San Jose Sharks Game 2: What we learned
April 17, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl (48) scores a goal past Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) during the first period in game one of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
The first round series between the San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings has not played out the way that most people expected it to. I think we can all agree that no one expected the Sharks to score 12 goals in 2 games against their worst enemy, Jonathan Quick. My goodness, he only gave up 29 goals in the entire 2012 Kings cup run. Last year, in the second round, 7-game series against the Sharks he only conceded 10. Nobody in San Jose is complaining. With that, here are 5 things that we learned from game 2 in San Jose.
1. The fourth line is unstoppable
San Jose’s fourth line of Mike Brown, Raffi Torres, and Andrew Desjardins have been causing complete havoc. On Sunday night, when the Sharks were down 2-0, the fourth line came up in the clutch as Brown and Torres both scored to even up the game at 2. Torres also registered a goal during the 6-3 route of the Kings in game 1. Not only are they scoring huge goals but they are also dominating the Kings physically. Along with the physicality comes momentum boosts for the entire team and also the fans in attendance. These can be huge in the playoffs as seen during game 2. The Sharks built momentum from the fourth line and never looked back.
2. Kings are dangerous with momentum
The third period of game 1 was a tough one to watch. The Sharks, after extending their lead to 5-0, took their foot off the gas and allowed 3 unanswered goals before the empty netter. The Kings were all over the Sharks in that period and cashed in on their huge momentum boost. It didn’t stop there, though. In the first period of game 2, the Kings continued their 2-day old streak and posted an early 2-0 lead before the Sharks got angry and scored 7 unanswered. Although the Sharks got away with not subduing the Kings’ momentum this time, they should really be wary of it in the future.
3. Jonathan Quick has officially been rattled
2012 he gave up a total of 29 goals. Last year, against the Sharks, he gave up 10. This year he has given up 12, already. Enough said.
4. Sharks can come back too!
The Sharks started off the game poorly and payed for it as the Kings got out to an early 2-0 lead. As the final score properly indicates, the Sharks then dominated the 2nd and 3rd periods to cruise to a 7-2 victory. With all the scoring, the Sharks’ comeback may have gone unnoticed to some but it was encouraging that they were able to keep up their fight and pull it off. Is there a replay of the Sharks’ 4 goal come back in 2011 in the horizon?
5. Sharks’ speed playing a huge role
Have you seen how many odd-man rushes the Sharks have had in the first two games? The speedy guys on the team have been running circles around the LA defense and have made them look awful. Example A: Robyn Regehr. This new attribute of the Sharks team comes courtesy of Doug Wilson who replaced slower guys like TJ Galiardi, Scott Gomez, Adam Burish, and Bracken Kearns with guys that have better skating ability like Torres, Matt Nieto, and Tomas Hertl. The transition game has been worked to perfection and it has caused the Kings and Quick nightmares.