All Entries Tagged With: "Joe Thornton"
Sharks Bitten by the Predators 3-2
When the Nashville Predators play the San Jose Sharks, it is often a grinding affair. The Sharks use their size and strength to grind on the Predators and wear them down, usually on their way to a victory. The formula has worked well for the Sharks against the Predators, as they have won 9 of [...]
Thoughts on a Win and the Weekend Ahead
I will be on with The Hockey Guys for their weekly show/podcast from 1:40-2:00 pm Central talking St. Louis Blues Hockey. Please listen in or get the podcast on iTunes. For Hockey podcast junkies out there, these guys should be in your rotation. – Blues 2 – Sharks 0 This was as odd of a [...]
Joe Thornton hit gets two-game suspension
Joe Thornton is the face of the San Jose Sharks franchise. It’s no wonder that every bit of newsworthy material that seems to come from this organization lately centers around it’s most productive player. Everything from the captaincy, to his new three-year contract extension seemed like good news until last nights game against the St. [...]
Ten Sleepers To Keep Your Eye On
Difference Makers, Hiding in the Shadows Here is a quick look at ten players who may wind up making the difference for their respective teams this season. RW. Nikita Filatov, Columbus Blue Jackets Although his rookie season was eventually marred by a disagreement with then-head coach Ken Hitchcock, ultimately resulting in Filatov returning to Russia [...]
Joe Thornton Named Sharks Captain
Joe Thornton has finally been named the eighth captain of the San Jose Sharks. One of the leagues most prolific set-up men, Thornton takes over the captaincy of a team for the second time in his career after doing so with the Boston Bruins for two seasons. After being acquired from the Boston Bruins in [...]
Come a Long Way
The San Jose Sharks off-season is one defined by a team that could be dramatically changed by just a few minor moves. However, instead of harping on the “inevitable” defenseman acquisition that the Sharks still need, let’s focus on an area that use to be their biggest weakness. In the past the Sharks were a [...]
Sharks roster looks better or worse?
The San Jose Sharks roster looks vaguely familiar at this point in the off-season. Perhaps that’s because it’s virtually the same team that took them to the Western Conference Finals last season. That finish warranted few alterations to the roster, but are the Sharks in any better shape to improve on last season’s breakthrough in [...]
Who should be the next Sharks Captain?
Rob Blake served as San Jose Sharks captain for just one season before retiring. Now the keys to the car are available for the second straight off-season. The question is who takes over? The importance of the little “C” that’s patched to a players sweater is debatable. There’s evidence of a team’s captain being completely [...]
Sharks again look to fill glaring need for defenseman
The Chicago Blackhawks matched the San Jose Sharks offer sheet for Niklas Hjalmarsson, leaving the Sharks biggest hole still empty in the form of a top-4 defenseman. There are a billion reasons why the offer sheet made sense. It subtracted from the team that blocked the Sharks road to a Stanley Cup birth, improving their [...]
Sharks roster taking shape
The San Jose Sharks filled their goaltender vacancy by signing 30-year-old Antero Niittymaki to a 2-year deal worth $4 million. Niittymaki will get a shot at the Sharks starting job in goal and he’s had experience in that position, at least more so than either Thomas Greiss or Alex Stalock. When the Sharks were eliminated [...]
Bittersweet Symphony: The 2009-10 San Jose Sharks
All of the Bay Area has gone into rain-filled slumber as the beloved San Jose Sharks 2009-2010 season is over.There is a bittersweet taste in the mouths of Sharks fans world-wide.Though the team exorcised it’s playoff demons by advancing to the Western Conference Finals, they ultimately fell short of their goal of winning the first [...]
Sharks Last Stand
Are the San Jose Sharks ready to play do-or-die hockey for the first time this postseason? Though the coaching staff and players have never acknowledged must-win games to this point, there’s no doubt that Game 4 in Chicago is just that being down 3-0 in the series. Game 3 was a great effort. Virtually everything [...]
BATTLE STATIONS: BLACKHAWKS-SHARKS WCF ’10
When Troy Brouwer scored the first goal of the Blackhawks’ 5-1 series clincher, he put the game of hockey in perspective. With his father recovering from surgery to alleviate a blood clot in his brain, Brouwer showed courage, coming back from his absence while he stayed with his father, and getting his game in focus. “It feels great,” he said. “Sitting out those couple games gave me a little bit of perspective and thankfully the coaches stuck with me. I didn’t want to disappoint them or the team or my dad.” Now the perspective switches to the Hawks’ second consecutive WCF and a first playoff meeting ever with San Jose.
This Conference Final brings together the number one and number two Western powers, whose final standings were separated by a single point. Tough to imagine two clubs more evenly matched.
The history between the Hawks and Sharks, then, is limited to their regular season contests, though there are some interesting relationships.
Playoff Chokers advance to Conference Finals
The San Jose Sharks are entering uncharted waters. They’ve only been to the Western Conference Finals once in the franchises history. Try telling them that. After years of watching the team look like fish out of water, Sharks’ fans are pinching themselves trying to let the thought of this team advancing past two rounds register. [...]
Octopuses, Mules, Sharks, and Zebras
The San Jose Sharks and Detroit Red Wings Western Conference semi-final series is slowly turning into a zoo! There’s already been an array of mollusks thrown onto the ice. After the Wings’ 7-1 trouncing in game 4, that’s probably doubled or tripled. The catalyst of such events was “the Mule.” Johan Franzen put in 4 [...]
Joe’s lead Sharks to 2-0 Series Lead
If Joe Pavelski and his linemates continue to play the way they are, there won’t be much need for the superstars to start leading this team. Pavelski contributed his third straight multi-goal game to give him an NHL-leading 9 in the playoffs thus far. He’s the first player to do so since Mario Lemieux back [...]
Sharks move on to 2nd Round
The San Jose Sharks got virtually everything they needed to experience to go deep in the playoffs during their first round match-up with the Colorado Avalanche. Which makes moving onto the second round after a 5-2 victory in game 6 even better. A surprise invitee to the playoffs based on season-predictions, the Avalanche provided multiple [...]
Avs Can’t Hold off the Sharks
The Colorado Avalanche didn’t start game six the way the wanted to, allowing an early goal by the San Jose Sharks. It didn’t end the way they wanted it to either. The San Jose Sharks came out in the third with the Thornton line reunited and buzzing around the Avs’ net. It foreshadowed the future. [...]
Avs as Ugly as a Great White
That was about the ugliest game I’ve seen this team play. As an Avs fan I’m tempted to think that the Avs made the Sharks look good. If I’m a Sharks fan I’ve got to be thinking, “Finally, a dominating performance!” Realistically it’s in between. The Avs really let the Sharks take it to them [...]
Sharks “Feel Good” About Themselves
Fans of the Colorado Avalanche can feel good about how this team is performing so far in the playoffs. The players obviously feel pretty good about how they have played so far. Despite the game two OT loss, there was little talk of one that got away, blah-blah-blah. They know the deal; they weren’t even [...]
