharks started to lose. Thornton is an integral part of the team, like the quarterback in football, he sets up plays that score. He also has a great shot, something he doesn't use often enough. This is especially apparent in the playoffs where time and space (the two things Thornton uses to make those excellent passes) is in short supply and shooting first is usually the better choice. Instead, you see Joe cough up the puck, launch the opponent on a breakaway, and usually ends with the puck in the back of the Sharks net. With less than a month left of hockey, the games are picking up the pace - dramatically. They are ten times faster than in the beginning of the season and playoff games will be ten times faster than the games being played now. Thornton needs to start being more aggressive, think shoot when there is no clear pass, and use his size to do some damage in front of the net. He only has a few games left to get into this mindset and he needs to do it soon.
Next up is the other Joe - Joe Pavelski, number 8, and all-around utility guy. He plays center on the second line setting up a lot of the plays, he scores goals, he plays point on the PP, and plays defense on the PK. You can and will see Pavelski in almost every situation on the ice because he has a great hockey IQ. Unlike Jumbo Joe who seemed to lose some of his touch after the Olympics, after coming away with silver, Pavelski's game has been elevated, including getting the game winning goal a few games ago. All Pavelski has to do is keep rolling and try to get his linemates rolling as well. Clowe has finally scored a few goals and Seto has seemed to hit a stride as well. Hopefully, Pavelski's strong work ethic will rub off on some of the players and help put a little life into this titanic of a team.McLellen has been trying to infuse some life into the team by bringing up some of the enthusiastic talent from team Worcester Sharks as well as mixing up the lines to try and find that spark. I am hoping that they figure it out in the next couple of games before I make my six hour trip down. I've already been to one horribly dull game this season and don't want to have to sit through two more. Once again, the questions of playoff failure are swirling - I just hope this time, the Sharks can prove everybody wrong and go the distance. But before they can, they need to survive the last weeks of regular season hockey.
