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San Jose Sharks Blogger •
Look at any popular duo, and you'll find the entertainment stems from their differences, rather than their similarities. Whether it's Bert and Ernie, Penn and Teller, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Hall and Oates, Ren and Stimpy, Jules and Vincent, Tom and Jerry or Simon and Garfunkel, their contrasting styles boost the entertainment value. Twins aren't interesting because they're interchangeable. That's the reason why Schwarzenegger and DeVito were the most popular set of movie twins, putting Mary Kate and Ashley to shame.
It was fascinating to watch the Sharks-Kings game on Wednesday night, simply because of the contrasting styles at work. Los Angeles attacked with a possession game, cycling the puck down low and wearing down the San Jose defenders until they could set up a quality scoring chance. The Kings defensemen would rarely shoot the puck from the point, opting to throw it into the corner and keep the cycle going, rather than taking a low-percentage shot. The Kings' goal came from behind the net, resulting from a cycle pass rather than a point shot.
San Jose played more of a north-south game, getting bodies to the front of the net and shooting from anywhere, hoping for rebounds or deflections. The Sharks defensemen would fire away from the point, rarely dishing it off or waiting for a higher-percentage chance. San Jose didn't rely on many diagramed plays, and the team's lone goal came on Patrick Marleau's individual effort, attacking down the wing with speed and bombing the puck through Jonathan Quick from the left faceoff circle.
The offensive differences we saw on Wednesday will be even more pronounced tonight, when the Colorado Avalanche tangle with the Sharks at HP Pavilion. A lack of talent and poor decision-making may have plagued Ben Affleck's career over the last decade (honestly, Pearl Harbor? Gigli? Paycheck?) but neither of those problems have affected the surprising Avs this season. If you're waiting for Colorado to drop off you'd better have a lot of patience, because an Affleck resurgence is more likely than an Avalanche regression.
Colorado's impressive start has been built from the net out. Craig Anderson has been outstanding this season, but he's also getting a lot of help from an experienced and well-coached defense that relies on excellent positioning. The Avs played the perfect game on Tuesday night against the Edmonton Oilers, shutting out the home team with a stringent defensive approach.
I've always been a fan of defensemen who play defense first, and Colorado has a ton of them with Adam Foote, Scott Hannan, Kyle Quincey, Brett Clark and Kyle Cumsikey. They can contribute offensively, but any points come as an added bonus rather than a realistic expectation, keeping the focus on defense. The Avs simply don't give up odd-man rushes, because their defensemen stay well back of the play and don't take risks in the neutral zone, deferring to the forwards to carry the puck and establish the offense.
Honestly, why risk it having your defenseman carry the puck through the neutral zone? You're only inviting trouble when you do that. Colorado dishes the puck to the forwards with short, precise passes, and lets the skilled players take over once the play exits the defensive zone. It's simple and effective, limiting the danger with a common sense approach. Nobody has to scramble to get back into position, and nobody has to cover for a teammate who wanders too far and turns the puck over.
Just as it produces the most entertaining duos, the contrasting styles of the Sharks and Avs should produce another intriguing game. Two of the best in the west go at it tonight, and the difference on the defense appears to be deference. We'll see who comes out on top, the shoot-from-anywhere, risk-taking Sharks, or the conservative, even-keeled Avalanche.
***
Going back to Wednesday night's game for a minute, it's encouraging to see the Sharks continuing to find ways to win. However, it's disconcerting that we keep seeing the same players appear in the studs department, helping secure victory night after night. At some point, the consistent effort and production will have to extend a little further than Patrick Marleau and Evgeni Nabokov.
Three Studs
3. Dan Boyle – So it's revealed that Boyle has been playing the last six weeks with a broken thumb, and what does he do that night? Oh, just 26+ minutes, adding another assist while leading the team in blocked shots and takeaways. Boyle is such a strong skater he's able to compensate for his own mistakes, jumping back into the play and re-gaining position. He's fun to watch.
2. Patrick Marleau – Can someone else besides Marleau please stand up? He's been carrying the team offensively the last six games and putting in a more determined effort than any Sharks skater. As I mentioned earlier, it's not much different than his regular season performance from last year, and most people assume the captaincy move has something to do with it. However, Marleau's in a contract year and could simply be making a case for a huge payday.
1. Evgeni Nabokov – Even though his numbers aren't spectacular, Nabokov has been asked to steal points every other night and he's come through more often than not. He had to face another treacherous first period, and you could see his frustrating mounting before his teammates rallied and found their legs in the second period. Also, Nabokov's performance in the shootout was one of the best I've ever seen from him.
Three Duds
3. Dany Heatley – Maybe Heatley was trying to give Jonathan Quick a cold, because he was fanning in front of him all night long. Also, the big sniper only turns his game up when the Sharks are on the power play, and while some might see that as opportunistic, it's really just lazy and selfish. It makes more sense to give his huge five-on-five minutes and talented linemates to a player who will benefit from them, rather than wasting them. Like Marleau, perhaps?
2. Jamie McGinn – I would love to offer a dozen reasons why McGinn belongs in San Jose. However, he isn't giving me or the coaching staff any, and we're beginning to realize why he's spent so much time in Worcester this season (aside from his hefty salary). McGinn hasn't made any tangible difference, and while his scoring touch was never anything more than limited, we haven't gotten a sniff of it yet this season.
1. Benn Ferriero – It seemed like Ferriero was killing the momentum all night. Even though he put four shots on net, each of them was from well outside the slot, miles away from a scoring area. His NHL audition is about three weeks overdue, but he's still around thanks to some key injuries. Ferriero's time is running out, and there's no guarantee he's going to get another extended stint on the NHL roster given his recent performance.
ryan.garner@hockeybuzz.com
It was fascinating to watch the Sharks-Kings game on Wednesday night, simply because of the contrasting styles at work. Los Angeles attacked with a possession game, cycling the puck down low and wearing down the San Jose defenders until they could set up a quality scoring chance. The Kings defensemen would rarely shoot the puck from the point, opting to throw it into the corner and keep the cycle going, rather than taking a low-percentage shot. The Kings' goal came from behind the net, resulting from a cycle pass rather than a point shot.
San Jose played more of a north-south game, getting bodies to the front of the net and shooting from anywhere, hoping for rebounds or deflections. The Sharks defensemen would fire away from the point, rarely dishing it off or waiting for a higher-percentage chance. San Jose didn't rely on many diagramed plays, and the team's lone goal came on Patrick Marleau's individual effort, attacking down the wing with speed and bombing the puck through Jonathan Quick from the left faceoff circle.
The offensive differences we saw on Wednesday will be even more pronounced tonight, when the Colorado Avalanche tangle with the Sharks at HP Pavilion. A lack of talent and poor decision-making may have plagued Ben Affleck's career over the last decade (honestly, Pearl Harbor? Gigli? Paycheck?) but neither of those problems have affected the surprising Avs this season. If you're waiting for Colorado to drop off you'd better have a lot of patience, because an Affleck resurgence is more likely than an Avalanche regression.
Colorado's impressive start has been built from the net out. Craig Anderson has been outstanding this season, but he's also getting a lot of help from an experienced and well-coached defense that relies on excellent positioning. The Avs played the perfect game on Tuesday night against the Edmonton Oilers, shutting out the home team with a stringent defensive approach.
I've always been a fan of defensemen who play defense first, and Colorado has a ton of them with Adam Foote, Scott Hannan, Kyle Quincey, Brett Clark and Kyle Cumsikey. They can contribute offensively, but any points come as an added bonus rather than a realistic expectation, keeping the focus on defense. The Avs simply don't give up odd-man rushes, because their defensemen stay well back of the play and don't take risks in the neutral zone, deferring to the forwards to carry the puck and establish the offense.
Honestly, why risk it having your defenseman carry the puck through the neutral zone? You're only inviting trouble when you do that. Colorado dishes the puck to the forwards with short, precise passes, and lets the skilled players take over once the play exits the defensive zone. It's simple and effective, limiting the danger with a common sense approach. Nobody has to scramble to get back into position, and nobody has to cover for a teammate who wanders too far and turns the puck over.
Just as it produces the most entertaining duos, the contrasting styles of the Sharks and Avs should produce another intriguing game. Two of the best in the west go at it tonight, and the difference on the defense appears to be deference. We'll see who comes out on top, the shoot-from-anywhere, risk-taking Sharks, or the conservative, even-keeled Avalanche.
***
Going back to Wednesday night's game for a minute, it's encouraging to see the Sharks continuing to find ways to win. However, it's disconcerting that we keep seeing the same players appear in the studs department, helping secure victory night after night. At some point, the consistent effort and production will have to extend a little further than Patrick Marleau and Evgeni Nabokov.
Three Studs
3. Dan Boyle – So it's revealed that Boyle has been playing the last six weeks with a broken thumb, and what does he do that night? Oh, just 26+ minutes, adding another assist while leading the team in blocked shots and takeaways. Boyle is such a strong skater he's able to compensate for his own mistakes, jumping back into the play and re-gaining position. He's fun to watch.
2. Patrick Marleau – Can someone else besides Marleau please stand up? He's been carrying the team offensively the last six games and putting in a more determined effort than any Sharks skater. As I mentioned earlier, it's not much different than his regular season performance from last year, and most people assume the captaincy move has something to do with it. However, Marleau's in a contract year and could simply be making a case for a huge payday.
1. Evgeni Nabokov – Even though his numbers aren't spectacular, Nabokov has been asked to steal points every other night and he's come through more often than not. He had to face another treacherous first period, and you could see his frustrating mounting before his teammates rallied and found their legs in the second period. Also, Nabokov's performance in the shootout was one of the best I've ever seen from him.
Three Duds
3. Dany Heatley – Maybe Heatley was trying to give Jonathan Quick a cold, because he was fanning in front of him all night long. Also, the big sniper only turns his game up when the Sharks are on the power play, and while some might see that as opportunistic, it's really just lazy and selfish. It makes more sense to give his huge five-on-five minutes and talented linemates to a player who will benefit from them, rather than wasting them. Like Marleau, perhaps?
2. Jamie McGinn – I would love to offer a dozen reasons why McGinn belongs in San Jose. However, he isn't giving me or the coaching staff any, and we're beginning to realize why he's spent so much time in Worcester this season (aside from his hefty salary). McGinn hasn't made any tangible difference, and while his scoring touch was never anything more than limited, we haven't gotten a sniff of it yet this season.
1. Benn Ferriero – It seemed like Ferriero was killing the momentum all night. Even though he put four shots on net, each of them was from well outside the slot, miles away from a scoring area. His NHL audition is about three weeks overdue, but he's still around thanks to some key injuries. Ferriero's time is running out, and there's no guarantee he's going to get another extended stint on the NHL roster given his recent performance.
ryan.garner@hockeybuzz.com
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