My Two Cents: Key For The San Jose Sharks To Beating The L.A. Kings

A San Jose Story

Apr 3, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks center Joe Thornton (19) controls the puck against Los Angeles Kings left wing Tanner Pearson (70) during the second period at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The San Jose Sharks have completed their 23rd regular season in franchise history.

With that, they will be making their 10th consecutive post season appearance and 17th in franchise history overall. This is a streak that currently is only bested by the Detroit Red Wings who have entered their 23rd straight post season. The Sharks, because of the new playoff format introduced this season will be facing the rival Los Angeles Kings in the first round of this postseason which starts later this week.

The Sharks and Kings have met twice before in the postseason with each team winning a series, the Kings being the most recent last season. The Sharks enter the postseason with two strong outings against Colorado and Phoenix, however whether that has built any true momentum for Team Teal remains to be seen.

The Kings, meanwhile, have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL since the end of the Olympic break in late February. Before the Olympics, Los Angeles endured a surprisingly poor 1-8-2 mark over 11 games. Since the break ended, the Kings won their first seven games and are 15-6-2 over their last 23 games.

The Sharks have posted a 14-6-3 mark over the same period, meaning both teams enter this match-up on somewhat equal footing. The Kings have had some recent success against the Sharks, particularly at Staples Center, where they Sharks have not won a game since New Years Day of 2011. The Sharks will have a lot of hurdles to overcome with this upcoming series and will certainly have their work cut out for them.

The Sharks didn’t miss by much last season but just could not find a way to win one game in LA.