Round 1 - Sharks vs Kings

[hf101]

Consider this a general discussion thread for the Sharks vs Kings in Round 1

 

Regular season series (Kings lead 3-1-1)

Oct 30, 2013 San Jose 3, Los Angeles 4 (OT)

Nov 27, 2013 Los Angeles 2, San Jose 3 (SO)

Dec 19, 2013 San Jose 1, Los Angeles 4

Jan 27, 2014 Los Angeles 1, San Jose 0

Apr 3, 2014 Los Angeles 1, San Jose 2

 

Your thoughts on the series...

[J0e Th0rnton]

Sharks in 6.

 

SMASH!

[pilldoc]

Sharks have revenge, home-ice, and depth.  Yes I know the Kings have Quick, BUT the Sharks have Niemi.  Should be a very entertaining series, too bad it is on the West Coast and all the games will be late. Sigh....no way I'm staying up late.

 

Sharks in 6

[hf101]

@Hockey Junkie

 

All rounds are best of 7 in the playoffs.  All teams played a divisional opponent in the West 5 times in the regular season.  I believe in the East each divisional team only faced 2 teams 5 times and the rest 4 times.  

[yave1964]

Sharks stacked for a deep run. Gotta go San Jose.

[radoran]

I'm picking the Kings because the Sharks are still the Sharks.

[mojo1917]

I'm picking the Kings because the Sharks are still the Sharks.

this

good one rad

[Polaris922]

Kings in 6. Sharks just haven't solved the Kings' physically or talent wise.

[hf101]

I think this will go 7, but the sharks are hungry!

I'd like to see Hertl get his game back.

[Vanflyer]

Your thoughts on the series...

 

Quick steals another one. 

[hf101]

Quick steals another one. 

 

Surely possible, but I'd like to see the Sharks get out of the first round. It's going to be some great hockey... just a little tough staying up to watch it all.

[Vanflyer]

Surely possible, but I'd like to see the Sharks get out of the first round. It's going to be some great hockey... just a little tough staying up to watch it all.

 

It bodes well for me (perhaps not to the liking of the missus, but my 2 year old daughter loves to watch eesss hawkkkeee with me). 

 

EST games for me are 7-730 am. + 3 for west cost is 10-30 am. 

 

The ones I hate are the weekend day games!!! (12 midnight or 3am). 

[J0e Th0rnton]

Kings in 6. Sharks just haven't solved the Kings' physically or talent wise.

They seemed to have been molesting the kings for the first 2 periods of the game yesterday in every department. Score was 5-0 going into the third. Then of course they took their foot off the gas pedal.

 

Raffi Torres was throwing clean hits all game. I hate Raffi Torres. At least I did when he was on another team. He took out a few sharks with dirty hits in his time, and served long suspensions. But his clean aggresive play last night was a pleasant surprise and I laughed every time he slammed into Doughty's injured shoulder.

 

Balanced scoring from every line. Hertl looked great in his return! Still rookie of the year IMO. Mackinnon got lucky that Brown blew Hertl's knee this season. Vlasic actually turned on his jets and did a "Look, I'm Dan Boyle!" coast to coast which resulted in a goal. GOD I wish he did that more often. He is such a smooth skater

 

I think this will go 7, but the sharks are hungry!

I'd like to see Hertl get his game back.

Wish granted

[talloola]

sharks in 6

 

wow what a game, that third period was tense for sharks fans, complete turnaround for awhile.

 

was glad to see quick get the hook

 

i'm a canuck fan, but going for the sharks all the way, they have earned the cup, they have

paid their dues, they are ready, so do it.

 

when we had torres on the canucks he was so good and so bAd, but he was an embarrassment because

of his behavior, so i was glad when he left, but i do see his talent, too bAd he has interrupted his own

success because of his Antics, but with the long suspension, maybe now he will be a good boy,  just

like cook had to turn over a new page.

 

 

[J0e Th0rnton]

I am not going to give up on the Kings in this series over one bad game.  Yes it was a shocker  Quick's worst game in ages.  I wonder if they should have pulled him after it was 4-0?  Or did they?  I was suffering through the Blues OT and then watching the Wild's collapse.  

The kings are down a peg from last year. Their top scorers outside of Kopitar have struggled to find their game and the addition of Gaborik is merely a stop gap. Doughty is playing injured. Quick is really the only thing worry about in tis matchup. That or Brown getting liberal with his knee on knees again.

 

And last year, as a better team,  they had home ice advantage(Which matters in this matchup) and it was still a 1 goal game 7 deciding.

 

The Sharks have improved over last year with several young guns coming into their own. Wingels, Nieto and especially Hertl, the "would have been" calder winner if not for Brown's  dirty knee on knee. Demers has improved quite a bit in all 3 zones. With Torres and Hertl back, the team looks different, better and way more dangerous.

 

Keys to winning. Limit Hannan's TOI, Sheppard's TOI lol. I scratch my head a little when I see Braun/Stuart's pairing out with Thornton's line instead of Boyle/Hannan or Demers/Vlasic. Yes Thornton tilts the ice into the offensive zone, but if you gave him more reasonable offensive D options to pass to.....

 

I know Sheppard scored 2 points last night, but I am just not a fan. He suffers from breakdowns. Bad ones. He was on the ice for all 3 Kings goals last night and just looked lost and overwhelmed. Which is bad when you have a 5 goal lead. Come to Think of it, Brown scares me too. Kennedy has not lived up to his contract, and is a turnover machine

 

We are currently scratching 8.5 million in Salary with Havlat, Kennedy and Irwin riding the press box. Havlat actually looked good and like he was getting into a groove in the last 8 games of the season. Maybe it is because he is made of glass and this is a rough series(121 hits in game 1 lol), but Hertl is a natural center playing LW.......Might not hurt to move him to his Natural position, centering Havlat and Wingels instead of being LW with Sheppard/Wingels. Pavelski can always easily move down as well as he spent most of the year as 3rd line center, but I like the look of Pavelski/Thornton/Burns. 90% of the time is spent attacking and capitalizing on turnovers in the neutral zone(They also backcheck like mad).

 

Pavelski/Thornton/Burns

Marleau/Couture/Nieto

Havlat/Hertl/Wingels

Torres/Desjardins/Sheppard?

 

Vlasic/Demers

Stuart/Braun

Hannan/Boyle

 

Niemi

 

 

But Hey, I am not coach. I am just voicing my concerns.

 

The other Major concern is if Havlat gets injured again, we can't buy him out AGAIN lol. He might suck nowdays, but I still think he would put up more points than Sheppard and bring no worse other things to the table.

Edited April 18, 2014 by J0e Th0rnton

[Polaris922]

i'm a canuck fan, but going for the sharks all the way, they have earned the cup, they have

paid their dues, they are ready, so do it.

Nobody has earned the Cup till they've actually EARNED the Cup.

[hf101]

Nobody has earned the Cup till they've actually EARNED the Cup.

 

 

Unless Bettman gives it to them .....   :wub:   

 

[J0e Th0rnton]

Just such a crazy take.  Are you kiddiing me?  The St Louis Blues have by far "earned" the Cup more than the Sharks.  Do you know how many finals they lost in the late 60's and early 70's?  Have you ever heard of the Plaguer bros or Red Berenson?  Or Jacque Plante?  Even my Sabres are more deserving than the Sharks.  Our fan base is far better, and we have been to the finals unlike the Sharks.  St Louis deserves a Cup for sure.  And I like their chances to get it. Beating Chicago will be far more difficult than beating whoever awaits them in the next round

You are crazy. What a team did or did not do in the 60's or 70's is irrelevant to if they deserve a cup now. The team on the ice now has to show they deserve a cup now. it is just as meaningless as Any fans of Montreal or Toronto bragging about all the cups they have back when it was only 6 teams and they had a monopoly on the player pool.

 

The Sabres had good teams in the past, but are an embarassment on par with the Oilers the past few years and in no way deserve a cup.

 

I take it you have not been to a Socal game. The sharks have a HUGE fanbase and sell out every game, and while yeah, Buffalo has been around longer, they are not exactly top 10 in fanbases or loyalty any more than the Sharks are.

 

Buffalo has made the finals twice in a little over 40 years, and the last time was 15 years ago due to an amazing Hasek. Currently, you have a franchise that players want to get out of, not join up with. Attracting free agents is going to be tough unless you overpay. You'll have to straighten up the ship a bit before you deserve a cup.

 

As for the Blues, who cares if they made finals back in the 60's when they were playing only other expansion teams to get to the finals. Once in the finals they were swept every time by real teams. Those expansion teams were about the equal of the Sharks and Sens in 1993. Since those almost don't count finals appearances, they have made the conference finals exactly 2 times in almost 50 years. wow, how deserving

 

And for the record, I agree that the Sharks have not yet earned the cup. I am liking what I am seeing with that 121 hit first game and tenacious approach, and I hope to see them keep it up. This could be the year they earn the cup.

Edited April 19, 2014 by J0e Th0rnton

[talloola]

i will explain what i meant when i said 'earn the cup'.  as a canuck fan we have played several years now noticing san jose building the team

they have today, they have knocked on the door several times, seeming to be a team that 'could' go all the way, and then falling short.

they steadily got better and better, gradually made changes, got faster.

 in 2011 canucks beat them out in the conference final against the play of that series, as it was clear

that san jose was playing a better series than canucks, then the fluky goal that hit the stantion and flew out to the blue line right to bieksa

who shot it, not even a hard shot, but no one knew where it went off off the stantion, and the shot bounced along and into the goal,

thus canucks won the series.

my meaning is this, it is 'time' for them, they have 'earned the right', in my opinion to

go for it in the cup finals, and i hope they do.

i like their team, i like their coach, and i like most of the players, a good honest team, a talented hard working team..

sure i know all of those old players, i watched all of those years, i was a montreal fan when there were only 6 teams, then switched when

canucks came into the league.

for these playoffs i am a san jose fan.

i would have agreed about chicago being the toughest team to get by, but this season they seem to be a bit more vulnerable, i don't think

toews is 100%, maybe i'm wrong, don't know.

quick has to rebound from that trashing he took from san jose, and if doesn't, l.a. are toast.

anaheim can also win the west, but have to give a 60 minutes effort, not 40, but they have the horses for sure.

minnesota have a real good team, they have the individuals to win everything, maybe not the team effort.

i like st. louis too.

i'm not a hard core one team person, i love hockey, and i appreciate many teams.

[J0e Th0rnton]

Bring on game 2! The crappy thing about being a Sharks fan for me is being an East Coast man and a father of twins. Why oh why can't we get these intense rivalry games in the afternoon on Sunday NHL????

 

Chicago and the Blues game 1 went 5 Periods + and only had 69 hits. The Sharks and Kings game 1 beat that with 121 hits in 3 periods. No other game yet has even gotten to 90 hits! Hell, most of them barely make 60.

 

Predictions. The kings are going to come out charging this game, and we will meet them. Tighter game than last time. 3-2 Sharks, with goals from Boyle, Pavelski and Couture! We will outshoot them and Quick will keep this from being a rout. Both teams will hit the post twice at least

 

This game could get nasty. Real nasty.

 

Lineups are staying the same according to sources. Ugh, Sheppard as third line center.........At least Hertl and Wingels are there. Torres, don't get suspended for your third straight series vs the kings(unless it is to KO Brown for intentionally blowing out rookie of the year Hertl's knee). But please, do smash into Doughty's injured shoulder every chance you get. Voynov, please feel free to pick a fight with Jumbo Joe again and don't run away this time. I love seeing Angry Joe. He is a wrecking ball when he is mad.

 

Realistically, banged up or not, I want the sharks to play vs as many teams as they can who beat them in the past few years. The ducks, the Hawks, the Blues. I know I can't have all of you, but I want as many of you as I can get.

 

 

I used to pray for the less taxing matchup's, or the matches that were easier on paper. This year, I WANT the best, hardest matches vs the Sharks. I want to see them crush their enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!

Edited April 20, 2014 by J0e Th0rnton

[Vanflyer]

Quick steals another one. 

 

I am the dunce on this one. Glad I did not take Quick as my goalie. 

[J0e Th0rnton]

I am the dunce on this one. Glad I did not take Quick as my goalie. 

In fairness, it was a decent pick on your part. The sharks only scored 10 goals in 7 games last year. Even I did not expect 12 in the first two. The kings looked geriatric.

[Vanflyer]

In fairness, it was a decent pick on your part. The sharks only scored 10 goals in 7 games last year. Even I did not expect 12 in the first two. The kings looked geriatric.

 

I just expected a tighter scoring affair. I knew Sharks were deep this year, but also knew that despite continued offensive woes by the kings, they still played very well defensively. 

[J0e Th0rnton]

From 1 point to 8 points in 1 day in the fantasy pool Iginla had a good game. Shame Krejci didn't. Pavelski had a really good game, and Boyle had 2 points(but gave me fits in his own zone). Talk is the Kings may start Jones in game 3 at home after Quick let in 12 goals. Hope so Would be a huge mistake. Quick is too good not to bounce back, and 5 of those goals were not really his fault.

 

Poor Quick got his own player smashed into him 2 games in a row.

 

 

Unfortunately, talk is also that the Sharks may ice Pavs as 3c since they do not control the matchups so his output may drop. May or may not be good for his stats. Depends on if him and Hertl can find some chem.

 

Demers for some reason gets more points in road games than away games. Not sure why. They usually come from his sweet stretch passes. Lucky that charging elbow did not land, or you could be suspended. Where do tose brain farts come from? You play so much better clean.

 

Let' see how Brown and Sheppard do when we do not control the matchup's........I suspect I am going to have fits. If Pavelski is moving to 3c, I would not be opposed to sitting Sheppard for Havlat. Both are bad in their own end, but Havlat bring some streaky offensive upside and would be another thing for Sutter to worry about in his matchup's, while Sheppard will merely have him licking his chops trying to get Kopitar out. Havlat did have a hat trick in the 2nd last game of the season when we smashed the Avs 5-1. Not willing to break up the marleau/Couture/Nieto line though. Nieto has earned that spot and him and Marleau's speed work too well together. The Marleau/Couture/Havlat line did embarass Landskog, Mackinnon and Stastny that game though. Havlat's other multi point games did seem to come with Wingels and Sheppard. Pavelski and Wingels + Havlat could be good. Hertl to the top line with Jumbo Joe and Burns?

 

Could not be happier with the 4th line. Torres, so long as he does not cross the line and get ejected, has been HUGE, and Brown, well, he is the one that smashed a Dman into Quick both games and shook him up. Play on the edge guys, just don't jump it.

 

And for the love of god Chicago, start winning. I need the goalie points. Seabrook for 3, but does anyone know if Backes is ok? Hopefully he bounces back like Stamkos from that scary knee to the head did and plays.

[J0e Th0rnton]

Oh yeah, and Richards Speared Couture in the last 5 minutes and got a 4 minute?