San Jose Sharks

Even-strength statistics Player TOI Corsi For Corsi Against Corsi +/- Chances For Chances Against Chances +/- Brad Stuart 17.2 12 12 +0 5 2 +3 Joe Pavelski 11.6 20 7 +13 6 0 +6 Andrew Desjardins 8.5 2 6 -4 0 1 -1 Patrick Marleau 11.6 23 8 +15 5 0 +5 James Sheppard 13.4 8 20 -12 1 3 -2 Joe Thornton 14.8 11 14 -3 4 2 +2 T.J. Galiardi 13.6 9 13 -4 4 1 +3 Dan Boyle 15.3 14 15 -1 4 1 +3 Scott Gomez 13.2 9 16 -7 1 2 -1 Scott Hannan 15.5 10 13 -3 5 2 +3 Bracken Kearns 7.8 5 6 -1 1 1 +0 Logan Couture 10.9 21 9 +12 6 0 +6 Marc-Edouard Vlasic 17.9 21 23 -2 2 2 +0 Tim Kennedy 8.7 3 8 -5 0 1 -1 Matt Irwin 13.7 11 11 +0 4 1 +3 Tommy Wingels 13.1 10 16 -6 1 2 -1 Justin Braun 15.6 19 18 +1 2 2 +0 Brent Burns 16.7 12 20 -8 4 2 +2 Team 47.8 44 47 -3 12 5 +7 The shot differential numbers here are polluted a bit by score effects; as the Kings did in Game 1, the Sharks were content to sit on their two-goal third period lead. Unlike Los Angeles' Game 1 performance, San Jose was surprisingly effective at denying the Kings quality looks in the final twenty minutes despite their vast territorial advantage. The Sharks limited L.A. to just three scoring chances in the third last night. Logan Couture was anointed following Game 3 while Joe Thornton was widely declared the hero of Game 4 but, while both players were great both nights, I feel like the narratives ought to be reversed. Despite an extremely dominant first period in Game 4, I thought Thornton had a much better all-around performance in Game 3 while Couture's line as a whole had a near-flawless showing last night. To some extent, that has to do with strategic shifts Darryl Sutter made as the game wore on. He was successfully able to get Anze Kopitar out against Thornton with greater frequency in the third period, giving the Couture line more ice time against the Kings' lesser lights. Sutter also moved Dustin Penner up to play with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, lifting that line's previously abysmal possession game. Probably a good bet we see more of both in Game 5. Not all that surprising, but still pretty cool: Kings assistant coach Bill Ranford cited his team's terrible shot attempt differential as the element that concerned him the most about last night's first period. I've spent a lot of time defending Scott Gomez in the past but the Sharks need quite a bit more from him and his linemates if they're going to win the series. That doesn't necessarily need to be in terms of offense but they can't spend as much time hemmed in their own end against the Kings' bottom six as they did in Games 3 and 4. This is sort of the risk inherent in putting all of your eggs in two baskets as the Sharks have, although if Penner really is now on L.A.'s second line that makes their bottom six even weaker, hopefully putting their Sharks counterparts on a level playing field. Head-to-head scoring chances(Click to enlarge) Despite being primarily matched up against the Kopitar line (at least until the third period), Marleau, Couture and Pavelski were on the ice for zero scoring chances against at evens and were particularly effective against the Kings' big guns. Once again, Thornton ate Mike Richards' lunch at even-strength. If McLellan can somehow dictate the matchups in Game 5 without last change, that would go a long way towards the Sharks being in position to win this series on home ice. History suggests Darryl Sutter is much tougher to outcoach in this fashion than, say, Alain Vigneault however. Los Angeles' late surge last night aside, the Sharks have arguably been the better team in every game of this series. If they can keep playing this way (they've now outchanced the Kings 41-25 at even-strength through four games), it's hard to bet against

Series shifts to LA tied 2-2 “After you go home 0-2, they did what they were supposed to do at home and we did what we were supposed to do… now we just have to win one in LA,” said Joe Thornton. Brent Burns and Logan Couture scored for the S...

The Sharks did what needed to be done on Tuesday night. They dominated the opening 20 minutes, jumped out to a two goal lead, then held on for a 2-1 win, knocking off the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 in Game 4 of their Western Conference Semi-Finals at HP Pavilion. In doing so, they've seized the momentum in the best-of-seven series, which heads back to Southern California on Thursday. Brent Burns and Logan Couture scored for San Jose and Antti Niemi made 22 saves for his 6th win of the playoffs.

The Sharks in the first period. Wow... just... wow. Have you ever seen a more dominant performance in a period? Well, um, until the Kings in the third. Yes, the Sharks almost let this one get away from them despite dominating the Kings in every fashion through forty minutes en route to a 15-3 advantage on the shot clock in the first and a 21-9 advantage through two. However, although that crazy advantage led to a two goal lead headed into the third period, the Sharks almost lost control of this one late. That's not to say that the Sharks weren't the better team tonight. San Jose, led by Joe Thornton, was an absolutely dominant squad for the majority of the evening. The score ended up 2-1, but it could have been 3, 4, 5, or 10 goals for the Sharks if not for the heroics of Jonathan Quick. He's a bit of a baby, especially when he's losing, but he's a great player who's led LA in this series. As I said in the pre game, this series could be over right now if Quick was less than superhuman in games one and two. The Sharks got their first goal of the night after Joe Thornton did what he often did this evening, musclling his way through Kings players to win possession of the puck behind the net. After getting his initial pass to Brent Burns blocked by a defenseman's skate, Thornton regained control of the puck and this time sliced through defenders with a deft pass that met the tape of Burns' stick shortly before it found a home behind Quick. With fifteen shots in the period (nine of them chances, by Neutral's count), there were plenty of opportunities to the Sharks to increase the lead in the first. The most notable was a Tommy Wingels wrister that beat Quick high to the glove slide but slapped the post and dropped just outside of the goal line. San Jose's second period wasn't as dominant as their first on the shot clock, but by my assertion, they were just as difficult to contain. On the Sharks third power play of the game, Dan Boyle popped a shot from the blue line and with Patrick Marleau at the net beside him, Logan Couture got his fifth power play goal of these playoffs. Oh, but then the third period. The Kings flipped the script on the Sharks, and ended up outshooting San Jose 14-2 in the final frame. They would get a goal from Mike Richards on the power play with more than half a period left to play, but the Sharks would weather the storm and survive, tying the series at two games apiece. The Sharks look absolutely fantastic, and fortunately for them, they were able to overcome some unfortunate losses in the first two games of the series. You have to think that the feeling in the room was if the team kept playing like they had, the wins would come eventually. They have, and you can only hope that the strong play and strong results continue. FTF 3 Stars 1st Star: Joe Roarton 2nd Star: Jonathan Quick 3rd Star: Antti Niemi It's a best of three series now, and if the Sharks can steal the next one in LA (which has to happen eventually the way they've played there), a potentially series clinching game in San Jose where the Sharks have been dominant would be fantastic.

“It’s a three game series now,” said Logan Couture after the Game 4 win in San Jose. SAN JOSE, California – The San Jose Sharks defeated the Los Angeles Kings by the count of 2-1 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose on Tuesday night in Game 4 of the ...

Sharks hang on to even series with Kings Dominant through two periods, the Sharks held on for dear life in the third to beat the Kings 2-1 and even their best-of-seven playoff series at two wins apiece. Mike Richards jammed home a power-play goal at 9:46 on Los Angeles' 16th shot of the game. The Sharks scored the only goal of the second period - this time on the power play - to double their lead and tightened up defensively late when the Kings finally made their first push of the game. Los Angeles was held without a shot on two late-period power plays; however, the Sharks dodged a bullet early in the second short-handed situation when Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin lifted a puck over an open cage that may have tipped off of Joe Pavelski's stick. The Sharks won 17 of the period's 22 draws (15 of 17 at even strength) and had another 14 drives toward the Los Angeles net blocked. Joe Thornton's line caused trouble for Kings defensemen Drew Doughty and Robyn Regehr the entire period, and it was the captain's line that struck 5-on-5 when Thornton hooked up with Burns. San Jose put a combined four shots on goal on consecutive power plays - Fraser for hooking Patrick Marleau at 13:19 and Doughty slashing Marc-Edouard Vlasic at 15:26.

San Jose looks to even the series by holding serve on home ice for the second straight game. While the Sharks may have dodged a huge bullet by winning game three in overtime on Saturday, they still have some significant work to do. No, this series isn't over by any means, and yes, the argument could be made that the Sharks should be looking at a 2-1 or even 3-0 series lead if it wasn't for the play of Jonathan Quick. However, history still isn't smiling too brightly on the San Jose Sharks. As is currently stands, and as you currently know, the Sharks trail the Kings 2-1 after dropping the first two away games in the Western Conference Quarterfinals. One hundred and fifteen NHL teams have been in that same situation (LOSS-AWAY, LOSS-AWAY, WIN-HOME) and only twenty five have come back to win the series. Before you go cry in a corner, though, let me preemptively wipe away those tears. Did you know that of the twenty five teams to wrangle a win in the series after trailing 2-1, eight times it has been our Sharks? Despite all the heartache that's been associated with our franchise, that's a really nice statistic. Let's keep adding on the good stats. When the LA Kings are leading a series 2-1, they've only won the next game in the series once out of their last six tries. And when the Sharks are trailing in a series 2-1, the boys in teal are a healthy 7-4 in the next game. If the Sharks can get another win at home, and the way they've played there's a great shot of them doing just that, the series is pretty much a crapshoot best-of-three. Much of this doesn't matter when you consider the sample size, but I've also been combing through some super advanced stats. These are the things that Neutral and Snark don't even catch, and I think I might be on to some really significant ones. Keep your eye out for these in the next few games (I understand if you can't catch them though, as they are SUPER ADVANCED. In fact, these stats have an ASL/AS [Advanced stat level per advanced stat] that's astronomical). BGrow/Gm (Beard Growth Per Game) Brent Burns has been one of the best Sharks on the ice this entire season, especially after he was moved to forward. However, it's hard to really explain his rapid increase in quality of play. I've gone through the tape and analyzed the beard of Brent Burns, and quickly come to the conclusion that he has the downright best BGrow/Gm of any current NHL player. Can go from sparse "forgot my razor at home this weekend" beard to "missing in woods for six months" beard in the span of just a few contests. Can't be a coincidence. hACT/hPER (Heart Actual / Heart Perceived) While Patrick Marleau still catches a bad rap in the media for what has been called a lack of heart, his five goals and three assists in just seven postseason games indicate that his actual heart measurement is more GDAC (another advanced stat, GDAC stands for "Grinch Day After Christmas") than it is GDBC. The Sharks will continue to rely heavily on Marleau throughout the series, but I would suggest he gets checked out for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy after the series. QUALSIB (Quality of Siblings) This is a crazy one, because Logan Couture is absolutely killing it in this series, overcoming an extraordinarily low QUALSIB. I am going to have to continue digging on this one. DIU/60 (Douchin' It Up per 60) This number skyrocketed for the Sharks in game one of the series, but dropped in games two and three, for reasons I can't quite put my finger on. Still high when Andrew Desjardins is on the ice. We'll see how these factors play out when the Sharks take to the ice tonight. Here's hoping they point to a Sharks win and an even series. Game 4LAK leads 2-1 7PM PST | HP Pavilion | San Jose, CaliforniaTV: CSNCA-HD, NBCSN | Radio: 98.5 KFOX, SJSharks.comKnow Your Enemy: Jewels From The Crown, Battle Of California, The Royal Half Projected Sharks Lineup Patrick Marleau - Logan Couture - Joe PavelskiT.J. Ga

I thought I'd work off some gameday nerves and revive an old tradition - the enemy anagram!Keaton Ellerby - Only Bleak Tree Kyle Clifford - Fickle Old Fry Rob Scuderi - Cod Bruiser Drew Doughty - Whey Dog Turd Anze Kopitar - Eat Nazi Pork Dustin Brown - Bird Now Nuts Trevor Lewis - Relive Worst Darryl Sutter - Tardy Rustler Los Angeles Kings - Sneaking Leg Loss Try it on your favorite foe at http://futureboy.us/lookup/nph-anagram.pl Stay bloodthirsty, my friends. I thought I'd work off some gameday nerves and revive an old tradition - the enemy anagram!Keaton Ellerby - Only Bleak Tree Kyle Clifford - Fickle Old Fry Rob Scuderi - Cod Bruiser Drew Doughty - Whey Dog Turd Anze Kopitar - Eat Nazi Pork Dustin Brown - Bird Now Nuts Trevor Lewis - Relive Worst Darryl Sutter - Tardy Rustler Los Angeles Kings - Sneaking Leg Loss Try it on your favorite foe at http://futureboy.us/lookup/nph-anagram.pl Stay bloodthirsty, my friends.

The Sharks Live Blog for the May 21, 2013 game between the San Jose Sharks and the Los Angeles Kings on NBCSN and KFOX 98.5/102.1 FM.

SAN JOSE, California -- The San Jose Sharks announced tonight that tickets for Game 6 (Game G) of the second round of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs to be played at HP Pavilion at San Jose on Sunday, May 26 are on sale now. Due to the limited numb...