San Jose Sharks Hope For Playoff Clincher Against Oilers
By Felix Chow
Overview
After the San Jose Sharks failed to clinch a playoff spot in the Pacific Division against the St. Louis Blues, the Sharks have another chance at a postseason berth tonight against the struggling Edmonton Oilers.
This will be the fourth and final meeting of the season between these two teams and San Jose will look to take three out of the four contests. Last time out, James Reimer, who will man the pipes tonight, led the Sharks to a 3-0 shutout victory over the Oilers after making 31 saves for team teal.
Team Stats
| San Jose Sharks | Edmonton Oilers |
| Team Record: 41-26-6 | Team Record: 29-40-7 |
| Last 10: 6-4-0 | Last 10: 4-6-0 |
| Offense: 211 GF, 2.89 GF/GP, 51.5% CF | Offense: 179 GF, 2.36 GF/GP, 49.0% CF |
| Defense: 183 GA, 2.51 GA/GP | Defense: 221 GA, 2.91 GA/GP |
| Home PP%: 21.3% | Away PP%: 18.4% |
| Home PK%: 77.1% | Away PK%: 80.0% |
Players to Watch
Sharks: Dylan DeMelo has been fantastic filling in the void of the injured Marc-Eduoard Vlasic. He’s been sound defensively, and has been one of the more impressive blue liners late in this season. He has four points (2 goals, 2 assists) in 36 games played.
Oilers: Connor McDavid, the Oilers’ first overall draft pick this season as well as the NHL’s up-and-coming rookie phenom, is on a five-game point streak. He recorded two assists in a 4-2 loss against the Arizona Coyotes.
| San Jose Sharks | Edmonton Oilers |
| Tomas Hertl – Joe Thornton – Joe Pavelski Melker Karlsson – Logan Couture – Joonas Donskoi Patrick Marleau – Chris Tierney – Joel Ward Dainius Zubrus – Nick Spaling – Tommy WingelsPaul Martin – Brent Burns Dylan DeMelo – Justin Braun Brenden Dillon – Roman Polak |
James Reimer (confirmed starter)
Martin Jones
Taylor Hall – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Leon Draisaitl
Iiro Pakarinen – Connor McDavid – Jordan Eberle
Lauri Korpikoski – Mark Letestu – Nail Yakupov
Matt Hendricks – Anton Lander – Zack KassianAndrej Sekera – Mark Fayne
Griffin Reinhart – Jordan Oesterle
Darnell Nurse – Adam Clendening
Cam Talbot
Laurent Brossoit
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Injuries/Scratches
Sharks: Marc-Eduoard Vlasic (lower body), Matt Nieto (hand), and Matt Tennyson (concussion) are out.
Oilers: Benoit Pouliot (shoulder), Brandon Davidson (undisclosed), Adam Pardy (hand) and Patrick Maroon (illness) are day-to-day. Oscar Klefbom (broken finger), Andrew Ference (hip) and Eric Gryba (knee) are out.
Keys to the Game
1) Take Advantage
The Sharks are on the verge of a playoff spot, and tonight’s game is against their former head coach Todd McLellan. Not to mention they’re playing against a struggling Oilers team. Is that not enough reason to be on the attack for a full 60? I expect them to start strong, establish good offensive pressure, and pepper their goalie with shots.
2) Controlled Emotion
Last game, the Oilers took exception to a hit by Roman Polak on Matt Hendricks. Darnell Nurse quickly jumped on him after he served the two-minute penalty, and Nurse was suspended three games for the instigator. The Sharks have said they will back off on Nurse for tonight, but seeing as they’ve recalled gritty forward and enforcer Micheal Haley this morning, it’ll be interesting what happens tonight. Regardless, play with controlled emotion. Don’t let this frustrated Oilers team goad you into taking a bad penalty. Let their actions be decided by the refs, and just play your game.
Next: San Jose Sharks OHL Playoff Preview
TV/Radio Broadcast
TV: CSNCA (7:30 p.m. PDT)
Radio: 98.5 KFOX