Clock Stopper

Sharks fans were treated to two great games with the Sharks facing off against Detroit and Philly. I was treated because both games were televised on Versus, a national sports channel, which allowed me to watch both games in glorious HD. These two games proved two major points - that every second counts and that the Sharks weren't going down without a fight. Proving me wrong in almost every way, I almost feel as if I should just delete my previous blog and start over. While it was only two games, these two games showed why the Sharks are playoff contenders and reminded me of what they are truly capable of. Let's hope the Sharks have finally found their way back to their winning ways.

The first game found the Sharks in Hockey Town, ready to face the number one team in the West - the Detroit Red Wings. As the first period got under way, the Wings dominated the Sharks, putting on the pressure and keeping puck position for what seemed like most of the game. Actually, the Sharks didn't touch the puck once in six minutes at one point in the first period, six minutes! Detroit by far is one of the best puck moving and best puck controlling teams. If you ever want to see how skilled they are, all you have to do is check out a few game highlights on NHL.com to see their talent. The puck barely stays on any Red Wings' player for more than a second before he passes it on to another skilled player. The shear speed of movement had the Sharks spinning in their defensive zone, figuratively and literally. It was only a matter of time before the Wings would strike and they found the opportunity when rookie defenseman Derek Joslin took a penalty in his own zone. They quickly capitalized with a shot from the blue line that was redirected past Niemi. The Sharks were also guilty of taking some seriously bad penalties in the first which had them playing defense for most of the first period. Some good stick work and a lucky bounce launched Heatley and Thornton on a shorthanded two-on-one opportunity. Jumbo of course did not shoot the puck but opted to pass it to hot handed Heater. As the play quickly developed, Heater faked the shot and passed the puck back to Jumbo who was able to lift it past the sprawling Detroit goalie to tie the game up with a shorthanded goal. With minutes left in the first period and once again on a power play, Detroit found the back of the net to give them the go-ahead-goal.

Completely dominated by the Red Wings, coach Todd McLellan would later refer to it as the worst first period the Sharks have ever played. I'm sure they were reamed out pretty well for their lack of commitment and effort because the starting of the second brought new life to the Sharks. With puck control and a great cycle going in the Red Wings' zone, the Sharks were able to get the puck to the point where Wallin was waiting to power one through and tied the game. With barely enough time to catch their breathe, Clowe protected the puck and was able to feed it to Logan Couture (#39, pictured above) who made it 3-2 only eight seconds later. The Red Wings got their scoring chance when the puck trickled past Niemi, but Nemo was able to see it and stop it with his glove before it crossed the line.

A sloppy turnover in the neutral zone came back to bite the Wings when the puck found its way onto Dany Heatley's stick. Heater, with a great rush down the right wing, was able to just blister the puck past Howard for a little more insurance: 4-2 Sharks. The third period found each team with equal opportunities but the icing on the cake came when Couch redirected the puck into the net (play pictured above). Because it went off his skate, the goal had to be reviewed (puck cannot be kicked in) but was deemed a good goal making the game a 5-2 victory for the Sharks.

Two days later, The Sharks found themselves in Philly facing the number two team in the whole league, the Flyers. Calder Trophy hopefuls Logan Couture and Flyers goalie Bobrovsky (pictured above) would face off numerous times in this insane game. Again, the Sharks seemed to come out of the gate flatfooted with the Flyers dominating play in the first. This time it was Niittymaki in goal to help keep the Sharks alive while they tried to find their game. The sluggish first period seemed to be over with the last faceoff draw in the Flyers zone but Thornton was able to win the draw and throw the puck back to the D who blasted it towards the net where Ryane Clowe was waiting to tip it past Bobrovsky. Four seconds to go in the period and the Sharks had a one goal lead.

The second period was all orange as the Flyers came back to brutalize the Sharks with three quick goals that found Nitty all alone with the rest of the Sharks just trying to find the puck. One such goal found rookie defenseman Justin Braun watching Nitty make the save rather than trying to tie up a Flyer's stick. This mistake allowed Giroux to gather the rebound and bury it for the game-tying goal. Things would not get better for the Sharks as the Flyers were able to score two more quick games when Nitty was left out to dry by his D-men who seemed to not know where they were supposed to be. The Sharks almost got one back when John McCarthy deflected the puck in off of his skate, but unlike Couch's goal against Detroit, it was ruled to be a "distinct kicking motion" and the goal was disallowed, the game remained: 3-1 Flyers.

The Sharks came back to work in the third period but the Flyer's were the ones to capitalize with a great shot-deflection that made it 4-1 Flyers. The game seemed all but over, after all a three goal deficit in the third period is not something easily overcome. The newly returned Jason Demers had something to say about that when he skated the puck into the slot and beat the Flyer's goalie top shelf to try and get the Sharks back into the game. Minutes later, the rookie leading-scorer, Logan Couture, buried the puck past a scrambling Flyer's goalie to get the Sharks within one and there was still time enough on the clock for a spectacular comeback. Then on a beautiful, and I mean beautiful set play (I mean it, click the picture above to watch the replay if you don't believe me) Jumbo Joe found an offensive zone faceoff and was able to chip the puck right to a streaking Pavelski (#8, pictured above) who ripped it past Bobrovsky's glove to the game at 4-4. With a few more chances, the Flyer's tried to end the game in regulation but Nitty said no and sent the game into 4-on-4 overtime.

With the abbreviated 5 minute overtime period, both the Sharks and the Flyers had their fair share of looks but solid defensive work kept both teams alive. Then, matching minor penalties made things really interesting as the last two minutes of play became 3-on-3. A neutral zone turnover sent the Flyers racing into the Sharks zone and Flyer's forward Richards was able to beat Niittymaki just before the buzzer sounded (play pictured above) . . . or did he? If you look closer at the photo above, you can see that the little black speck did not cross the red line before the clock hit zero, robbing the Flyers of an overtime victory and sending the game into a shootout. With Nitty standing tall, he was able to beat Briere with a great pad save. Couture was up next and with a nifty head deke, he was able to go five hole and score. Giroux tried to beat Niittymaki but shot it wide, with Clowe ready in the wings, if he scored he would win the shootout and the game. For being such a big guy, Clowe has some serious stick skills and showed it off by deking and backhanding the puck up stairs past the Flyer's goalie to cap off a crazy game with a Sharks victory.

Both games were well played and the game against Philly was just crazy. Niemi and Niitymaki really kept the Sharks alive as both first periods were played poorly for the other Sharks players. A few rookie mistakes almost cost the Sharks their wins but being able to find the offensive pressure helped to elevate them over two prominent opponents. It was nice to see that the scoring was spread around a little bit more evenly as well with Couture, Clowe, and Heatley really making a huge difference for their team. The Sharks have one more game to go before they return to San Jose to face the Stanley Cup champs. Now it's time to see what the Sharks a really made of.

Blackhawks Vs. Sharks Preview (Dec. 11, 10)

The Chicago Blackhawks fly into town once again to face off against their Western Conference final opponent from last season. Their first meeting back in November pitted Antti Niemi against his former team and the Stanley Cup Champions. With Dany Heatley (#15, pictured below) striking first, it was a hard fought battle as Jamal Mayers, Joe Pavelski, and Patrick Marleau (#12, pictured at bottom) each scored for the Sharks. The Blackhawks answered with goals from Dowell and Sharp. The Sharks were able to seal the deal when Patty scored an empty netter to defeat the Blackhawks 5-2.

Not even three weeks later, the Blackhawks and Sharks will face off in another showdown with the Blackhawks ready for revenge and the Sharks in desperate need for points in a stacked Pacific Division. Do I expect a different outcome this time around? Actually, yes.

The Sharks seem to have lost their way, sitting pretty in last place in the Pacific Division and out of playoff position while the Blackhawks have won seven of their last ten games (compare that to the Sharks four). While, I'm trying not to be negative, the fact is that odds are against the Sharks. Right now they are out on one of the hardest road trips, a week long sprint across North America which will pit them against some of the toughest teams in the league. Add in the serious injury problems they have faced (more on that later), it doesn't help that the Sharks haven't been able to play consistently at all this season. Chicago has had its ups and downs too, but seem to have found their groove as of late. So what exactly is wrong with the Sharks? You'd think that with the only major changes being in the goaltender position, it would be easy to blame the new guys but in all honesty it's the core group that needs to get their act together.

Nitty and Nemo have been flip-flopping back and forth on who starts so it's hard to say if one is truly better than the other. Niittymaki has the better numbers with a decent .910 save percentage compared to Niemi's .886. Lately though, Niemi has been playing quite well and had a stellar performance against the Blackhawks the first time around as well as more recently against the Ottawa Senators. With Nemo playing most of the games on such a long road trip, it has me wondering if Nitty won't be the one to start when the Sharks come back for their first home game of the month.

So, if it's not the goalies, then what's the problem? It's scoring, surprising to hear from a team that has a 50+ goalscorer, a 40+ goalscorer, and the Art Ross (most points in a season) recipient but it's true, the Sharks have already been shut out four times this year. While Heater does lead the Sharks in goals scored, he along with Patty and Jumbo have been shut out too many times and the same goes for the second line guys. Both Pavelski and Ryane Clowe (#29, pictured above) had 10+ games with no goals and Setoguchi has had worse luck with only two goals this entire season.

A weakened defensive core doesn't help either, Rob Blake's departure has truly left a void that has yet to be filled from the blue line. While I've been impressed with Huskins, Murray, and Demers - the others, Boyle, Wallin, and Vlasic have left something to be desired. Boyle, who has been a solid force both defensively and offensively has had some shaky play in the past few weeks with uncharacteristic turnovers and giveaways. I'm sure this is just a temporary phase and he will be back on par soon. As for Wallin, he is inconsistent and needs to find a way to get his job done every night. As for Vlasic, I don't know what's wrong with him except that he has a -7 rating and zero points in the last 25 games.

Now to the injuries - Setoguchi, Demers, Wallin, and Huskins have been out of the lineup for weeks. Murray and Nichol were also injured but have since returned to the lineup to give the Sharks a much needed defensive presence. Replacing the four injured are rookies Benn Ferriero, Mike Moore, Derek Joslin, and Justin Braun who have done a great job for the Sharks even with their limited experience. Ferriero has scored three goals in his last four games, making him a better asset than the player (Seto) he replaced. Justin Braun has also been impressive with his ability to get the puck up the ice quickly and his fast release. He has even scored his first NHL goal, I wouldn't be surprised to see him stick around in San Jose for a while even after everyone is healthy.

There are others on the Sharks squad that have been playing well. Take Logan Couture who is just two goals behind Heater. His name has also been thrown around when talk of the Calder Trophy (rookie of the year) comes up. He does lead all rookies in scoring, shots, and faceoff win percentage. He has been by far the best Sharks player this season. Scott Nichol, John McCarthy, and Jamal Mayers have done well, fulfilling their roles on a nightly basis. Too bad they aren't a more offensive line, the Sharks could use the help. Even though Clowe has had problems scoring, he has still found a way to contribute to the team by being strong on the boards, playing well defensively, and has even found a new role in the set-up guy, trailing assist leader Thornton by only three points.

What the Sharks need right now is to find a way to play consistently. Even with their injured team and rookie filled back end, they were able to pull off an impressive 4-0 victory over the Senators, proving that they still and can win in a dominating fashion. Their lack of consistency is what has been costing them and the lack of scoring needs to be solved soon. With Detroit, Philadelphia, and Buffalo still left on their road trip before they return home, the Sharks have their work cut out for them. These points are precious in such a tight race to the playoffs. Not only are the Sharks in jeopardy of losing the Pacific Division title but a playoff berth as well. With the halfway point quickly approaching, this season is flying by and if the Sharks don't find a way to win, they will find themselves on their couches in front of the TV when the April playoffs role around. That's why this game is important, that's why every game is important. They'll have the home ice advantage, where they have won the most consistently, let's hope they use it to their advantage.