Sharks vs. Kings Preview: Chasing mythical fifth-straight win

The Sharks won their fourth game in a row last night by beating the Philadelphia Flyers 2-0 behind a strong team performance and a great night in net from Aaron Dell. That’s just the second time this season San Jose has bagged four wins in a row which means for the second time the Sharks can go for the mythical five game winning streak.

There’s nothing particularly special about winning five games in a row, other than it’s strange a team as good as San Jose hasn’t done it yet. The Sharks have finagled their way to 10 games over .500 and a three-point lead in the Pacific without one of their most important players in Tomas Hertl. A win against the Kings combined with an Oilers loss gets them a five-point lead.

San Jose played well against L.A. when last these teams met on Nov. 30. That also came on a home and road back to back and ended with a 4-1 win for the Sharks. Martin Jones will get back in net against his old team after Dell gave him the night off on Friday.

The Kings continue to struggle to score and find themselves in fifth in the Pacific after losing to the Oilers on Thursday. They might be better than fifth, but the Kings aren’t as dangerous a team as they once were and represent the slide the division has taken this season. Here’s a look at both team’s leading scorers this season (while noting yes, the Sharks’ list isn’t sexy either):

The Kings have more depth scoring but they don’t have the same punch at the top of the list that the Sharks do. San Jose is getting great scoring from Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Logan Couture while only Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli have reached the 20 point park this season (Alec Martinez is just a point away, mind you).

L.A. is a dangerous team and being scheduled to play them on the second of multiple back to backs this season is rough, but I like the Sharks chances tonight. Having Jones in goal gives me confidence, if nothing else.