Gameday!

Little known fact: on off days the rangers in Jellystone play hockey.

Today's bout kicks off at 4pm Sharks time on Versus, or the radio for those of you not currently receiving VS due to arguments over your money. Arguments in which you're not really allowed to take part. Fun, huh?

Anyway, the Rangers are starting out super hot, having won 7 games on on their longest win streak in several seasons. Must help when you can get hockey advice from a smarter than average bear. (I am really stretching for these this morning, aren't I?) Not that I'm comparing Tortorella to a bear. I think I might actually have a chance against a bear in a fight. Torts, not so much.

I have no idea where I am going with this so I'll stop here. Go Sharks!

News and Notes: We have a surprise for you all! This will (likely) be our last post here at blogger. We're moving! While we haven't officially flipped the switch just yet, BUT, we'll be your new Bloguin Sharks bloggers!Yay!
We'll make sure to post a link as soon as we flip the switch! (which should be later today)

Our first post in our new home. Go here! Go!

GAMEDAY on Earthquake Day (or, in which Gray pontificates and quotes a funny passage)

Today is several things:

Today is GAMEDAY! against the Isles at 4pm Sharks time. (Whoo hockey!)

Today is also Oktoberfest in Campbell. (whoo beer!)

And today is the 20^th anniversary of the Loma Prieta quake. For those who weren't alive or were too young to remember it, the quake was a defining moment in the lives of all those who lived through it. The bridge in shambles, the Cypress Structure pancaked with people inside, the Marina on fire, all things seen when power was returned. That huge aftershock in the middle of the night that scared the crap out of those with already frayed nerves.

I have a t shirt somewhere that commemorates what the rest of the county must have seen as an inconvenient interruption to a World Series they didn't really care to much about but we're watching because it's the World Series. (the A's won that series btw, in case you aren't one of the people still stewing about that)

Other roads collapsed, State Route 1, 17 was a mess for at least a month, and numerous other streets with collapsed buildings or buckled pavement. In short, the quake was a disaster of epic proportions.

Why am I mentioning this? Because today, whether or not the Sharks are playing well come game time, whether or not the D shows up, whether or not Nabby has to try to single-handedly keep his team in the game, no matter what the final score is, remember, it could always be worse.

I've been reading The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell and she has this passage about using historical references to remind herself that it (whatever it happens to be at time) could be worse.

“Though, ever since I went to Salem, I've been keen on 'Gallows Hill.' As in, Being stuck in the Boise airport for ten hours while getting hit on by a divorced man with 'major financial problems' on his way to his twentieth high school reunion is irksome, but not as dire as swinging by the neck on Salem's Gallows Hill.”

I'm going to suggest that if and when the game starts to go south, Sharks fans say “Loma Prieta.” As in, losing a game to the [Insert team name here] is irksome, but not as dire as being in a huge earthquake.

(and I thank Ms. Vowell in advance for not suing me. Assassination Vacation was fantastic btw)

Post Game Recap:

I was at Oktoberfest trying not to spill either or both of my two beers all over my feet during the first period, so, as far as I am concerned, nothing happened until I got into the passenger seat, turned on the car radio and heard this "...and the Islanders go up 1-0." As far as I know, the game didn't start until the 15:12 minute mark of the 1st. This is a theory I have chosen to stick with.

There was some talking about it being a disappointing first on the radio. I can only assume this was because it was so short. This may also explain why Drew was so angry.

Second Period:

Everyone must have been relieved when this period started on time and not with about 5 minutes to go, like the first had.

In all honesty, the first half of the second period is fuzzy. I had been at Oktoberfest and while I wasn't in bad shape by any means, some of the game is a bit foggy. It was weirdly warm and humid out, which didn't help. I'm also a small lass. You do the math. This also tells me that the Sharks weren't skating poorly enough to catch my attention in a negative way. Always a plus.

Anyway, what I do remember are goals clearly are the Sharks' goals. 2 of them.

The first came on the PP from Patrick "Magic" Marleau. (I just gave him that name right now)

The second came from Vesce, his first NHL goal. Whoo!

Apparently, those who were paying more attention than I noted that the play leading his goal started about a half a stride offside. It wasn't called at the time, and I don't think the Islanders challenged anyone about it (going off the SJ feed), so it stands as his first tally.

Anyway, more stuff happens: Nabby makes good saves, Huskins loses the puck to someone, several Sharks end up in the box, Randy and Drew flirt, the period comes to a close.

Third Period:

At this point I realized that the Sharks weren't skating fast circles around the Isles and I was puzzled. Either they Islanders got faster, the Sharks got slower, or it was some combination of the two.

I didn't have much time to ponder this as just 37 seconds in Joe shots the puck into the net.

Let me say that again: Joe Thornton shot the puck. At the net.

Goal 3. Yay! Holy crap! It was also on the Power Play! 2 PPGs! Awesome!

Joe also hit 400 assists tonight. Because when you don't shoot the puck, the least you can do is pass to a guy who will.

Seto scored later in the period, with help from Clowe, putting the Sharks up 4-1.

Clowe later tried to go for the Gordie Howe hat Trick, but miscalculated and fought with less than 5 minutes remaining. Kinda makes getting a goal hard. As far as I could tell, the fight between Clowe and Jackman was developing BEFORE Seto was boarded by Witt. It was just off camera, so it's hard to say for sure, but that was the way Randy Hahn saw it, and he's been watching games longer than I have, so I'll trust him on that one.

Your three stars of the game: 1st Joe Thornton, 2nd Nabby, 3rd, Kyle Okposo who has one of the coolest last names ever, I might add.

GAMEDAY!

This party gets started early, with a nice East coast friendly kick of time of 4pm. Set your tivos, ladies and gentlemen, so you don't miss this one.

Looks like the NHL network will be carrying this as well as CSNCA and the always amazing radio coverage by Jamie and Dan.

In somewhat related news:

First there was Goc Blog. Then came the short lived Mitchell Blog. Now comes SHELLEY BLOG!
Personally, I am hoping he'll throw up a clip of his bar of soap can of beans moment, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

POST GAME RECAP:

Hey look, in the same post for once this season! Whoo!

Well, ok, that didn't go like we wanted it to, but I love watching the Caps. I'm sorry. I just do. I root for the Pens in the post season so I shouldn't like the Caps, but I do. In fact last post season it was hard choosing between them.

Spending half the first on the PK? Not good. In fact it's a recipe for wearing out your dudes. Shirtless Joe said as much in the post game coverage.

But, on the plus side, Nabby was AMAZING and kept it a 1 goal game despite all the PK time.

And then Benn Ferriero SCORES! Whoo! Go kid, go!

Tie game heading into the second.

After that, as the say, the wheels fell off.

Ovie scored two goals in less than 30 seconds. I'm wondering what he said to Nabby in the first. Can anyone lip read in Russian?

In all honesty I sort of half paid attention after that. I've been pretty busy and I was working on wrapping some things up, and the part of my brain that watches hockey was otherwise engaged. Usually I can listen/watch/write fairly well without missing much, but not tonight. I'm tired. What can I say?

However, I did notice that our D was kinda falling apart.

Ok, maybe no kinda.

Nabby was still great, but he's first period performance was repaid with less than stellar work from his D. Not a constant march to the penalty box like the first had been, but they weren't doing him many favors.

A lot of the Sharks looks SLLLLLLOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW. Joe said, in his shirtless interview, they were all gassed after the PK filled first. I'd believe it.

Patrick Marleau doesn't know tired though, and continued to press and fight and nearly score later in the game. He wasn't worthy of the C because...? If nothing else, he's been playing better and faster having had the C taken away from him. Showing everyone what we already knew: he's GOOD.

The Caps pretty much dominated the 2nd and 3rd. Thing is, I kept reminded myself I was a)happy to have hockey back and b)I'm not a Leafs fan. These things lead to things tweet:

I am not going to worry. I'm just going to watch and blog and see where this season takes me


I stand by that. See you all for the next game on Saturday! Go Sharks!

GAMEDAY MONDAY!

After a summer like the Yotes had, my respect for this team and its fan base has deepened. (not that that stopped me from referencing a potential move when deciding what to draw for them, however.) The 'Yotes always play very well against the Sharks, spurned on by some magical ability to defeat the team in teal handily on many and sadly memorable occasion. ("Coyote Ugly" is still ugly, a few seasons later) And to come back and play after the uncertain summer the team had is not only commendable but a testament to their desire to stay in AZ. Players didn't run from the team. Keep that in mind.

The game kicks off tonight @ 7:30 on your TV and radio. CSNCA and KFOX have you (mostly)covered. Last game in this early three game home stand for the Sharks. Break out your teal and head downtown. Party is just getting started.

GAMEDAY!

I'm not too sure if trap jokes are still valid with a new man at the helm for the Wild, but why waste the chance for a good joke, eh? It will be interesting to see where Todd Richards has taken the Wild so far.

Game kicks off tonight at 7:30pm (Pacific)on CSNCA and the radio. I think we really do have a half hour preview leading up to broadcast but I'm not sure if that's on CSN or CSNCA. Still trying to figure out the ins and outs of the channel switch.

In related news, it came out yesterday that Joe Ike, long time in house voice of the Sharks, was let go due to a crappy economy. He's been replaced by Danny Miller, the in game/ intermission activities guy. You may voice your (polite and well written)disagreement with this move by using the contact info on this page. Best bets is likely business/other, but broadcast might work too. If your a season ticket holder and are upset by this move, please contact your account representative and (politely) let them know. We understand this was an economical motivated decision, but many of us are upset by the move to consolidate jobs by removing a man who many of us feel is synonymous with Sharks home games. I appreciate that this is a boon for Danny Miller, but he's no Joe Ike.

By rights, if you like Danny Miller in this position, by all means, also let the Sharks know. But I, for one, much prefer Ike's calls. I was looking forward to them this season.

Post Game Recap!

Recapping the Home Opener, part 2

I covered a lot of it last night, but I had a few additional thoughts about it that I said I would share.

The penalty shot was cool only because we don't get to see those too often. I think it took about 2 seconds for it to sink in for most of the crowd that that goal was also Heatley's third of the night. Then the hats started to fly.

There was a spontaneous chant of "DANY HEATLEY" sometime between the goal and when the hats were finally all removed from the ice.

A paper airplane is not a hat.

Despite assurances to the contrary, Mina was quite certain that if Heatley hadn't been pulled down on the play, his shot would have missed. That would have left Joe with the team record tying four assists he had on the night.

While I both understand a respect the decision to not have any fan fare what so ever for the unfurling of the new banners, I wish they said something before doing it because I nearly missed it. And again, while I see where they're coming from, I did still want to see them drop.

I'll say it again, "Where is Joe Ike!?" UPDATE: NOOO! They frakking fired him!

At some point Drew stuck his head out of one of the upper boxes behind and to the left of us. The crowd went wild.

I was wondering if JR was sitting in his seat wondering why we were booing Seto during the introductions. We don't boo him, we say "Gooooooooocchhhhh", but it seemed to confuse JR a lot last year. To be fair, it does have a pretty similar sound to it.

Conversations you kinda want to see the end of, but you also want to get back to your seats before intermission ends: "It's not like I was sitting like this!"



Just add a Mike's Hard lemonade and give that deer a surly drunken look and you'll get the idea. The usher wasn't buying it but I give her points for not cracking up as the drunken party in question nearly toppled over during her demonstration. (for those who don't know, leaning forward is verboten. The seat placement makes it so leaning obstructs the view of the people behind you.They even announce this sometime in the first, and yet, people still lean.)

Afro and I discussed how similar Dany Heatley's arrival here has been the JR's. Everyone knows I love JR, but even I was worried when I heard we'd acquired him. Sure, he's great, but will he be more of a liability than a boon? I've had the same reservations about Heatley, though I said before he came, If he's a Shark, I will happily cheer for him. I'm still formulating my own opinion of him, but scoring goals is a quick way to win over fans in nearly any city.

GAMEDAY!

Pregame rally starts at 5pm right next to the Tank. Game starts at 7:30. Be there, or at least be watching on TV. CSN's various incarnations have all kinds of talking head chatter leading up to game time.

Post Game Recap:


Whooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!


Always nice to win the home opener, especially against a team that's been spoiling those for folks.

It wasn't a sure fire thing in the first though. The Jackets were swarming and the Sharks looked pretty bad. Slow, lost, not communicating, sloppy...it was a bad scene.

We all went into the first intermission down 1-0 to the Blue Jackets and it was looking like perhaps, this night might be spoiled for Sharks fans. There was even booing when the team screwed up.The natives? They were extraordinarily restless.

Nabby was Nabby. Some great saves and then some moments that stopped your heart for other reasons entirely. Like when he PASSED THE PUCK IN FRONT OF HIS OWN EMPTY NET OMG aldjlajfklsajjg;ogergjldg

yeah, yeah that was an intense moment.

I want to type more to recap this but my brain is like;jadjalfsj;afa;skflshattricklskjdksajfhattrickkkdjakdksajoehad4assistskdjsakdskakjfbrokenassistrecordfortheteamjdksjdsklkf. Allow me to try and compose my thoughts....*ahem*

For the Jackets, Nash (of course, dude is dangerously good and totally pwned poor Demers), Chimera (it was a nice shot too. Tied the game up at 2 a piece) and...Raffi Torres.

We don't like Raffi Torres.

Second period saw a couple good fights. Clowe went nuts on Blunden, and Blunden left the ice with a nasty looking cut on the head. Clowe left for a bit for some hand repairs, but both returned later in the game. (At least I THINK Blunden did. I know Clowe did)

A few minutes later Frazier (Not Kyle) McLaren had an odd bout with Dorsett in which his arm got caught in his jersey and he couldn't get it out. For some reason the refs didn't stop the fight, so it continued as a weird grabbing battle which eventually ended with Not Kyle managed to free his bound arm and started hitting Dorsett.

I believe after the 4th Sharks goal (4 of the 6 came in the second) the pulled Mason and put in Giron. Did you know he was with the Pens last year? We apparently missed that.

what happened to Joe Ike?! Why is Danny Miller doing the in game announcing? And why can't he read!? Look, I'll be the first to admit I can't type (or apparent edit), but I'm just a random Jill schmo with a computer and opinions. He was epic fail ladies and gentlemen, epic fail. I'm sure he'll improve but we want Joe Ike back!

Mike Cvik did not call any phantom headbutts. JoePa wasn't playing.

JR was in attendance in the lower bowl in a nice fancy box seats. He got an ovation from us fans when showed on the jumbo tron. <3 U JR. Love the shirt JR. Loved it.

At some point poor Demers, already horribly out skated and played by Rick Nash, was shoved by Nabby in order to clear up space. I am of the opinion that he shoved him and shouted "Dis MAI Crease!" (little known fact, Nabokov speaks interwebs)

Ok, I'm going to leave it there for the night and add some more tomorrow, with any luck. My throat is sore from cheering, but I love it.

Go Sharks!

Gameday!

Kicking off tonight @ 7:30pm on CSN-CA with your lovely hosts, Randy and Drew! Jaime and Dan have the radio, as always. I believe Nabby will be in net tonight, but don't quote me on that. Joe Pa is out with an injury, which sucks, so expect to see Patty when JoePa would normally be when the second line rolls out tonight.

I haven't had a chance to see the Kings yet this season, and based off how the Avs have been playing, I'm not willing to make any predictions as to how tonight's affair will go.

Anyone see the Canucks get their butts handed to them by the Blue Jackets last night? Second period was 3 goals on 3 shots. "LuonGod" (as Mina's brother calls him) was pulled and Raycroft finished the game for him. He actually looked pretty good. You figure that one out.

Post Game Recap:
Will be posted by tomorrow afternoon. Fortunately or un, I, your humble recapper, am current busy with more pressing matters. Nothing bad, just a bit more important. The recap will be up tomorrow because of this.

Alright! Let's get this thing started, shall we?

First, The Good:

Sharks Power Play was on FIRE! Yeah! 4 stright PPGs, baby.

Heatley got his first goal as a Shark. Now people can stop with the "when we he score" nonsense and go back to getting on Joe's case for not SHHHOOOOOOTING THE PUUUUCCCCKKKKKKK.

Patty Marleau, Patty Marleau, Patty Marleau.

Despite the outcome the Sharks came back from a four goal deficient. They could have folded and given up, but they fought back. For a team that's so often accused of not having any heart, I'd say they showed a lot of it last night.


The Bad:

The Sharks 5-on-5 play was pretty stunted. It couldn't get anything going. Passes with anything but crisp, they players didn't seem to be connecting or communicating and there were a decent number of turnovers to the guys in the black jerseys. You know, the Kings?

The D was asleep at the wheel. A few shining moments, but for the most part they looked pretty terrible last night. I realize we do have new defensive parings to deal with, so I'm willing to give them all more than 3 games to sort out their issues, but last night's performance was pretty rough. Those first 3 goals against were ALLL failures in FRONT on Nabby.

Once Greiss let in that terrible goal by Purcell, the Sharks deflated. Not that I blame them, but that 5th goal was the game ender. All the momentum from scoring 4 straight to come back immediately fled the room.


The Ugly:



That goal is going to go into the new video enhanced dictionary next to the definition of the word "ugly". Your team has just come back from a 4-0 deficit and you let THAT in? UGLY.

Ryane Clowe was so pissed by his team's performance that as he walked off the ice after receiving a 5 minute major for a fight, he slammed his helmet to the ground and yell what I can only guess was an obscenity that starts with the letter F and and with K. The fans surrounding him seems amused by this, and OF COURSE it lead to jokes about the playoffs. Personally, I think the early playoff references are the real ugly, but that's just me.

A lot of people started to crap all over Nabby about letting in 4 goals. Let me say this as clearly as I can: 3 of the 4 were NOT ON HIM.
I'm all for blaming the goalie when they suck (see Greiss, Thomas), but when the team in front of them is laying an egg, they need to be called on it.


THE FANS.

Seriously. It was like the clouds had opened up and they were raining all over the poop parade. It was GAME 3 and people were acting like it was a late season bout. Obviously, last year's post season wounds still run very deep, and people are reacting to this new season as if it was an extension of the old. By the tone of some of the comments, you'd think the season was already over.

The Sharks are 3 games in. The team changed quite a bit over the summer and you can't expect them to all have clicked and settled into their new roles or a new system just yet. Sure, last season the Sharks were on a tear early. The opened by winning 4 straight, and taking 8 of their first 10 games. But that's not the norm.

The season before (2007-2008) The first 10 games went as follows*:
1 Oct 04 '07 EDM O 00-00-01 1
2 Oct 05 '07 VAN W 01-00-01 3
3 Oct 07 '07 COL L 01-01-01 3
4 Oct 10 '07 CHI W 02-01-01 5
5 Oct 13 '07 BOS L 02-02-01 5
6 Oct 15 '07 VAN W 03-02-01 7
7 Oct 18 '07 DET L 03-03-01 7
8 Oct 20 '07 NSH W 04-03-01 9
9 Oct 22 '07 CGY W 05-03-01 11
10 Oct 26 '07 DET L 05-04-01 11

*taken from here

2006-2007 started a tad better, but it wasn't a whirlwind:

Oct 5 W 5-4OT
Oct 7 W 2-0
Oct 9 W 4-1
Oct 12 L 4-6
Oct 13 W 6-4
Oct 17 W 2-0
Oct 19 W 5-1
Oct 21 L 1-4
Oct 23 W 3-0
Oct 25 L 1-2

2005-2006. Look at the stats, the lost all but 2 games in November. October wasn't much better.
Wed, Oct 5 L 2-3
Fri, Oct 7 L 3-6
Oct 8 W 7-6
Oct 12 W 4-1
Oct 15 W 4-3
Oct 17 L 2-3OT
Oct 19 L 1-6
Oct 21 L 1-4
Oct 22 L 1-2
Oct 26 W 5-4OT

So you see, it's a LITTLE early to start making judgements on how the rest of the season will go. Is it a bumpier start than last year? Yes. But that's all it is.
Let's hold off a bit on the doom and gloom, alright?



And now, as promised, a section on Jamie Baker's hair.

I am SO GLAD someone gave him a comb! Last year, Jamie Baker was on camera all season with hair that pretty much looked like he'd rolled out of bed, put on a suit, and come to work. It was everywhere. All over the place. He doesn't even have a lot of it and it always managed to look extremely unkempt. It was honestly rather impressive just how bad it looked at times. Sticking up here and there, generally being all over the place while everyone else looked rather nicely coiffed in comparison.

Now his commentary and knowledge made up for the distraction of his unruly locks, but I started wondering if I should mail him a comb or something mid season because nothing seemed to be being done to help him. Did he not have a comb, perhaps? He may have lost in somewhere. It happens. Perhaps he thought the bed head look was stylish. It was in a few years back for the ladies, maybe he was trying to start a new trend amongst men.

I can see that his hair has some curl to it, and I know how hard curly hair is to control, but I'm so happy he FINALLY tamed it this season. It looks super good, Mr. Baker. SUPER GOOD! No longer will I mistake you for a man who comes to work very tired all the time.

Gameday! Duck Soup, Anyone?

This show gets on the road tonight @ 7pm on CSNCA with your lovely hosts, Randy and Drew. Jamie and Dan will also, as always, be provided us with fantastic radio coverage.
I know there's some issues about the availability of CSNCA (to put it mildly), but hopefully until everyone's providers figure this mess out (TV shouldn't be this hard!) you all will find a place to watch, or at the very least, listen.

I know everyone is still all pissed about Thursday, but to help you move on, Reader Emily created a fantastic video. You should watch it.



Really Post Game Recap:

So I didn't get to see the game, as I was in places I was at last night, while cool, only were showing college ball. From the highlights I saw, it looked like last night's game was good. Like super good. Love it when we beat the Ducks.

Our rooks all get their first points in the same game AND they all come from Ferriero's 1st NHL goal. Awesome!

Patty's shorty was so amazing Mina called to tell me about it. It was a thing of beauty.

ZOMG Joe shot the puck! ZOMGZOMZOMG!

Seto was like "watch this!" and Hiller was like "wha....dammit."

I missed Randy and Drew, and while I only got a bit of them in the highlights, it was really awesome to hear them calling a game again.

Kinda confused (having not see the game) about why Teemu got the 2nd star when Whitney scored the Ducks only goal of the evening. Anyone have a report on his performance?

The team looked faster as a whole, but like I said, I only got to see the highlights, so I'm just guessing based off those and the recaps I read.

GAMEDAY!!!!!

This thing kicks off TONIGHT! On Versus @ 7, but if I had to guess I'd say the VS will also be airing the pregame festivities as the Avs honor Joe Sakic for being, well, Joe Sakic. Come for the jersey retirement, stay for the game. It's gonna be good.

Whoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! Hockey is back, baby! Strap yourselves in folks! It's going to be one helluva ride!

Post Game Recap:

Anderson is a beast!

Our D didn't show up. Don't know where they were but their less skilful, more inefficient clones showed up instead. "You idiots! These are not them! You've captured their stunt doubles!" So true.

Patty was the best looking player in white and teal on the ice tonight? Letters? Letters? Patty don't need no stinking letters!

It was discussed and decided that the Sharks were beaten by Sakic's right testicle, while the left had more valor than the word valor itself. Powerful stuff.

The 1st line needs some time to gel, that is for sure.

Heatley missed a shot that should have gone in with the most terrific whiff of the night. OY!

Did I mention how Anderson is a beast, cos he is.

Nabby didn't play well, but he didn't play badly, either. He had no help from his D and the Avs walked all over his net.

Pretty poor performance overall by the Sharks, BUT , Patty was great, Demers and Ferriero played well in their first NHL game.

I didn't even know Huskins was ON THE ICE until the VS guys mentioned him. Not sure if that's
good, bad, or entire inconsequential.

But despite the loss, hockey is back, and that make me happy.

GO SHARKS! And kick some Duck butt on Saturday!

Teal and White Recap and the Game Day for Tonight's PreSeason Game

First, the Teal and White recap:

Despite being a season ticket holder only event, Teal and White has become quite popular. Lines snake around the Tank to get in long before the doors open and nearly everyone goes in with a game plan for autograph lines and ice skating. Standing outside,waiting for the doors to open and the fans to flood in and fill the bottom of the Tank, I find it mind boggling that people still don't think hockey has a home in my state. Thousands stand outside, waiting to get in to see an exhibition game from a team that laid a fat egg in the playoffs. We WANT hockey. Not only that, we wants Sharks hockey. It's been too long.

The fun stuff:

I never sit downstairs during the regular season, so getting to sit in the rich seats if pretty awesome. I like the view from upstairs, but the novelty of seats 13 rows up from the glass hasn't worn off for me yet. Meeting the players is awesome, especially when one of them gives Afro the eye, (she's available, Joslin!), but I really come for the game. It's so much fun to be able to watch the players just have fun out on the ice. Sure, Teal is trying to beat White and vice versa, but it's an exhibition game. Just a scrimmage. The rookies may be trying to impress, but the veterans are out there having a blast.

I chose team Teal this year, mostly because it had Ryane Clowe. Afro took team White, and Mina was assigned Teal, though none of us really cared. We cheered for all the goals, no matter who scored them.

Sexsmith was a beast and kept Teal down to 1 goal, giving White the win. Then the shootout came. I don't know what happened, but the Sexywall feel and Teal blew White out of the water in the shootout. Fans select the players for the shootout and I think the best moment was when someone selected Brad Staubitz. He looked absolutely shocked & repaid the fan by scoring a goal. Nichol was selected and skated over and bear hugged his fan, who were assuming had been a long time admirer. Jody Shelley surprised us all by scoring a sick shoot out goal. Randy Hahn suggested the coaches take this into consideration.

Randy and Drew, stars in their own right, announced the lineups for each of the teams. They also showed us they were in regular season form by riffing and rambling in the way that only they can.

Ok, enough rambling there. Tonight's HOCKEY! (You'll have to wait for the regular season for game day art.)

Sharks took last night's game against LA, (in Ontario "what's that smell?" California. No seriously. Drive down 10 or 60 and tell me it doesn't smell weird sometimes. The Santa Ana winds do this area no favors. I'm going to get letters, aren't I?), in the shoot out. Tonight, they're back up the the Bay Area to face the Canucks. If past pre season games are any indicator, this game will be chippy at best and nose breaking at worst. I don't know what it is, but the Canucks and Sharks don't get along well in the pre season. Now that there are more than a few former Sharks on the team, I suspect things will be just a little bit awkward once the puck drops.

7:30 PM. The Teal Mile comes back to life tonight.

Should be awesome. Go Sharks!

One More Rookie Game!

The Sharks have already sealed the deal in this rookie tourney, but there's still one more game tonight. Get there EARLY as I have heard reports of people being turned away last night.

Working the Corners has a quick recap of last night's game. Man, I missed a Gordie Howe hat trick from Petrecki? Sharks won last night's bout 5-0.
Boom. Tough actin' Tinactin.

Tonight @7pm
North Rink
Sharks Ice, San Jose

Rookie Game 2!

Tonight @ 7pm
North Rink
Sharks Ice, San Jose

Same deal as last night. $10 for 13 and over $5 for those 12 and younger. First come, first serve, so get they're early.

Proceeds to benefit charity, but the altruism is just a bonus. It's live hockey folks! Get out there and watch it! I can't go tonight and I'm sad. It's some fun times.

Rookie Game!

Tonight @ 7pm
North Rink
Sharks Ice San Jose

Admission is $10. Come on out and cheer for the rookies

Post Game Recap: (it's like the real season!)

So, that was awesome.

There's something to be said for the joy that is watching a hockey game from the bleachers, close enough to the ice to know the players can hear you, surrounded by hundreds of other fans who are just as eager and excited for the season to start as you are.

The was an electric energy in the air, and even though we all know that we won't be seeing most of these rookies on the team come Oct 1st, it didn't matter. They had on teal, and that was all we cared about. We knew few names, but still managed to get our like for all thing teal across.

Couture is unreal to watch. He was easily the best player on the ice. This kid is as impressive as they say.

The crowd favorite seemed to be #70, Daniel Erlich. He's 5'6" and only 150, but this kid can motor. He's amazingly fast and the crowd appreciated his efforts. During the shoot out (yep, it went to the shoot out) the entire crowd stood and cheered for him. He scored.

The Sharks rookies looked better overall, though the Ducks had better fighters. Color me unsurprised.

There were a lot of penalties. Some good calls, some I'm not sure, but the crowd weighed in on all of them.

The linesman fell down. Oh he tried to play it off, but he fell down, went boom.

Some hard hits. I mean, bone rattling. A few people were hit into next week.

A few pucks slammed into the windows of Stanley's. No beers were hurt.

The refs were ECHL refs and they could not, for the life of them, place the puck in the right spot during the shoot out. They'd just kinda toss it and let it slide all over. They were also still scared of getting hit, and flinched when players got too close. (not that I blame them). It probably takes a lot of years of practice to develop NHL level nerves of steal.

Shootout was like 7 rounds or something. Nowhere near as nerve wrecking as a "real" one. It also followed what Mina accurately called "the longest dry scrape ever."

Drew Remenda and his boys were in attendance. He was super nice, said hi to everyone and stopped to sign jerseys.

Rusanowsky was there too, but spent most of the time in the glass enclosed war room behind us. This is also were we saw Todd McLellan and Doug Wilson. We also probably annoyed the hell out of them. No one would run up and smash their face against the glass, but I kept hoping someone would.

Marchment wandered by after the game when we headed out front and had the good fortune to meet some seriously fantastic bloggers. SwisherThresher melted into the ground while the rest of us said hi.

It was sooo nice to see hockey again. Live, in person. To feel the chilly air and listen to the religious fevor with which the fans cheered and booed. Just three weeks until the real season begins. I can't wait.

RUMOR MILL

According to Bleacher Report, Blake has resigned with the Sharks for two years at 4.5mil. H/T to FTF's Swisher Threasher and TCY

HOWEVER! Gray has yet to find this article substantiated anywhere else, so don't freak out, become jubilant, etc, just yet. Until we have proof, much like Pronger to the Kings, this is just a rumor.

We love hockey rumors as much as the next fan, so we will do our best to keep you up to date on all the things that probably haven't happened during the off season.

UPDATE:

Pollak says NO to this rumor. Well, parts of it.

All the News That We Deem Important

Things here in Tartsville have settle down a bit, so we figured it'd be a good time to brief you on all the Sharks news we missed this week.

Equipment sale was yesterday. For those of you who like buying smelly old socks and framing them. Hope you all had a good time.

The Ehrhoffs welcomed their new baby daughter to the world, then flew back to Germany with her. Congrats to the family! And double congrats for surviving all those flights with a newborn.

Looking for a reason to hit Vegas this summer? JR will be there. That's reason enough to go just about anywhere.Considering who's playing, it could be quite a show. I'd rather have tickets to this then the NHL Snore Awards.

WTC had an update on some Marleau rumors a few days back.

No Games Today

Saddest words I'll have to type for awhile.

I had expected to be at game 7 tonight. I mean that. I went to game 5 and watched my team play outta of their minds. It wasn't a question of IF there would be a game 7. It was a known. My vocal cords trembled at the notion, just now fully recovered from their Saturday abuse. Walking out with a sea of elated fans, you knew anything was possible.

But it was not to be.

I could spend time crying, whining, blaming, pointing fingers, trying desperately to explain the whys of the surprisingly early end to this post season, but I won't. What's done is done. No matter how well we dissect a season, it won't change how it ended.

The Sharks are NOT the first team to suffer multiple years of seeming inexplicable playoff disappointments. They aren't the first President's Trophy winners to be knocked out in round 1. Treating them like crap because of what happened isn't my style. I think that disgusting. No one feels this like the players do. They have fought and worked for this moment their entire lives. They're all dedicated to the game, and play it with a singular dream in mind. They WANT the Cup. They don't just roll over and die and then decide to go play golf. Anyone who thinks the team isn't broken up over this is full of it. Watch Nabby give his post game interview and tell me they didn't truly want this.

They DID NOT choke. They DID NOT lack heart. These were not and are not the same Sharks who've been forced to deal with those same reactionary calls season after season. Saying that also insults the Ducks, who played incredibly well in this series. Hiller was a beast. If he's less on his game, the Sharks take game 2 and suddenly we have a different ball game. They could take game 6 and we'd be in for a game 7 tonight. What would the line on the team then?

It was a great season, it just ended sooner than we all expected. The weight of that won't fully sink in until the next round starts and I realize I won't be using my Game F ticket. It won't hit me until I realize I won't be back at the Tank for a game until later September. No more Sharks vs drawings this year. No more frantic game days posts when I forget to do art for the Sharks opponent. No more wasting all day looking at blogs. All that's done for the summer.

Somewhat impatiently, I await the return of the hockey season in September, and the first game in October. Until then...

Go Sharks!

Playoffs, Round 1. Sharks V Ducks, Game 5

Tonight @ 7pm
CSN-HD, VERSUS-HD, KFOX with the great Jamie and Dan
Every TV in San Jose and more spread out over a teal web covering the entire Bay Area will be watching.
Don't miss this

We do get disappointed in the Sharks sometimes. Sometimes Mina and critique them, sometimes we slap our foreheads at games and wonder why they play like they've never seen a puck before. But what I won't do is throw these guys under the bus. Sure game 4 sucked, but this isn't game 4 anymore. It's game 5. That's a whole new ballgame. Whatever thoughts you had after that game, toss them out. Time to put that junk in the trash. Nothing's impossible. A win tonight would shock the world. Do it! Go Sharks!

Post Game Update:
Helluva game tonight. It's currently 2:30 am, I have no voice, and I just got back from an awesome night at TCY's. I have apparently been put in charge of chronicling it, which I must confess is quite the challenge. I will do my best, but nothing will capture the evening in a way that does it proper justice. Due to the lateness of the evening, the recap will come later today.

Go Sharks!

Playoffs Day 9, Round 1: Sharks v Ducks

Today @ 7:30pm

VERSUS, CBC, RDS, CSN-BA, all HD
Also catch Jamie and Dan on the radio
Duckies lead 2-1

In some ways it feels like the fate of the universe is being decided tonight. In some ways it's just another game. Unless you have something invested in one of these two teams, you don't understand this series. You don't feel it with intensity. You don't get it.

This isn't 1 v 8, this is Sharks v Ducks. That's a world of difference.

This could be a sad night, or it could be a great night. Either way, enjoy it. A ride like this doesn't come around too often.

No more words. Just do it.

Post Game Recap:

JR's face said it all. Bad game. No idea why. It just was. Passes weren't connecting, no speed, everything felt slower than it should. Disconnected. Not like a playoff game at all. Much more like game 1. Game one felt like a regular season game. So did this.

I can't tell you why the Sharks seemed to shut down tonight, and I'm not going to guess. I don't buy into all those old excuses. Sometimes teams just have a sucky game. This was one was a stinker. But we can't and won't ever know what the guys are thinking, so I'm not going to assume what they do or don't want, what drive they do or don't have, I'm not going to invoke the old argument so Ron Wilson style hockey, playoff choking or any other nonsense. A series is what it is. Sometimes it's great and sometimes it's not. A good regular season does not necessarily a good post season make. Suck it up and deal.

If I was JR, you're damn right I'd be upset. But I'm not. So I choose to be quietly disappointed. Tomorrow's another day though, and I'm not going to let tonight ruin tomorrow.

A friend said it best when he said the following, "This is disappointing, but come on people. We're not Habs fans." Truer words may never have been spoken.

Bobby Ryan is a beast. A beast who apparently has it written in his contract that every time you mention his name you have to mention that he was drafted right after Sidney Crosby. That's going to be all I remember about him 50 years from now. That fact has been bored in my mind.

Turnover are bad, mmkay?

The 15 minute interlude with the broken glass was weird. Randy and Drew ran out of material after about 7 minutes. They kept going like the troopers they are. Classic, classic stuff.

Out of sheer curiosity, how noticeable was the earthquake that hit during intermission? For you non CAers, and 4.0 is nothing to write home about. I just wonder if the fan noticed.

Mark Smith looks very different with a) long hair and b) one color hair. He joined the crew for the pre and post game coverage. Hai Smitty!

The three stars: (3)Wisniewski (2) Hiller, (1) Bobby, "drafted 2nd behind Sidney Crosby" Ryan

Well folks, it's do or die on Saturday. Be there or be by your TVs. It should be a doozy...or not. But either way, it will be a game, and it may be the last.

It's not over until Nabby tells you it's over. Go Sharks.

Do it!

Tonight @ 7:30pm
VERSUS, CBC, RDS, all HD
Duckies lead series 2-0

The season begins today. The second season. The season our men in teal fought through 82 games to get to. The season we fans spent 82 games watching, waiting, and hoping to get to.

Tonight will either see the Sharks sitting in a prettier position, down 2 games to 1, with the proven ability to steal a game on Anaheim's home ice. Or they'll be down 3 game to none, with only the potential for a game 5 as the last remaining gleam of hope in an otherwise darkening sky.

This could be the second to last game you watch the boys in teal play this year, so enjoy it. No whining, no crying, not pouting, just enjoy it for what it is. It will be a long summer drought when this is over.

Maybe today will be the beginning of the end to a brilliant season, or maybe it will be the first step on the road to 16 wins.

Go Sharks!

Reader Emily is back with another fantastic video. Watch this before game time. Watch it a lot.

Post Game Recap:

EPIC WIN!

Whoooooooo!

I'll provide a more in depth recap once I finish running around like a madwoman. Whoo! Or not, I don't know. Whoooooo!

Boyle is a beast!

3 Stars:(3) Blake (who made a butt save of sorts), (2) Alternate Captain Elbows, (1) Danny Boyle