A familiar face returns to the visitor’s bench on Friday night as the San Jose Sharks will host the Los Angeles Kings in their last pre-Christmas game. Team Teal will go for it’s fourth consecutive win, while Los Angeles hopes to keep the Darryl Sutter reign undefeated.
San Jose got some swagger back in a 7-2 trouncing of the Tampa Bay Lightning. A game where the Sharks scored the fastest five goals in franchise history, breaking a 15-year team record. What was more significant was the fact that they were perfect on the penalty kill and scored twice on the power play.
Los Angeles comes up north under a new regime with head coach Darryl Sutter taking over, reunited with his former Sharks boss, Dean Lombardi. The Kings, who were heavy favorites to dethrone San Jose’s dominance in the Pacific, sit three points out of first in the division, and a point out of the 8th playoff spot in the West. They played last night and defeated Anaheim in a shootout.
So, the original NorCal vs. SoCal battle resumes tonight with the holiday break looming. Do the Sharks look ahead to some much needed rest over the weekend? Or does Team Teal increase it’s division lead by showing they have found their groove again at the end of the calendar year.
NOTES
> Roster freeze is in effect until December 27th. No trades and waivers can be made at this time.
> The entire league shuts down for Christmas Eve and Christmas after this game. Full slate of games when the league resumes on Boxing Day in Canada (December 26th.)