The more you think you know about a team, the less you actually know. Sports can be funny that way and not in a funny haha sort of way.
Trust me...because after that disaster of a hockey game last night, nobody in San Jose is in a laughing mood.
For a second straight game the Sharks hit the ice knowing the Kings and Ducks both lost and for a second consecutive night they failed to take advantage of that.
The Sharks grabbed a 2-0 first period lead and had a sizeable shot advantage. Simply put, they were in control from the go. How could they possibly screw this up? After all Edmonton is one of the worst teams in the NHL....AND the Oilers hadn't won a game in San Jose since 2011. Like I said....what could go wrong?
But, as is the case with every team Pete Deboer coaches, the Sharks let up, took their foot off the gas (insert any cheesy cliche) and failed to play a full 60 minutes.
The Oilers took over the game offensively with four second period goals and outscoring the Sharks 6-1 over the final 40 minutes.
San Jose led in every other statistical category, including shots, blocks, takeaways etc. etc. etc. Too bad only the final score matters right?
The final result was another sad loss to a sad opponent in front of a less than capacity Shark Tank. And to add insult to injury, the Sharks couldn't even slip through the backdoor in to the playoffs because the Coyotes beat the Dallas Stars!
In yesterday's blog I asked the question "Which team will show up tonight?"
... I guess it was a combination of both Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
I'm still trying to figure out what went wrong. I have a theory though. Maybe the Sharks are so uncomfortable playing at home they don't want to move up in the standings. Maybe they want to be the road team throughout the playoffs. Hey, it worked for L.A. a few seasons ago.
Maybe, just maybe.... Nah, probably not.
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Games notes...
- James Reimer was shelled. He stopped 16 of 21 shots for a very pedestrian .762 GAA.
- Joe Pavelski scored a PPG in the first period giving him 35 for the season. It's the third time in his career that he's reached 35 goals in a season.
- Nick Spaling and Roman Polak each had an assist on Tommy Wingels goal in the first. It was Polak's second point and a Shark (2a) and the fourth for Spaling (2g 2a). Both players were acquired in a deal with the Leafs back in Feb.
- San Jose is a sub .500 team (10-12) versus the bottom three teams in each conference.
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The Sharks next chance to join the big dance is on Saturday against the Stars. In case you're wondering San Jose is 2-1 against Dallas.
thanks for reading, Steve