If you're the glass-half-full type of fan than you might be pleased with the San Jose Sharks (33-18-5) play of late. The Sharks have earned a point in three of the last four games and are managing to maintain a very slim lead in the Pacific Division.
If you are one of those types of fans you have company in Sharks' head coach Pete Deboer. PDB is keeping classy with his quotes.
"We've lost three (of the past four) games in overtime or shootouts. Those are coin flips. I don't feel we're in a rut, no." -Deboer
But, reality is the teal and black are 0-1-3 in the last four and and 0-1-2 in the current four-game road trip and nothing seems to working in sync. When the offense is on, the defense is off. When the defense is on, the offense is off and the special teams have been an area of weakness throughout.
Saturday was another one of those offensively challenging days and Wayne Simmonds spoiled what had been a pretty good effort from the Sharks defense and goalie Aaron Dell.
The Philadelphia Flyers' All-Star forward scored in overtime for a 2-1 win against Sharks at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday.
Simmonds picked the pocket of Brent Burns at center ice,and was off to the races. Dell was helpless. Game, set and match.
I feel for Dell. He relieved Martin Jones in the Boston game and made 18 saves. He makes 33 more on Saturday and loses like that.
Enough of that. I'll end with a few quick hits and we move on to the nest one.
What you might have missed...
- Ivan Provorov scored the Flyers' first 5-on-5 goal in 232:29. Philly hadn't scored since the third period vs. Montreal on Feb. 2 and they had been shut out in two of the past three games.
- Logan Couture missed his first game of the season with an upper-body in jury. He's listed as day-to-day.
- Joe Thornton has 995 career assists.
- Kevin Labanc is fifth in goals scored for San Jose with seven. He nearly had number eight but it was overturned when a review determined he interfered with the Flyers goalie.
- The Sharks had won four consecutive road games prior to losing the first three of the current trip. San Jose is 15-11-3 on the road this season.
- San Jose had one more shot to end this trip on a high not when they visit New Jersey on Sunday afternoon.
- The Sharks have the third largest goal differential (+18) in the Western Conference.
- San Jose is 20-14-5 all-time vs. the Flyers.
Thanks for reading, Steve