Blades of Teal
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San Jose Sharks’ Search for Consistency Continues Against Ducks

By Felix Chow

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Overview

After a very disappointing start of this four-game home stand against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the San Jose Sharks rebounded against the Florida Panthers in a decisive 5-2 victory. Tonight, the Sharks look to finally string together a winning streak against their cross state rivals, the Anaheim Ducks.

Team Stats

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Players to Watch

Sharks: Joe Pavelski is on a five-game point streak, with 5 goals and 1 assist. Joonas Donskoi showed off his offensive prowess  and willingness to go to the net on Thursday night despite just one goal (his second was disallowed due to a Coach’s Challenge for Offsides). Nikolay Goldobin also had a good showing against the Panthers with his first National Hockey League assist on Marc-Eduoard Vlasic‘s goal.

Ducks: Getzlaf had three assists against the Blue Jackets.

Starting Line-Ups

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Injuries/Scratches

Sharks: Ben Smith (head) and Logan Couture (fractured right fibula) are out.

Ducks: Rickard Rakell (upper body) is day-to-day. Nate Thompson (shoulder surgery), Simon Despres (upper body) and Jiri Sekac (upper body) are out.

Keys to the Game

1) Start Strong.

I was watching Sharks Pregame Live for the game against the Panthers, and both Brodie Brazil and Curtis Brown talked about one crucial, yet much looked over detail of the game that the Sharks have so far lacked. It’s their ability to start strong, and by that, I don’t mean play well but still GIVE UP the first goal. I mean, play well AND SCORE the first goal. As Curtis mentioned during Pregame Live, teams have a much better chance at winning if they score the first goal simply because it’s a measure of who started the game on time, which I thought was a really good point. If the Sharks want to have any semblance of consistency the rest of the season and put together a winning streak, they have to start on time. They have get ready and mentally focused right when the puck drops in the opening face-off, and just play to their game plan and to their strengths. Sometimes, it’s not just details of working hard that matters, but also how mentally focused you are in a game. Not only that, according to NHL.com/Stats, they are 5-1-0 when they score first and a dismal 2-5-0 when they do not score first, which is below .500. So, obviously, scoring first and having another strong start will be very important for this team.

2) Limit Opponent’s Offense

The Ducks obviously struggled out of the gate to start the season and only recently have they started scoring goals and picking up some wins. The Sharks need to capitalize on that, and use the win on Thursday as momentum. That means playing well defensively, and keeping an eye on their star players like Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf, also considering the fact that Perry didn’t score his first goal of the season until three nights ago against the Panthers. However, he does have four points (1 goal, 3 assists) in his last two games, so he’s still a player to keep an eye on.

Next: Joonas Donskoi Settling Into Top Line Role With San Jose Sharks

TV/Radio Broadcast

TV: CSNCA

Radio: 98.5 KFOX

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