San Jose Sharks: Comparing Strengths And Weaknesses With Kings
The Sharks and Kings are two evenly matched teams and we take a look at their strengths and weaknesses prior to Game One.
With the San Jose Sharks preparing to face the rival Los Angeles Kings in the first round, we bring you some key factors that could play a role in who wins this series.
The Forward Depth
Assuming that Peter DeBoer and Darryl Sutter match up heavyweights, that means Joe Thornton and Anze Kopitar will be going head-to head the entire series. As a result, the rest of the forwards might go head-to-head as well. So I’m curious as to who DeBoer trusts to shut down Tyler Toffoli, a player that can take over this series if the Sharks aren’t careful.
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While the bottom two lines don’t seem too menacing, the Kings still rely on a heavy dump-and-chase and puck possession game. That is something that isn’t easy for any team. That style of play has made the Kings the top possession team in the NHL for five years running. So the Sharks will have their work cut out for them in containing the Kings forecheck.
The Defensive Depth
I’ll give the Kings the edge in forward depth but the Sharks should make up for that in their defensive depth. I think that is what Doug Wilson intended when trading for Roman Polak. But if the Sharks want to win this series, this is what they should focus on.
While the Sharks are expecting Marc-Edouard Vlasic back from injury, I’m not sure if the Kings will be getting Alec Martinez back. But even if Martinez is playing, the Sharks should try and victimize the Kings for every second that Rob Scuderi is on the ice. Doing so would give them a healthy advantage before he is inevitably benched. Once that happens, the focus should turn to Luke Schenn during his limited ice time. The Kings are one of the best teams in the league but they certainly have their weak points.
The Kings could counter by targeting Polak (though I don’t think he is that bad) but the Sharks defensive depth should be an advantage in this series.
Goaltending
Finally, we arrive at the most important position in any series. In any given playoff run, the team with the better goaltending will win so getting solid goaltending is crucial. That is why I am glad Wilson upgraded the goaltending in a massive way. I feel a million times more comfortable with Martin Jones and James Reimer compared to Antti Niemi and Alex Stalock. With the former, I guarantee the Sharks hold onto their 3-0 series lead two years ago.
Acquiring Reimer might have been one of the smartest moves at the trade deadline, so DeBoer shouldn’t hesitate to use him if Jones falters in any way. The fact the Sharks even have that option should give fans more confidence.
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On the other side, when Jonathan Quick is on his game, he has proven that he can steal any series. He strikes me as an elite goalie who always shoots himself in the foot so if the Sharks want to beat him, that’s what they will have to do. By getting quality chances and drawing Quick out of position, the Sharks should find ways to score goals, if they can’t do that they will be in trouble.
Any way you look at this, Sharks vs. Kings is going to be an exciting series so we’ll see if the Sharks can capitalize on the Kings’ weaknesses starting on Thursday night.