For the Sharks and their fans, the last five seasons have been the ultimate in sports frustration. They have been at or near the top of the NHL since 2003, had the best record in the league going into the 2009 playoffs, and have come up short every year.
The Giants may have coined the word “torture” to describe what they put their fans through during a season of close games and improbably comebacks, but Giants fans’ angst can’t compare to the torture of a team that annually seems to be among the elite in its league only to ultimately lose, often in embarrassing fashion.
They were swept out of the playoffs in the first round the year they had the league’s best record. Last year when they finally beat the Detroit Red Wings in the playoffs, thought by many to be the NHL’s gold standard, they were swept by Chicago one step short of the Stanley Cup Finals. Another year they won the first two games against Edmonton and then lost the next four. Three years ago they were eliminated in a four-overtime game (that’s seven periods of hockey) against Dallas. Since Barry Bonds left, Giants fans have either been completely out of the running or World Champions. Which fan base has suffered more?
So will this be the year for the Sharks? Will they team with the Giants to bring the Bay Area consecutive championships in different sports since the 49ers and A’s accomplished the feat in the late 1980s? Some signs indicate that it might be their turn.
Peaking at the Right Time: As this is written the Sharks are coming off a tremendous month of February. The team won 11 of 13 games despite only having three of those games at home. In previous years the Sharks would build insurmountable early season leads and coast into the playoffs, seemingly having trouble flipping the switch back on when the games counted most.
Better Balance: Since Joe Thornton arrived six seasons ago the Sharks have tended towards top-heavy scoring. Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Jonathan Cheechoo and Dany Heatley would provide the vast majority of goals, leading opponents to key on them at playoff time. Usually, the Sharks’ other lines couldn’t sufficiently pick up the slack. This year coach Todd McLellan has placed his stars on separate lines, which after a period of adjustment has served to spread out the scoring to more different players, particularly Logan Couture and Ryan Clowe, and make it more difficult for opponents to have their best defenders on the ice against the Sharks’ most likely scorers.
Playoff Tested Goaltending: For eight years the Sharks had Evgeni Nabokov in the nets. An all star, a rookie of the year winner, and a runner up for the league’s best goalie trophy in 2009, Nabokov would stand on his head in the regular season and fall on his face come playoff time, often giving up the inexplicable soft goal at the worst possible moment. When Nabokov’s contract expired at the end of last season the Sharks opted not to re-sign him. In his place they acquired Anti Niemi, the goaltender who helped Chicago win the Stanley Cup last season. He was available because the Black Hawks had salary cap problems. Niemi has been behind the Sharks’ late season surge and has had recent success in the playoffs.
As you follow the Sharks during the NHL playoffs keep in mind that their fans know the real torture of near misses, and only a Stanley Cup parade will bring them peace.
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