Long time no see, huh, my bourgeoisie friends..

With Sharks' post season starting later today, it's time for your favorite Russian to put together what became a tradition at FTF this time of the year - a rundown of what various hockey writers and "experts" are saying about the Sharks and their first round chances.

Let's get right into it, and if you're patient enough and because you missed me, I'm leaving my own prediction for the series at the very end.

Noting the greatest strength Blues have - their stingy defense, The Hockey News mentioned Sharks' strength in the forward depth and power play. However, that's not enough, as these writers believe the Sharks are a two-lines team:

When the big guns aren't blazing, the Sharks are usually dead in the water. Joe Thornton doesn't put up triple digits anymore and Marleau's points pace has also fallen in recent years. A lack of scoring in the bottom six essentially makes San Jose a two-line team.

Dead in the water.. How many times this phrase have been used in Sharks articles before? 283,000, if we are to believe Larry Page and Sergey Brin. So creative. Still, THN's pick is the Blues in five:

The Blues swept the season series 4-0, holding the Sharks to just three goals. Joe Thornton and company should struggle to get past Alex Pietrangelo and a Blues ‘D' that simply doesn't let pucks reach the net. The Blues' home dominance is just one more reason to pick them.

Fine. Moving on.

The old friend of the Sharks Pierre LeBrun of ESPN has one of the best previews of the series one can find online, which is not unusual for him. Not only it is detailed, but he is one of the few writers out there who believes the Sharks have a chance in this one. In fact, Pierre thinks despite the regular season sweep, Blues drew the worst opponent they could:

Really, if there's a giant killer in the making in these Stanley Cup playoffs, it might indeed be the Sharks, whose bizarre and disappointing regular season can now be a flip of the calendar, a distant thought, as they begin the postseason with a fresh start and a loaded squad -- and without the usual pressure of having to live up to a high seed.

After going over the usual lines for this series about Blues' defense and goaltending, Pierre is still not convinced this is going to be enough to knock out the experienced Акулы and he thinks San Jose is in it to win it:

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	@ 7:30 PST
14-14-3, 31 points		16-10-3, 35 points
12th in Western Conference		8th in Western Conference

It's been a one strange season for San Jose Sharks. Up-and-down from the start.

At times the team looked like a contender, easily dominating all 60 minutes and on all four lines. Other times the team looked passive and easily pushed around. And then there were times when the team looked both ways in the same game.

On any given night, it's impossible to predict how Sharks would do, and there's been little consistency from night to night.

Take the last 20 games as a sample - 10 games before Thanksgiving - and 10 after.

During the first stretch, the Sharks won 7 out of 10, culminating with Niemi playing possibly his best game as a Shark when he helped his team defeat the Blackhawks. Power play was still working - it was 21% in those ten games. Penalty kill wasn't disastrous by today's Sharks standards - 80%. Sharks scored 31 goal and allowed just 21.

During the next stretch, the Sharks won just 3 out of 10. Power play was a hideous 6% - which would put them dead last by far overall in the league if this was a normal result. Penalty kill was just as depressing - only 65%. Today's worst team in the league has an average of 73% (that happens to be Toronto Maple Leafs right now, regaining that spot back from the Sharks). Sharks also scored six less goals in that stretch - 25 and allowed eight more - 29.

When viewed as a group, it is the special teams that are causing the Sharks the biggest headache. When Sharks can kill penalties and score power play goals, they can win games.

In the last 20 games, if Sharks killed 80% or more penalties, they are 5-4. If they did not, they are 5-6. If they can kill 100% of penalties, they are 6-2 in those games. During the same stretch, if Sharks scored a power play goal in a game, they won 5 out of 8. In games without power play goals, the Sharks won just 5 out of 12.

In the previous seasons since the lockout, with Sharks power play and penalty kill generally being top 10 in the league (except mediocre PK last season), it was 5-on-5 game that determined the fate the team that season. This year, the Sharks are so far no. 4 team in the league in 5-on-5 play, trailing only Boston (no shock), St. Louis (wait.. what?) and Detroit (duh..). It is 5-on-5 play that's keeping the Sharks from sinking to territories occupied by teams like the Islanders and the Ducks.

Todd McLellan and the Sharks can right the ship this season if they just normalize their special teams. If penalty kill can be 80% of better, the Sharks will win more games than they lose. If power play can score more often than twice in the last 30 tries, the Sharks will also win more often.

The good news is that there is no way any team in the NHL can maintain 6% power play percentage, or 65% penalty kill for an extended stretch of time. The PK unit consisting of Mr. Plank, Matthew Taylor, Ivano M, and Jon Allred with mymclife in goal will likely do better than that. Add idunno723 to the line to make it a PP unit (sorry man, but you can't kill penalties), and FTF line scores at least 10% of the time.

As things regress back to the mean for this year's Sharks team, their position in the standings will move more to where they belong - close to where Boston and Detroit is right now. What will it take to do it - a new scheme, new assistant coaches, or new players is another question. But it is the special teams that need to improve more than anything else.

PREDICTION: Sharks score twice on PP, and kill all penalties to beat the Oilers 3-0, with goals by Ivano M, Matthew Taylor and an empty netter from the goalie mymclife. Jamie McGinn writes the game recap for Fear the Fin.

How does one build a following of fans before playing a single shift for his NHL team? New San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns is showing just how it's done. 

If you're following Burns on Twitter, you know that he loves riding a bike and goes riding on a regular basis in the summer. It is certainly one big advantage of being traded to San Jose Sharks - Northern California is one of the most bike friendly areas in the world, with plenty of trails and the weather that allows bikers to ride all year around. Brent Burns is biking to get ready for the season, "to shed a couple more pounds" as he told the bikers this morning. New hockey seasons starts next Friday with the training camp. 

Last night Brent Burns made a last minute decision to invite the fans on Twitter to join him for a ride from Los Gatos up to Saratoga on Highway 9: 

Eight bikers showed this morning up to join him. Few more, including myself, came by without a bike to say hello. Brent Burns was at the spot early, and ready go. 

Ever since arriving to San Jose, Brent Burns embraced all that's good about the area. He's riding his bike on all the great trails, he took a tour of the Specialized factory in Morgan Hill, he went to Napa, and he's been eating at all the good restaurants South Bay has to offer. And he no doubt has the most entertaining Twitter feed on the Sharks. 

NHL players are known to be very down to earth and approachable when compared to other pro athletes playing in the States. But inviting fans to join a bike ride is taking it to a whole new level. Our respect for the new Shark Brent Burns continues to grow, even before he played a single game or scored his first goal. It's no wonder the fans in Minnesota hated seeing him traded. 

Having seen how Burns interacts with his fans after Captain's Ice, what he does in the community with his support of the troops, and how he is full of life just in general, there's no doubt he'll become a fan favorite in San Jose in no time.

And that's how it's done.  

By now you probably have heard of the terrible tragedy that occured in Russia earlier today.

An airplane Yak-42 carrying KHL hockey club Lokomotiv Yaroslavl had a failure as it was taking off, and went down shortly after landing, killing 43 passengers on board. Two more passengers survived the crash, but are in critical condition.  One is a crew member, and another is a hockey player Alexander Galimov. 

According to reports from Russia, among those who were killed in the crash is Daniil Sobchenko, San Jose Sharks prospect that Doug Wilson drafted in the 6th round just three months ago. Sobchenko was a player with a bright future, according to those who saw him play in the international competition. He was also the first player from the former USSR that Doug Wilson ever selected in a draft as a general manager of San Jose Sharks. 

Words fail me right now as I look at the list of those who were killed in the crash. We've seen many of these players on the ice in NHL and at the Olympics. Sharks organization is impacted too. All of you have to do is look on Twitter and see how many NHL players are reporting they had friends on the board of that plane. 

It's been one terrible summer in hockey today with the deaths of its current and former players. Just when we thought it couldn't get any worse, another tragedy strikes - the kind none of us could have even remotely imagine possible. 

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of victims. 

UPDATE, 10:30am: Emergency Services of Russia confirm that Daniil Sobchenko was on the plane at the time of the crash. Ruslan Salei, whose presence on the plane was questioned in earlier reports, is also listed as a passenger. These reports are as official as we'll get. 

UPDATE, 2:00pm: David Pollak of Working The Corners talks with Sobchenko's roomate Tommy Wingels and Sharks Head Coach Todd McLellan about the tragic events today.

UPDATE, 3:00pm: Sharks General Manager Doug Wilson released the following statement today concerning prospect Daniil Sobchenko:

"We are very saddened to report that the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry has published a list stating that Sharks prospect Daniil Sobchenko was aboard the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane that crashed today in Yaroslavl, Russia. Daniil attended our development camp this past July and everyone on our staff agreed that he had a bright future with our organization. He was an amazing person with a fun-loving personality and his attitude and energy during his time in San Jose was infectious. Our deepest sympathies go out to his family and friends."

"This is a difficult day for the hockey world. Many people in our organization had existing relationships with other Lokomotiv players, coaches and staff members. We send our sincere condolences to their families as well."

As faithful FTF readers may notice, I haven't written much this summer. With many things occupying my daily schedule, not the least of which is the birth of our new son last week, I had to step away from blogging.

As I reevaluated my time commitments for the upcoming season, I realized I wouldn't have the time it takes to be a regular contributor here. So in a way, this is my "retirement" piece. 

And with that, I'd like to use this chance to thank you all for putting up with me during the couple of seasons I've been contributing here. I don't always write using correct English. I have Russian agenda.  But this community has been terrific and the only reason why I was here to begin with. You always read our nonsense. But even better - you're always willing to agree or disagree with our view and leave a multitude of comments. Reading your responses on this blog has been just as fun as writing for it. I've also met many of you in real life at FTF Night at the Tank, at Sharks games, and at team practices.. Fear the Fin became my hockey family. Thank you for that! 

And special thanks goes to the founders of this blog and our spiritual leaders, Jason Plank and Matthew Taylor, for allowing me to be a part of the FTF crew. Two of the coolest guys I've met in my life. 

Now that we have this out of the way, let me get into the meat of what's coming up ahead. August is still the slowest sports month of the year, but it's almost over. The camp will be here before we know it.

Those of you who go to Captain's Ice know that half the team is already here and skating. I attended the skate on Tuesday. On the ice, among others, were Brent Burns, Dan Boyle, Joe Thornton, Jason Demers, Antti Niemi, Patrick Marleau and Frazer McLaren. More are arriving in the next couple of weeks. 

Don't know about you, but I'm counting the days till the hockey is back. As I think about the upcoming season, here are my top eight reasons why I am excited about it and why this may be the greatest season in team's history. 

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Thanks to the Sharks deciding to drag the Red Wings series little longer, the wait between the Western Conference semifinal and final is very short. The puck will drop in less than three hours. As you pace in your house from room to room wondering what else to do before the Sharks hit the ice again (or if you're taking a nice long nap - my plan for as soon as I hit the "submit" button), it's time to round up some predictions for the series first from the authors of this blog and second from other hockey writing media. 

Before we jump into the details, it's no surprise that most of the media is predicting Vancouver to prevail. They were an easy pick before the playoffs started. All that these writers are doing is saying, "look - I told you Vancouver is good!" No one cares the Canucks came within one shot of being eliminated from the 1st round, or that it took them 6 games to overcome Nashville Predators, or that Henrik Sedin has less points than Dan Boyle, or Daniel less than Logan Couture for that matter. All is forgotten, and lo and behold, the Canucks are once again the favorites to win the Cup. 

Sounds good. We all know how the Sharks play when no one believes in them. 

Fear the Fin Predictions

Jason Plank, aka Mr. Plank

He wrote two detailed articles previewing the series here and here. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend them, as it'll tell you all you need to know about this series. The essence of what our fearless leader is thinking is summarized in this section: 

Vancouver is a good team in transition. Limiting turnovers, while always a necessity throughout the course of a hockey game, is essential against Vancouver. They have more speed throughout their lineup than either Detroit or Los Angeles did-- historically that has given an issue for San Jose. Furthermore, the Canucks activate their defense with aplomb and are very aggressive in the offensive zone. Their special teams are excellent, their goal scoring spread throughout the lineup.

In every sense of the word they are a team that will provide an immense challenge for San Jose. And for the second series in a row, this one is likely subject to the flip of a coin.

It's going to be an excellent matchup to be certain, one that will most certainly provide many thrills along the way.

Matthew Taylor, aka Matthew_Taylor

These two teams are so evenly matched, that my first prediction is that this will be a great series. However, I have to refer to the same reasoning that I picked the Sharks over both Los Angeles and Detroit: Depth. 

The Sharks forward group gives them a bevy of scoring options, more than even the Vancouver Canucks. The matchup I'm looking forward to watching is how the Canucks match up their defensemen against the Sharks offense.

The Vancouver defense scares me, as they're probably the best top to bottom in the league. Luongo has shown that he's still elite, despite his struggles against Chicago in the first round. I still give San Jose the edge.
I'm taking the Sharks in six games.     

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Not sure how you all feel after this series finally ended yesterday. But I still feel exhausted. No doubt it was one of the greatest playoffs series of all time, and perhaps the greatest I have seen since I started watching NHL couple of decades ago. But being a Sharks fan, watching four games when Sharks could have advanced within eight days was emotionally draining. It really feels like the series lasted for several months. 

Before we take a closer look at the next opponent Vancouver Canucks, let's look back at the statistical numbers the Sharks posted in the round 2. It's not too hard to name the main heros. But at the same time, the stats tell a clearer story on who made the biggest difference and why. 

Here are your 10 curious statistical highlights from Round 2 for San Jose Sharks. 

• If I was to name an MVP of round 2, it'd be Dan Boyle. He was named star no. 1 in Game 7. But he excelled the rest of the series. Consider this - he had 2 goals and 6 assists (highest on the team), blocked 10 shots, and was tied for team lead with Logan Couture and Devin Setoguchi in shots on goal, with 27.  
• Most other outlets named Thornton the best player in the series. His stats aren't as good as Boyle's - but very close. Thornton had 6 assists, 8 takeaways (highest on the team), 7 hits, and was 58% on faceoffs. He took 135 faceoffs in this round - 31 more than the next guy, Joe Pavelski. He was the engine of the team in the last series. 
• If I was to name a third star of the series, that would be Logan Couture. The rookie finished the series averaging point a game, and having scored 4 goals. Think about that - four goals in playoffs against Detroit Red Wings, none of them are as big as the goal he scored in Game 7. Or how about his 5 takeaways, tied for second on the team? Again, none bigger than the one against Zetterberg that lead to the goal in Game 7 just a moment later. 
• An honorable mention would go to Ryane Clowe. Having missed a game, he still finished the series with 6 points (all assists). What's also impressive, he lead the team in +/-, with +4. The stats look good - but we can't overestimate his influence in the locker room and on the bench. When he's there, the bench is more alive. He is the heart of this team. 
• Another hero of the series was Douglas Murray. He lead the team in hits (27!) and blocked shots (22).

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The clock is ticking, with less than four hours left till the puck drop. Time has never been slower. 

As we do this time before the game, we're presenting you with predictions for San Jose Sharks- Detroit Red Wings series. First we'll start with our own, and we'll then finish with those around the league. 

Jason Plank (aka Mr. Plank): When it comes to Detroit I always flip a coin. Both teams are so good up and down their lineup that it sort of feels cheap to make a bold prediction one way or another. They know each other well, have a history against each other-- no secrets, no surprises. Only execution.

I think the Sharks have better depth at forward and better goaltending, and I think Detroit has the edge on the blueline. But one difference between these two teams that is interesting to me is the "game-changer" ability. I know I know, that sounds like some stupid power up in Madden 2011 or something, but to me Detroit has three guys who can singlehandedly take over a game even with little help from their linemates-- Datsyuk, Lidstrom, Franzen-- while San Jose only has one in Niemi. Hockey is a sport where it's so unbelievably rare to see a player take over a game by himself, for the sole reason that it's most "team-oriented" team sport in the world, but those four players have shown an ability to do so before.

It becomes a question of whether you take the deeper and more talented team, or the one with more players who can go out and get it done on their own (please keep in mind we are speaking in relative terms here). I think I take the deeper team over the course of a seven game series, but then again, in that game seven, you'd like to have a player who can dictate the tempo of a game every time he hits the ice in that game seven. And around and around we go.

Like I said, when it comes to Detroit I always end up flipping a coin.

Sharks in 7.

Matt Taylor (aka Matthew_Taylor): It's a shame that these two teams have never met in the Western Conference finals; this matchup is likely one of the best you will see all postseason. It's really going to come down to depth and goaltending, with the Sharks having the edge in both categories in my opinion. Lidstrom will only be able to match one line, and the Sharks have three which can beat you. In addition, the Sharks have scored on Jimmy Howard consistently during his time in the NHL.

Now, San Jose will have to be better on defense and in goal if they want to stop an equally potent Detroit offense. Can Niemi rebound and put up his usually strong showing against Detroit? I think he can.

No matter how much credit is given to Detroit because they've "been there before", it's not San Jose's first rodeo either.

Sharks in 6.

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With three games between San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings out of the way, now might be a good time to take a look at how the two teams are doing statistically. We did this for the Sharks on a monthly basis, and as playoffs continue, we'll do it on a more regular basis, while also contrasting the stats with those of the Sharks opponents. 

With that, here are some initial numeric observations about the series so far. 

• The two best players for the two teams so far are, no surprise, Ryane Clowe and Drew Doughty. Clowe leads the Sharks in points (5) and is tied for the lead in goals with 2. He also leads the team in +/- (+2), and leads all forwards in hits, with 13. He's giving it his all out there, as he did all season. On the other side of the ice is Drew Doughty. While he leads the team in points (4), all these points came in Game 2 of the series. He's -1, and also has just three hits in the series. But that's how Doughty plays - more with his brain and his stick. If we take a look at other stats, Brad Richardson probably has been more important for the Kings. He has 3 points, leads the team in shots, and has 6 blocks. 
• Sharks have been dominating the faceoff circle and are first in the league with 56.8%, which means the Kings are dead last at 43.2% (how does that work out?). The only Shark struggling is Logan Couture who so far won only 46% of his faceoffs. Everyone else is in the positive category, with Torrey Mitchell at 100%. Joe Thornton leads the team among faceoffs regulars at 64% and is 4th in the league in faceoffs percentage among those who took at least 50 faceoffs. Michal Handzus is the one who's struggling the most in this series. You'll remember he only won 1 faceoff out of 14 taken in Game 3. Overall, he's 39% in the series. 

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The memorable Saturday night game against the Kings was coming to a close, with scoreboard showing 4-0 lead by the Kings. As I watched the masses rush to the parking lot of the HP Paviliion with 10 more minutes to go in the game, I turned to ZeroIndulgence and said, "Stanley Cup champions don't ever lose in such pathetic manner." He replied, "especially to the teams like the Kings." 

San Jose Sharks did play one of the worst playoff games in recent memory - this much is true. We know it, the players know it. But it must have been the goal scored by Kyle Clifford (normally a 4th line player for the Kings), or the dumb penalties the Sharks were taking, or the quiet Sharks Tank that totally erases our memories of the past Stanley Cup playoffs.

Even Stanley Cup winning teams take nights off on their way to glory. In fact, every champion team did it at least once every spring, and in many cases twice.

If you still have no hope for the Sharks' playoffs chances after watching that game on Saturday, here are the worst performances by the last 10 Stanley Cup champions.

2010: Vancouver Canucks 5, Chicago Blackhawks 1. 2nd round, game 1. I'm sure this is not how the Blackhawks wanted to open the series in front of their own fans. Half way through the game, Canucks were already leading 5-0. The Blackhawks did a similar thing in the 1st round, when they lost 1-4 to the Nashville Predators.  No big deal - Blackhawks turned it around and eliminated the Canucks in Game 6. 

2009: Pittsburgh Penguins 0, Detroit Red Wings, 5. Stanley Cup Final, Game 5. On the heels of comments from the Penguins camp that the Red Wings were too old, the veteran team decided that actions are better than words, and delivered what at the time looked like a knock out, taking a confident 3-2 lead in the series. Everyone thought the series was over - the Penguins were outplayed in every facet of the game. But Penguins shocked the hockey world and overcame the adversity by winning the next two games to claim their next Stanley Cup championship. 

2008: Detroit Red Wings 3, Nashville Predators 5. Round 1, Game 3. While this was one of the most focused playoffs performances of the decade - this loss being the worst by the eventual champion, Detroit still had a shaky start. The controversy was with the goaltenders. Dominik Hasek would eventually lose the starting job to Chris Osgood, and the Red Wings would dominate the rest of the games.

2007: Detroit Red Wings 5, Anaheim Ducks 0. Round 3, Game 3. With series tied 1-1 going into Anaheim, the Ducks found themselves in penalty trouble in the 2nd period, which lead to 0-4 score they were unable to recover from. The momentum seemed to have swung in the Red Wings favor. But Anaheim would not lose again in that series and would eliminate Detroit in Game 6. 

2006: Carolina Hurricanes 0, Edmonton Oilers 4. Stanley Cup final, Game 6. Having a chance to win the Cup in Game 5 and Game 6, Hurricanes were not ready to do it just yet. Game 6 was especially bad, and with that score, the Oilers' win felt like a champions win. Edmonton put twice as many shots and hits in that game than did the Hurricanes. Yet it was Carolina who would prevail in Game 7 and win their first Stanley Cup. 

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If last night's game between San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings was any indication, the series may be longer than most expect. Whatever the outcome, it's much more interesting to watch the games when we know the opponent better. To do that, I spent some time researching their players and compiled a list of curious facts about each player that appeared in the game yesterday. Here they are for your consideration as we try to kill the time before Game 2. 

Jonathan Bernier, G - one of the star prospects in Canada, Bernier won the gold medal at 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship. He played two games at the tournament while being a backup of Steve Mason, who is now the starter for Columbus Blue Jackets. Drew Doughty and Wayne Simmonds were his teammates on that team.

Dustin Brown, C - drafted 13^th overall in 2003. The Sharks drafted Milan Michalek ahead of him. His career NHL career didn't fully take off until Anze Kopitar arrived in 2006. Brown is the youngest captain in the Kings history.

Kyle Clifford, LW - a new fan favorite in LA, the rookie was not expected to make the team this year. His willingness to drop the gloves and work hard in the dirty areas of the ice changed the mind of the coaches, and he remained with the team.

Drew Doughty, D - was the 2^nd youngest Norris trophy nominee in NHL's history when he was nominated last year at the age of 20 (second only to Bobby Orr). Doughty was also the youngest player to represent Canada at the Olympics where NHL players participated.

Matt Greene, D - in 2004/5 Green was the captain of University of Dakota Fighting Sioux and lead them to the final of the NCAA tournament, where they lost to University of Denver Pioneers, led by Matt Carle.  

Michal Handzus, C - born in what is now Slovakia. In 2002 he became just the second NHL player to ever score on a penalty shot in overtime.

Jack Johnson, D - his real name is John Joseph Louis Johnson III. If I was Randy Hanh, I'd start referring to him by that name each time he touches the puck.  

Trevor Lewis, C - drafted 17^th overall by the Kings in 2006, one spot behind Ty Wishart, who would later be traded to Tampa Bay in Dan Boyle trade. Wishart is now with Islanders, and played 20 games for them this season.

Alec Martinez, D - can't verify it on the internets, but as mentioned on yesterday's CSN broadcast, played for Junior Sharks growing up, when his family lived in Danville.

Willie Mitchell, D - what have we not written about him last summer? Oh.. He was married in Napa Valley in 2006 to his American wife.

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With playoffs starting tonight, predictions on who will win each match up are starting to show up on just about all outlets that write about hockey. The good news for the Sharks is that all eyes are on two teams this year - Vancouver Canucks and Washington Capitals. While there are some authors who do mention the possibility of the Sharks going deep this year, very few go on the record predicting they will go all the way.

The lackluster first half of the season lowered everyone's expectations, and perhaps even our own. As hockey writers and fans stopped watching the Sharks in the second half, the memory of that first half remained in their minds. The continued dominance of the Canucks and the awakening of the Capitals didn't help the matters either.

And perhaps this is how it should be. I prefer the underdog role for the Sharks. No pressure from the outside - only from inside themselves. In a way, the Sharks position right now reminds me of the San Francisco Giants position last September. Remember how they were underdogs in just about every series and no one picked them before MLB playoffs started? That didn't end too bad. 

As far as predictions for the eventual Stanley Cup winner, most writers pick the Canucks to win out, in the final against Washington Capitals.

With that said, things change rather quickly in the world of sports, and that's why we watch it. So for now, we'll focus on the first round predictions involving the Sharks. At least in this round, the Sharks are not the underdogs, and majority of predictions for the matchup against the LA favor San Jose. The summary is after the jump.

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	@ 7:30 PST
44-28-5, 93 points		45-23-9, 99 points
7th in Western Conference		2nd in Western Conference

March was going to be a key month for the Sharks position in the standings and momentum in general. The team was in 3rd place on March 1st, but the race for the Western Conference playoffs spots was wide open. It seems to be all but over at this point with just three game remaining for the Flames while the gap between them and the spot no. 8 keeps growing every night. Sharks responded accordingly, with 9 wins in 13 games, continuing to build on what has been the biggest momentum of the McLellan era.  

This is what I love about the new brand of San Jose Sharks - they are not losing focus. With the exception of the 3-6 loss to Chicago a couple of weeks ago, they've been in every game, and dominating it for the most part.

The third period used to be the dreaded period for this club not so long ago. So many leads given up, so many games blown. 

Now when the 3rd period comes along, the Sharks play it like it the last period of the season. Need to tie the game? No problem, Patrick Marleau. Need to preserve the lead? No big deal, Marc-Edouard Vlasic. Gave up an ugly turnover? Niemi says "No".

The same, by the way, can be said of the overtime. Remember what a frightening time that used to be? 

The last March brought some unforgettable memories for the Sharks fan. The game against Vancouver Canucks on March 10th was what many labeled the best NHL game this season. Then there was a great comeback against the Kings on the 24th. And lest we forget - the 6-0 against Dallas the fricken Stars. 

As we completed yet another full month of regular season of hockey, let's take a quick look back and highlight the key individual stats from that period.  Here are your top 10 numbers. 

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	@ 7:00 PST
37-27-11, 85 points		42-23-8, 92 points
10th in Western Conference		3rd in Western Conference

I've always loved the month of March. 

Growing up in Russia, this meant three things. First, the winter was over the snow began to melt. Second, the Women's Day was on the 8th of March. Second, soccer was back after the offseason and sports began to matter again.

I still love March, now that I live in the States. First, the hills are still green in the Bay Area. Second, it is still the Women's Day on the 8th of March. Third, the hockey begins to matter more. 

As Sharks fans, we've been spoiled this time of the year since the lockout. By this time, we knew the Sharks were making playoffs, if not on paper, then at least 99% sure. Losses ceased to bother us too much, and we were simply waiting for playoffs to start. With the exception of Detroit Red Wings who enjoyed a similar fate, no other team in the NHL has been this relaxed in the second half of March every year since the lockout 

Back in December, we thought that this year will be the year the Sharks will have to fight to make the playoffs. The Sharks were on the outside looking in. No one felt safe, and it seemed Doug Wilson was the only person in the league who believed in this group of players and in this coaching staff. 

But we all remember what happened next - 21-4-4 record since January 15th. Let that sink in for a moment. 

The Sharks lost just four games in regulation in the last 29 games. 

However, strong finishes to the regular season is something the Sharks every year since the lockout under Ron Wilson - and they had good if not strong finishes under Todd McLellan.

Here is the breakdown by year of how the final 20 games of the regular season went.  

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	@ 7:30 PST
26-30-7, 59 points		36-21-6, 78 points
14th in Western Conference		3rd in Western Conference

February has been a good month for the Sharks.

Consider this. The team entered the month in the 8^th place in the Western Conference, and looking at 10 out of the next 13 games to be on the road. Could anyone predict they would win 11 of those games? I'd say all our wildest dreams came true, but I don't think anybody in San Jose even had dreams this wild. 

With that much success, one would think the Sharks would climb high in the conference table, but not this year. The team is only 6 points away from dropping all the way to spot #11 in the conference. This means only one thing - there is no rest at this point, and the team must continue to work hard in every game during the final push to earn the playoffs berth. With 20 games remaining, if they play well they can still challenge Detroit and even Vancouver for the top seed in the conference, or if they don't, they can still miss the playoffs and hit the links as soon as month and a half from now.

Before this crucial, and likely the most important, month of the regular season begins, let's take a look at how the past month went statistically for the team. Yes, it is that time of the month again for Ivano to crunch the numbers and update his ever growing Excel story of the Sharks season and come up with 10 stats that stand out the most. .  

1. In its 25 years of NHL history, the Sharks only had a better February once-- in 2002, when they did not lose a single game. But the asterisks could be put next to that year, as they only played six games before Winter Olympics started in Salt Lake City. They lost more than twice in all other years, including other years when February was shortened due to the Olympics.

2. Best offensive player of the month? Devin Setoguchi, by far. He lead the team in goals (8), tied for the lead in points (8), had just four giveaways in 13 games, and was second on the team in hits (28). All this in just 16 minutes a night on the ice on average.

3. Second best player on the offense? This one surprised me. It seems as though it would be Marleau or Thornton, yet there he was, Joe Pavelski, quietly earning points night in and out. He tied with Devin Setoguchi for points in February at 13 (4 goals, 9 assists). Joe the Clutch is heating up.

4. Only three players on the team were in the negative +/-. Mayers and McCarthy came in at -3, and Scott Nichol logged a -1. As a team, the Sharks were +66 in February. Compare it to -40 in January or -28 in November-- the two worst months of Sharks hockey this season.

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	@ 7:30 PST
30-18-10, 70 points		31-21-6, 68 points
5th in Eastern Conference		7th in Western Conference

The first thing I do when NHL releases the new regular season schedule each July is to look up the dates the Sharks are playing the Capitals. Then when the tickets go on sale in September, the first game I buy is the home game against the Capitals. I'm sure I'm not alone and many fans around the league do the same. 

Not much to say here, my comrades. Ovechkin is in town!

Besides following the most exciting Russian hockey player since Pavel Bure, it's also been interesting to follow the Capitals because in some ways, they're the Sharks twin in the Eastern Conference. They're the team full of superstars. In terms of talent, most of these superstars are on the offense. In the past few years, just like the Sharks, they've had great regular seasons that were followed by disappointing playoffs. And this year especially - both teams have played up-and-down hockey since the start, sometimes going on long losing streaks and other times beating the best teams in the league. Both teams have had more than an unusual times this season when they failed to score a single goal - Sharks were scoreless seven times so far, the Capitals - eight. And then on other nights, they exploded for many goals - just like the Capitals did yesterday in Anaheim where they scored seven. 

It's not just the story of the teams. We can see similar parallels when we look at team captains. Both Alex Ovechkin and Joe Thornton are on their way to their worst offensive seasons in a long time.

Alex Ovechkin has just 22 goals in 58 games and is on pace for 31 goals this season. His worst season in the NHL was his sophomore year when he scored a mere 46. He's still point-a-game player, but the lack of regular goals is not something we've ever seen from the best Russian athlete since Alexander Popov. 

Joe Thornton is also under-performing this season. He has three points in eight games in February and is on pace for just 67 points on the season. The projected numbers look so bad I had to do my math three times on the calculator. So few points would be the worst offensive stats for Thornton since he was 21 y.o. - not what we expect from him as he's in his prime.

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Who would have guessed a month ago that the two hottest teams in the middle of February would be San Jose Sharks and New Jersey Devils? 

And yet it is today's reality. The Sharks earned 19 points in the last 10 games before arriving to New Jersey. During the same stretch, the Devils earned 17. Someone's streak had to end. In the game that saw equal chances for both teams, the Devils prevailed, as they outlasted the Sharks 2-1 in one of the less memorable games of the season.

The game itself turned out to be just what we got used to seeing whenever Jacques Lemaire is behind the bench - a defensive struggle. With the Sharks paying also more attention to defense nowadays, the first two periods are almost gone from my memory - and for a good reason. I'll be brief - not a whole lot happened then. The Sharks did appear to shoot the puck more, as they dominated in that category after the two periods, 22-11. But that was about it. There were not a lot of scoring chances, they were no fights and virtually no big hits. 

As the pressure continued to rise, it was in the third period when the action began to happen. With six minutes into the third period, Patrick Marleau drove to the net, and with nifty a tap on defenseman's back, he got him confused for just long enough to get wide open in front of Johan Hedberg and to redirect a pass from Niclas Wallin into the net. 

Just a minute later the Sharks had another chance to increase the lead, as Henrik Tallinder was sent to the box to give the Sharks another power play in the game. But instead of capitizing on it, the Sharks took a penalty of their own - this time it was Joe Thornton who got penalized for hooking. 

If the Sharks have one consistent weakness this season, it is their 4-on-4 play. The pace of the game changes, and the team doesn't adjust too well in these situations. This is what happened once again tonight. As the Devils kept the puck, the Sharks were falling behind, and it resulted in another costly error when Logan Couture tripped Anssi Salmela near the Sharks' net. It is almost as if the team begins to panic in these situations, and all kinds of bad things happen. 

In this league, 4-on-3 power play is essentially a 5-on-3 power play with all that skill on the teams and with all the extra space. If the defending team wants to survive, it needs to win faceoffs. That the Sharks failed to do, and less than half a minute later, the Devils tied the game on a shot by Brian Rolston.

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January was a weird month for the Sharks.

Had they won in a shootout against the Kings on Wednesday, they would have posted the longest losing and winning streaks of the season, back to back. In the same month, and not really that far apart - they lost at home to the Leafs and the Oilers and then went on to beat the red hot Coyotes and the Canucks - on the road, no less. Up and down - not just between periods, but now in stretches of games. 

One thing that happened in January is that San Jose Sharks put themselves in a position where from now on, every game is a playoffs game. Every point is going to matter when season is beginning to wind down and this much was evident in the second half of the month. Once the Sharks found their scoring touch, the intensity of games made me forget it was January - it felt like it was May. 

True, there was that third period against the Kings with yet another lead wasted away. Two solid periods of hockey were erased by the lack of focus. But the team woke up in overtime, and came within inches of Couture's shot from winning. When they get back from the All-Star Game break, they'll still be on the edge of missing the playoffs, and the intensity of play will return. Or so we hope. 

It's funny how all of a sudden regular season matters for the Sharks, and matters a great deal. 

With that, I once again cruntched some numbers into my beautiful Sharks stats model to see which Shark did well and not so well in January. Here are my 10 random thoughts. 

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San Jose Sharks
@ Phoenix Coyotes

Monday, Jan 17, 2011, 1:00 PM PST
Jobing.com Arena

Better late than never. 

	@ 1:00 PST
22-19-5, 49 points		23-13-9, 55 points
11th in Western Conference		4th in Western Conference

Before you read anything, a quick reminder that this is a 1pm start. With many of us still working, it makes me wonder why NHL keeps scheduling these games, even if it's a holiday for some people. 

It seems as though these two clubs are currently playing in different leagues.

The Sharks, as you all well remember, have won just two games in 2011, having lost the other six. During that stretch, the team scored just 13 goals. The Coyotes lost only three games in 2011 (one in OT) and won 6 (4 in a row now), having scored 33 goals in that stretch. They're one of the hottest NHL teams right now. 

But when you look at the overall Coyotes record, it's only one regulation win better than the Sharks. When San Jose was doing well in December, the Coyotes were struggling, with such notable losses as being shutout by New Jersey Devils, or losing to San Jose in a memorable game on December 23rd. 

While it seems like the Coyotes have a mental edge right now, having played great hockey for a couple of weeks - the Sharks still remember the years of dominance. A big 4-1 win right before Christmas is hopefully still fresh on their minds. From divisional standpoint, it's another important game for both teams, although major battles between the clubs will come towards the end of the regular season when Coyotes and the Sharks face each other three times in the last two weeks.

Get ready for another hard fought battle - though likely a super boring one, which is what Dave Tippet likes to do when he employs his neutral zone trap against the Sharks.  

After another frustrating loss by the Sharks, Todd McLellan mentioned in the post game that he's looking to change things up in terms of how he's approaching the players and the training. He mentioned benching some players, but that hasn't happened yet, and with injuries and the lack of NHL ready talent in Worcester or Cheechoo under NHL contract, this likely wouldn't happen. We do know from the reports by David Pollak that the players are spending a lot of time in practice just talking and listening to the coach. It's fair to assume they're going back to the basics. 

Whatever they're doing, it worked on Saturday night against St. Louis Blues. As I was watching the game, there were times when I could hardly recognize the Sharks. They were playing solid defense, they were back checking, and they were fast. Only the soft goals allowed by Niemi were reminding me that we're in 2010/11 season. The transition game was working this time, Jamie McGinn scored, Heatley scored two, and for some stretches in the game, the team looked like the Sharks of the past regular seasons - when the only way to stop them was to start taking penalties. That the Blues did and it proved them costly. 

One of the bigger weaknesses during that losing streak to start the year was the Sharks power play. Whether they were 5-on-4, and especially when they were 5-on-3 - they just didn't move. The recent PP reminded me of the old Ron Wilson days, when the only creative move was to pass the puck to Joe Thornton who always stood in the corner and wait for him to find an open Cheechoo somewhere. During that losing streak, the only open man usually turned out to be either Vlasic on the blue line, or Patrick Marleau on the other corner, with all other passing and shooting lanes blocked. None of this resulted in a whole lot of goals. Or where was Cheechoo when we needed him again?

That all changed on Saturday as a result of three things. 

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	@ 7:30 PST
24-8-5, 52 points		21-13-5, 47 points
1st in Western Conference		4th in Western Conference

In December, the Sharks just might have turned their season around. 

Entering the month, the team was struggling in every area. Unable to put a string of wins together, San Jose was dropping points left and right. They had to go to overtime to beat the Islanders, they dropped the points to the Avs, the Blues and Blue Jackets, just to name a few. They were still winning the big games - wins against the Kings and Blackhawks are memorable. But on other nights, the Sharks looked powerless and disinterested. None of the losses were more telling than the one on November 26th, when Canucks beat the Sharks in Vancouver, 6-1, in what at that time was perhaps the worst game of the season. 

With 15 games in 31 days (10 of them on the road!), the month of December thus became crucial for the Sharks. On December 1st the team was 12th in the conference with an ugly record of 11-8-4. When we throw away loser points, the Sharks were only winning 47% of their games. The team responded with a good month of hockey, winning 10 of the 15 games and jumping to 4th positing in the West and 53% overall winning percentage. If we add the win on January 1st, the Sharks have now won 11 out of the last 16 games. 

Remembering how important December was going to be for the team, I kept detailed individual statistics for the team. Numbers don't always tell the full story, but when we break them up into periods of time, certain patterns begin to emerge. Here are 10 key observation about the team based on these statistics. 

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	@ 5:30 PST
15-11-5, 35 points		18-10-2, 38 points
9th in Western Conference		3rd in Western Conference

Sharks did it again. 

Starting the third period with a one goal lead in Nashville, they lost focus for just a tiny bit of time and not only lost the lead, but lost the game as Predators scored two goals in 44 seconds with two minutes remaining. 

It's getting tiresome to write about the nights like this, as they seem to happen regularly now. That's about as much interwebs space as I'm willing to waste on that, and we move on to Dallas. 

Hello again, Dallas Stars. 

San Jose Sharks are going to be facing Dallas Stars for the third time this season, and for the third time in one month. It's a strange calendar feature - the exact same thing will happen in March, when they play each other again, three times in one month. We've written all we could about them - yes, they're good this year. Yes, Brad Richards is Canadian Pavel Datsyuk. Yes, playing them is like going to Thanksgiving dinner when you don't want to go and hang out with most of the people, but you go anyway, and great moments are born. So again, let's talk about something else. 

Since the lockout, San Jose Sharks was known as a team that hardly ever loses the second game of back-to-back games, if they lost the first one. This is 5th back-to-back game for the Sharks this season and they only lost both games once - about a month ago, as they first lost in Denver, and then travelled to Dallas, and lost there too. Strange thing about those games - both losses came in overtime. 

Last season the Sharks had seven back-to-back games and they lost two in a row just once. It's a good guess that they'll win tonight. 

Now a couple of thoughts about individual play. 

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With Dallas Stars back to being one of the better teams in the NHL, there was an expectation of a great game in San Jose tonight, as they faced off against the Sharks. Both teams delivered in almost every way, except how the game actually ended. After three periods and an overtime of exciting hockey, the Stars earned the two points in the skills competition. Dallas preserved their lead in the Pacific Division, as they beat the San Jose with a final score of 3:2. 

In a way, it was logical that the game went into overtime. Throughout the match, both Dallas and San Jose were trading scoring chances (and goals) one after another. Both goaltenders played a great game. The offenses of both teams had no trouble passing the neutral zone. At the same time, defenses for both teams appeared focused and composed. 

But that's the way the NHL is today - some games have to be decided in the skills competition. Today it was the turn of the Sharks' opponents to take the extra point. 

After the jump, a few thoughts about tonight's game.

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	@ 4:00 PST
13-9-4, 30 points		17-7-4, 38 points
9th in Western Conference		4th in Eastern Conference

Here is what I remember about the Flyers. 

First, every night there is an NHL game on Versus, the Flyers is always one of the teams playing. Why the hell not, since Versus is owned by Comcast, that owns the Flyers?

Second, the Sharks actually swept the Flyers last season. I remember the game in San Jose much better.  Someone called me the last minute and offered close-to-front row tickets behind the penalty box. Dany Heatley was hot at the time, and going to the game, I grabbed one of the many hideous baseball hats with corporate logo that we own in case Dany pulls another hat trick. (Remember how he easily he'd get them when he first got to San Jose?)  That turned out to be a wise move, as Heatley did score another hatty, allowing my household to get rid of another ugly hat in the sweetest way any hockey fan can. The Sharks went on to win that game 6-3. This wasn't the last I saw of my hat - I saw it again on the ice during the game highlights on NHL Network when I got home.

Third, I remember that prior to that game in San Jose, Flyers were playing well. After the big loss in San Jose, things started to fall apart, and just two weeks later, they fired John Stevens. Maybe it was my hat?

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Many Canadians still consider this goal by Paul Henderson to be the most important goal of the last century. Photo courtesy of Toronto Star File. 

A question we'll see come up again and again in the next year will be the one raised by an NHL player agent Allan Walsh on Twitter - "Is 40th anniversary Canada Russia Summit Series in 2012 a good idea?"

The reason why is because of last week's report by New York Times indicated that Hockey Canada held preliminary talks with the Russian Ice Hockey Federation for a new Canada-Russia Summit Series to be held in September 2012. The series intends to do two things-- (1) celebrate the 40th anniversary of what is considered by many the greatest hockey tournament of all time, the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and Soviet Union, and (2) write a new chapter the biggest rivalry in international hockey. The Series will likely include eight games (four in Canada and four in Russia), just like the original one-- all played in different cities. The talks are also in line with what we reported here at Fear the Fin two weeks earlier, that the new hockey arena that's being constructed right now in Sochi for 2014 Winter Olympic games is ready to host the Summit Series in 2012. 

While I think the best international game of the the recent past was that memorable Canada-USA final at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, no game at that tournament was more anticipated by hockey fans around the world as was Canada-Russia. Ovechkin, Malkin, Datsyuk, Kovalchuk vs. Crosby, Toews, Niedermayer, besides many other all-stars, including five of our Sharks all on the ice at the same time. However, the game was pretty much over after the first period as a result of a well executed slaughter by the hands of Canadian coach Mike Babcock and his players, which is why I found the Gold medal final to be more interesting (and less painful for me). But there is still no greater rivalry in all of hockey than the one between Canada and Russia. Imagine the same rosters of players on the ice, but repeated eight times within a two or three week period.

That kind of hockey in September on TV or in person would beat the useless NHL preseason hockey games, wouldn't it?

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	@ 7:00 PST
10-7-4, 24 points		6-11-4, 16 points
11th in Western Conference		15th in Western Conference

If you were deserted on an island or stuck in a foreign airport since October and didn't see any hockey games this season, these last two games were all you would want to see to get a clear picture of your 2010/11 San Jose Sharks so far. 

They can come out hitting, blocking, saving, fighting, shooting, shedding blood one night, giving one an impression that they may be the best team in the league right now. Then in the next game the same Sharks can come out timid, flat, unmotivated and so disorganized that one wonders if they even want to play hockey anymore. 

As we've said again and again since the season started, inconsistency has been the name of the game for this team. 

Last night the Sharks played one of the stinkiest games of the whole season. Sure it was against a good opponent, but this was still no excuse. It wasn't just how many goals San Jose allowed. It was how the defense played and how these goals were scored. Years ago I spent a summer as a tourist in Scandinavia. Luckily, most people there speak English, and I had no problem communicating in a normal setting. But it was when I played sports that I had major problems because on the field people still spoke local language. In one soccer tournament they asked me to play defense. While I sort of knew what to do due to playing the game since I could walk - there were many times when I was messing up because I couldn't understand what my teammates were yelling in Swedish or Finnish or whatever. I felt like I was playing all by myself because whatever they were asking me to do, I had no idea. Or at least this was my excuse.  

That's about how the Sharks defense looked last night against the Canucks. Players kept running into each other. There was no help from one another when one was found out of position. If they tried to talk, the players apparently did it in foreign languages. Worst of all, they kept giving the puck away, as if they not only couldn't hear each other, but couldn't even see each other. Poor Dan Boyle - he'll see this one in his nightmares. 

Tonight San Jose Sharks have a good opportunity to forget it all as they step back on the ice in Edmonton. There is no time to think about what happened yesterday. Not much can be said of this year's Oilers - they are once again competing for a lottery draft pick. They're the second worst team in the NHL, won just three out of the last 10, and have the worst goal differential in the league, -32. Out of nine home games, the Oilers won just three. They also have a penalty kill unit from hell - way behind of everyone in the league with the 67.5 percentage. 

Let's see if the Sharks can quickly bounce back from the wreck in Vancouver and restore some confidence. When they return to California, the next opponent is an old friend, Detroit Red Wings. 

Prediction: Sharks win 3-0 on goals by Boyle, Wallin and Niittymaki, all set up by Kent Huskins.  

When the news broke out this morning that Todd McLellan picked Antti Niemi to start in goal tonight against Chicago Blackhawks, many Sharks fans voiced their disappointment. On one hand the decision is logical - no one on the Sharks team wanted to beat the Blackhawks more than their former player Niemi, who was let go last summer due to salary cap constrains. On the other hand, the decision still seemed risky, as Niemi has been nothing but an example of inconsistency since moving to San Jose. 

As it turned out, McLellan made the right bet, and Niemi not only beat his former team, but also played well enough to earn #1 star of the night award from local broadcasters. San Jose Sharks ended the 3-game losing skid in fashion, as they defeated the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks, a team that beat the Sharks in 7 out of the last 8 contests.

While San Jose players tried to downplay the significance of this game in interviews to the press, there was no doubt they have long been waiting for a rematch of last season's Western Conference final. The tone of the game was set early on. As local favorite Brian Campbell was accelerating into the zone, the moment he passed the blue line Murray slammed him into the boards, thus reminding the fans what they were missing during the four games Murray was out with injury. Moments later Patrick Marleau decided to switch things a bit and instead of his usual poke check, sent another Blackhawks player into the air with another big hit around the boards.

Douglas Murray was on the mission the rest of the night. He was hitting anything within his reach (ending the night with 7 hits), he was clearing the area in front of Niemi, and he was bombing the puck from the blue line like his last name was Ehrhoff (ending the night with 4 shots on the net, and at least as many shots that missed the net). At one point he even dribbled the puck past three Blackhawk players as if his last name was Boyle. 

Besides naming Niemi as a starter, Todd McLellan had few more surprises up his sleeve as the game went on. First he inserted Joe Thornton on the 3rd line between Jamie McGinn and Torrey Mitchell early in the game. Couple of shifts later he put Thornton back on the top line, but this time rotating him with Patrick Marleau and leaving Devin Setoguchi next to Heatley and Joe. The rotation paid its dividends early, as Heatley broke the scoreless tie eight minutes into the game on a precise pass from Joe Thornton. 

Not willing to back off in the 2nd period, Sharks continued the pressure in the Blackhawks offensive zone, and scored another goal. This time it was the 4th line with a goal, as Jamal Mayers scored his first goal of the season with a wrist shot from up close. 

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