Sharks facing must-win Game 3
The San Jose Sharks are trying to win their first Stanley Cup in the 25-year history of the franchise. If they don’t win Game 3 on Saturday night at the SAP Center, that dream is all but officially over.
San Jose has been outplayed significantly in the first two games by the Pittsburgh Penguins, and yet both games have been very close on the scoreboard. In Game 1, it took a goal in the final three minutes to break a 2-2 tie. In Game 2, the Sharks somehow forced overtime behind the brilliant play of goaltender Martin Jones, only to lose once more on a goal by Conor Sheary.
Now, the series shifts from Pittsburgh to San Jose, where the Sharks have been exceptional. Through the Western Conference playoffs, they have only lost once at the so-called Shark Tank, with the support of an underrated, rabid fan base. If there is to be a celebration with Lord Stanley in California for the third time since 2012, San Jose has to start playing better across all spectrums, save the goaltending.
Over the first two games, the Sharks have scored only three goals after being the fourth-ranked offense in the National Hockey League during the regular season. The trio of Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau simply has to be more active to beat Pittsburgh. The aforementioned three each had one shot on goal in Game 2, while San Jose was led in that category by defenseman Brent Burns with four.
While the Penguins are a good team, the defense is far from impenetrable. Pittsburgh has a stud in Kris Letang on the blueline, but nobody else should be able to shut down such a prolific offense. Head coach Peter DeBoer might consider switching up the line combinations to get some more juice out of his stars before it is too late.
San Jose has been playing solid defense, holding Sidney Crosby, Phil Keseel, Evgeni Malkin and the rest of Pittsburgh to only five goals. If the Sharks can start generating some offense and beat goaltender Mat Muray a few times, the feel and momentum of the series could shift drastically. The keys for San Jose will be getting to the net and breaking out of its defensive zone with crisp outlet passes, something we haven’t seen much of to this point.
To this point, the playoffs have been a dream for the Sharks. After years of choking repeatedly, they are finally at the brink of realizing a goal 25 years in the making. However, a loss over the next two games likely spells doom for a club that is veteran-laden and perhaps in its last chance to get this far.
The time is now for the Sharks.
