Oh, a Mr. Kennedy reference?

Recommended.

This is the best thing I’ve read all year. Definitely a +1 to you, Jason – and that’s not ass-kissing.

LOVE the Photoshops – Boucher O.J. and Rambo Joe Pa are pure win.

Astute analysis – funny but to the point. You’re ahead of the curve on Rob Blake – could he be pulling a Mats Sundin (who was in the box for many a game-winning power play goal)?

Overall, I’m not too concerned about this game – but like you said (and as AP has pointed out), the Sharks are 1-2-2 in their last 5. But hey – getting 3 out of 4 points in 24 hours ain’t too shabby, Nabby.

GO PLANK… I mean, GO SHARKS.

At least somebody not named Boucher brought their A game tonight. All in all, I’m not sorry I missed most of this one. Even if it meant I was stuck in my cube.

The last 3 meetings between the Sharks and Penguins have all been 2-1, with two going to the shootout.

Also = Sidney Crosby still doesn’t have a legitimate goal against us, so tonight’s shootout winner will have to suffice for his ego.

I only watched the third period because there was this “World Cup qualifying soccer match” thing going on, but….

Boucher was solid.
PK was solid.
Fleury was solid (unfortunately).

And that’s as far as my analytical skills go with a pitcher of Sierra Nevada in me.

I’ll be on the My Sharks History stuff the next few days, btw Plank.

Very Pensblog-esque, although as a reminder that the Sharks lost it slightly hurts.

And now for some analysis (because it really wouldn’t be me if I didn’t post analysis at least twice per game):

I overlooked this at first, but our entire fourth line consists of WorSharks. You could debate as to whether or not Lemieux is considered a call-up, but the fact is all those guys have had little NHL experience for the past five years.* That line created a bunch of scoring chances, but just wasn’t able to connect while playing against high-level players.

*Ahh, Lemieux, always making me have to have a caveat.

As for the penalty discrepancy, I have finally discovered the answer: East Coast Bias. And yes, I am being completely serious.

Generally, the East builds their teams around skilled forwards and defensive defensemen. Very few offensive-minded defensemen in the East, which makes the D stay on the blue line during plays. You switch over to the West, and a lot of the teams are built with power forwards and strong D. Teams are very physical, with the first line forwards generally being big and strong, with less pure skill than the typical first line in the east (there are always exceptions). The D is much more active in the play; Detroit, San Jose, and even Captain Elbows to an extent all have their defensemen create offense every game. There may have only been one or two games this entire season where a Sharks defenseman did not get a point.

So while in the West, its no surprise to see some defenseman pinching or going to the net, in the East teams don’t really see that often (see the Boston game blog by the NHL.com guy – he was completely amazed by Boyle carrying the puck over the blue line, a rather ordinary occurrence for us Sharks fans).

Anyways, my point is that the refs in the East, because they tend to stay in that conference, don’t normally officiate games with the hard-hitting, active D style of play that the West favors. It probably threw them off that Blake was so near Fleury, or that Boyle had the puck for extended periods of time. And since they haven’t seen that often, they pay more attention and therefore will call tighter on those guys than during the rest of the game.

Or I could just be pulling this out of my ass and Blake and Boyle are getting sloppy, I don’t know.

of a loss no less :\

Sextuple rec’ed for sexiness.

my comment during the game thread went as follows:

Memo to Jason Plank:
you are officially a celebrity, Drew just referenced your drinking game during the broadcast.

Okay so maybe not, but that does mean that he has ventured onto the good old ftf who knows maybe he uses an alias around here

I feel like I’ve been in a funk too, as I’ve missed two games in a row after watching every one all season (with the exception of the Chicago loss). This road trip can’t end soon enough.

I think the biggest problem with the Sharks has been their transition play. They’ve been ok in their own end, they’ve been good in the offensive end, but they cant manage to get from one end to the other effectively. They’ve been making some pretty bonehead plays in transition (i.e. v. Columbus), and our zone entry has been pitiful. The Sharks can out skill teams, but why do they try to do that against undermanned, smaller squads? Get the puck down low and use the body. We saw what this kind of play could do against even the best teams (Boston). The Sharks forwards need to be more physical on the forecheck, too.

I’m ranting, but I’m not happy right now.

I’ve read a lot of places that people arent excited to get Torrey Mitchell back. We are already deep and why would we need him back.

I am excited to get Mitchell back. Why? Because Mike Grier misses golden opportunities that I dont think Mitchell would.

I think Mitchell would have buried at least one of those 3rd period chances that Grier had.

Now there’s one solid recap. Mr. Plank, love what you do here. Even though being a jobber from Pittsburgh, I still have absolute respect for the Sharks. Have always been my favorite team from the wild wild west. I was expecting yinz guys ’n at to give us Pens fans a slaughterfest. Glad we waddled out with some points. Best of luck to ya the rest of the season. Please destroy some Red Wings for us.

do that more often. faster than your first time with a woman. haha

did the bells win? we beat si 54-43. si never had the lead. that makes 8 jungle game wins in a row.

Me laughed at the Pavs one

missed the 3rd, would have punched the tv if i saw No Goal Grier miss another cherry chance. poor guy has a brilliant hockey mind and in m opinion will one day be an incredible coach- he finds himself in the right place every time his skates hit the ice. he just cant finish for beans. no handles, and his skating frame is sloppy.

was it me or is semenov outplaying Rob freaking Blake right now? i mean, i am nervous seeing number 4 out there, but feel alright when 21 is on d. weird.

speaking of D, IMO Crankshaft has been the most consistent Dman for the fins that past few weeks hands down. great body position (demolishing forwards or not) good stick work, and delivering shots to the net consistently. playing alongside Vlasic has really brought out the best in Murray, great to see the big swede playing well.