Ryane Clowe’s goal in the fourth round of the shootout turned out to be the game winner, and Antti Niemi was four for four in shootout saves in the Sharks 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. The Sharks with the win have won the first four games of this six game homestand. This game was about as tight and tension filled of a hockey game as you will see, with both side trading scoring opportunities forcing both goalies to be at their very best. Niemi on the evening made 29 saves while his counter part, and new Sharks nemesis Jonathan Quick was as good as advertised with 34 saves of his own.
The win gives the Sharks a mark of 19-10-3 (41 points) and ties them for first with Pacific Division co-leader Dallas, however as of now the Sharks hold the tie breaker and are technically 3rd in the Western Conference Standings while the Dallas Stars are 8th. The Sharks still have two games left on this homestand, however both will be challenges as the arch rival Anaheim Ducks are next to visit the Shark Tank on Monday Night after the NHL’s 2-day Christmas break. The Ducks and Sharks are about as heated a rivalry as their is in the NHL. This season, the Ducks have won the first two games of their head to head meetings with the Sharks beating team teal 1-0 in Anaheim on Oct 14, and three days later taking the next game at the Tank 3-2. The Ducks have fallen off considerably since the last time these two teams met (9-19-6 for 24 pts), but don’t read much into that. They are still the Ducks, and still an absolute thorn in the Sharks side.
Recaping Friday nights game:
The Edge of Your Seat – If you like your hockey tight, tension filled and still full of action, this edition of the Kings vs the Sharks did not disappoint. If you were lucky enough to attend this game last night you certainly got your money’s worth. Niemi and Quick were “spot on” for the collective teams and both were tested early, often and throughout. Niemi came up with some huge saves early. This included two golden opportunities by the Kings where Niemi was able to fend off almost point blank chances from Dustin Brown and Mike Richards. On Brown’s chance, Jason Demers was also there and forced Brown to hurry his attempt. The Kings had seven shots on goal to the Sharks five in what was otherwise a very tight first period for both teams.
The second period saw a dramatic increase in scoring opportunities and an increase in overall shots on goal for both teams (25, vs. 12 in the first period). The Sharks would take a 1-0 lead on Logan Couture’s 15th goal of the year, which was set up in part from a hard shot on goal from Clowe at the 7:53 mark of the period. Couture was able to get to the rebound of Clowe’s shot, secure it in the corner before handing off to Patrick Marleau. Marleau in return got a feed pass out towards Clowe, who intern immediately passed the puck over to Couture who had drifted back into the perfect position at the point. Couture from there got the pass and drilled a laser that beat J Quick topshelf to his left giving the Sharks the lead.
Later in the period, Joe Pavelski just narrowly missed making it a two goal game as his shot beat Quick but rang off the right post. Late in the period Couture was called for what was a somewhat questionable interference penalty that gave the Kings a late power play. About a minute into the man advantage, L A would get the tying goal as Mike Richards took a cross ice feed pass from Anze Kopitar and beat Niemi to his right with a solid wrist shot that just got into the only are it could go to get into the net. The third period would prove to be just as hotly contested as the second. Each team again having some good looks and scoring chances, but both goalies held to form and stopped all shots that came before them. The Sharks best chance came about 6 1/2 minutes into the period as Couture and Clowe broke away on a 2 on 1, with Couture taking a shot on goal that Quick saved. The rebound though seemed to pop up into the air, but Quick was able to snag the loose puck before Clowe could could get his stick on it. The Sharks would outshoot the Kings here 14-9, however the game would eventually go into overtime and ultimately a shootout period.
King of Pain – The shootout was a matchup of strength versus strength as the Sharks put up their best sharp shooters against the Kings best. The tandem of J Pavelski, Michal Handzus and Dan Boyle were all turned away by J Quick. Meanwhile Niemi held the fort for the Sharks as he turned away Jarred Stoll, A Kopitar and Dustin Brown. In the fourth round, the Sharks called on Clowe to try his luck with Quick. Clowe would not disappoint as he was able to skate up ice and launch a wrister that beat Quick to his right, in the upper corner of the net. The Sharks had the lead in the shootout, however Niemi still had to make one more save. The challenge was to stop M Richards. As Richards came up the ice for his attempt, Niemi seemed to turn just enough to his right and cut the angle that Richards was approaching at. This move forced Richards to try to adjust, but he ran out of ice and really could not get any shot off as Niemi cleared the puck away. The win by the Sharks was arguably the toughest two points the Sharks have earned this season to date.
The Arch Rival Returns – The Sharks next game on the homestand after the NHL’s two day Christmas break will mark the return of the arch rival Ducks to the Tank. The Ducks have had far more turmoil this season than have the Sharks, and after winning four of their first six games the bottom has dropped out. Head Coach Randy Carlyle was fired by the Ducks on December 1st after six seasons at the helm which produced a Stanley Cup in the 2006-07 season. Bruce Boudreau, the former Washington Capitals head man took over, but the Ducks have been struggling even after the coaching change and are just 2-6-2 in ten games since. However, remember despite all of their woes they are STILL the Ducks!!! Teemu Selanne at the ripe age of 41 leads the team in total points with 35, and has always been tough against the Sharks. Corey Perry leads Anaheim with 14 goals while Selanne has 11 and Bobby Ryan has 10. Jonas Hiller has had a tough year as have the rest of the Ducks, but still has had much success against the Sharks including a shutout of team teal at the Honda Center Oct 14th. This will be as tough as game as any, and the Sharks will need to get the jump on the Ducks this time around and up their game. Two nights after the Ducks visit, it’s Vancouver at the Tank once again to close the homestand.
Thoughts for the Holiday Season – I just wanted to end this article by wishing all of readers as well as the “Blades of Teal” and “Fansided” staff a very Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year this holiday season…
GO SHARKS, beat the Ducks!!!
The King Shark
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