A year ago, the San Jose Sharks were riding high into the playoffs, clinching the Pacific Division for the sixth time and surfing a tidal wave of success into the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But after rolling through Los Angeles and eking out a seventh-game victory against Detroit, the Sharks went on to lose in the semifinals to Vancouver, ending another run for the highly touted Shark squad.
With some minor trades in the offseason with the Wild, the Sharks came into the 2011-2012 season without a national star and with little hope of lifting the Stanley Cup trophy come May. A mediocre start to the season reaffirmed many fans’ apathy.
How quickly the tides change. The Sharks are currently enjoying a three game winning streak, besting the Bruins and the Coyotes last week and giving a convincing all-around performance when they trounced the Avalanche 5-1 on Monday. This frenzy of late has propelled the Sharks to third place in the Western Conference and to the top of the Pacific Division.
Key to the Sharks’ recent success has been their depth. Though the Sharks lack the star power of a Steven Stamkos or an Evgeni Malkin, their secondary scoring ability has given them a scoring edge in the later periods. Against the Avalanche, starting right wing Joe Pavelski scored two goals, but Torrey Mitchell, Andrew Desjardins, and Ryane Clowe all found the net off the bench.
After the game against Denver, Head Coach Todd McLellan played off the ranking significance of the wins, focusing instead on earning points.
“The fact that we got the two points is the most significant thing, not where we are in the standings,” he said via Twitter.
Team Captain Joe Thornton echoed McLellan’s wariness.
“We haven’t done anything yet,” he said. “We have to keep winning to make the playoffs.”
McLellan and Thronton are right to be cautious. The Pacific Division is far from clinched, and all five teams have the chance to make it into the playoffs. With only six games left in the regular season, all against Pacific Division rivals, the Sharks are going to need to maintain their offensive tenacity if they want to win another division title. As a team, the Sharks average 34.1 shots per game, the highest in the NHL, and have the fourth-highest power play percentage in the league. In the final two matchups of the season against the seemingly impenetrable Kings’ goalie Jonathan Quick, the Sharks are going to need to repeat this unrelenting offensive assault.
