Imagine My Surprise

Stupidly, I sleep with sports radio on. For years, KNBR, the only sports talk radio station in the Bay, has been playing Giants game replays at midnight and I've been going to sleep listening to them or the ESPN radio coverage. The problem is that in doing that I guarantee that I wake up listening to their morning radio coverage. More often than not Brian Murphy and Paul McCaffrey annoy me by panicking to the high heavens about Giants and Warrior losses while only paying lip service to the Sharks. So imagine my surprise to wake up at 5.30 to hear them talking about the Sharks for more than 30 seconds. And of course this happens after the latest in the Sharks string of "Worst Games of the Season." Of course.

What makes me the most angry is that they are right. The Sharks got pushed around. Their captian got bloodied and there was no real physical response. Of course it was a questionable hit, particularly coupled with the sketchy one by Phaneuf on an icing play. To be fair, if the Sharks had played that way, they would have paid the price with penalties. Calgary ended with a power play after Sarich hit Marleau high. Elbow or no, both the Sharks and the refs sent Calgary and Mike Keenan a very important message last night: keep playing rough and on the edge of dirty because there will be no consequences. I know that the league will look at the hit, but I have no confidence that anything will happen. Even if it there is a suspension, that won't solve the Shark's problems.

Can the Sharks come back? Yes. Can they still win the series? Of course. I think this is a bigger test than losing Game One. But that's the obvious statement to make. It's not over until Calgary or the Sharks win 4 games. If the Sharks can't figure out how to solve Calgary, there is very little chance they would have made it past Detroit or any of the other teams making it out of the first round. I just had this eerie sense of deja vu: Big hit on important Shark, little response from team, Sharks panic, lose series, rinse, repeat.

Though one thing can be said: I never though I'd see the day that there are some of the neagtive Feederites saying it's too early to panic. April continues to surprise me. But Paulie Mac is right: The Sharks are no longer flirting. They are in bed with Danger.