Blades of Teal
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San Jose Sharks Welcome Todd McLellan Back Home

By Patrick Leiva

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The San Jose Sharks return to SAP Center for a three-game home stand, fresh off consecutive road victories over the Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets. San Jose has found their stride the past week as they carry a three-game win streak into tonight’s matchup against the Edmonton Oilers.

Now this won’t be any old game between the Sharks and the Oilers as this marks the return of former head coach Todd McLellan to the Shark Tank. As everyone knows, McLellan held down the fort for seven years in San Jose and he departed the franchise as the leader in wins.

While it’s been a difficult season in Edmonton thus far, there have been signs of progress from a young Oilers team. These teams have only met on one previous occasion this season with Edmonton taking home a 4-3 overtime victory.

For San Jose, they want to keep the momentum rolling and start improving their play on home ice. The Sharks were able to blow out the Toronto Maple Leafs last time they set foot inside the SAP Center, but they still own the worst home ice record at 6-12-0. With San Jose wrapping up the January portion of their schedule with six of their final seven at home, they have a big opportunity to turn things around in front of their home fans.

That all starts tonight.

Players to Watch

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Sharks: Brent Burns. Burns has been on fire lately as he’s recorded a point (six goals, six assists) in eight-straight games, which is a new franchise record for a defenseman. Burns leads all NHL defensemen with 18 goals, and his 40 points rank second in the league for a blue liner behind only Erik Karlsson. More importantly for San Jose, Burns has been a plus-five over the past four games which means his defensive play is improving.

Oilers: Cam Talbot. Talbot was widely considered to be a target of Sharks general manager Doug Wilson when he was looking for a new netminder. Instead, Talbot signed with Edmonton where he’s had plenty of ups-and-downs. Talbot sports a 7-13-2 record with a 2.75 goals-against-average (GAA) and a .908 save percentage. It’s been quite a difference in wins and losses as he sports a 1.68 GAA and a .948 save percentage in his seven wins, while posting a 3.25 GAA and a .887 save percentage in his 15 losses. The Sharks will hope to see the latter Talbot tonight.

Keys to the Game

1. Manage Emotions

As much as both sides will say this is business as usual, there will be some added emotion when the puck drops at 7:30 tonight. The Sharks will need to manage their emotions and focus on their own game without worrying about who’s manning the other bench. If San Jose can do that, they’ll have a great shot of picking up their fourth consecutive victory.

2. Keep The Lines Rolling

After Peter DeBoer reshuffled his lines in moving Tomas Hertl to the first line, the Sharks have really taken off and seemed to find a groove. Over their last three games, San Jose has scored 15 goals as they now boast the league’s sixth-best offense. San Jose will want to keep rolling over their lines tonight and try to wear down a younger Edmonton squad.

3. Foot on the Gas

At home, the Sharks seem to have something missing which has led to way too many losses. San Jose needs to be ready from the get go and keep their foot on the gas for the entire 60 minutes. The Sharks are undefeated when they score first on home ice, so yet again, it will be key for the boys in teal to be solid throughout.

Next: Barracuda Extend Point Streak To Seven Games

TV/Radio

TV: CSN-California (7:30 p.m. PST)

Radio: 98.5 KFOX

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