Sharks vs. Ducks Preview: A quick road trip in Orange County

The Sharks head to Anaheim for a one-game roadie to take on the Ducks at Honda Center. San Jose lost the last meeting between the two sides and makes its first appearance in Anaheim of the season with a series record of 1-1 against the Ducks. The Sharks will return to San Jose following the game for a contest against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday.

San Jose enters the game after losing a fluky contest to the Ottawa Senators after a couple bad bounces beat Justin Braun, and eventually Martin Jones, as the Sharks lost 4-2. That puts the Sharks in second place in the Pacific Division behind the Edmonton Oilers.

Timo Meier remains on the precipice of a callup. A recent bout with the flu kept him from the NHL just a bit longer, but he played with the Barracuda on Thursday night, perhaps signaling his NHL debut will be here before we know it. Neither Tommy Wingels nor Micheal Haley particularly impressed (nor got a lot of minutes) in the loss against Ottawa, and both could be on the chopping block if Meier is recalled.

The Ducks came from behind to beat the Carolina Hurricanes in overtime on Wednesday and are now tied with the Sharks for second place at 31 points. San Jose has a game in hand on Anaheim (26 to Anaheim’s 27).

Expect Martin Jones to get the start tonight against the Ducks with Aaron Dell filling in against the Hurricanes on Saturday night. After that, the Sharks head on an Eastern Canada road trip. This game is always fun, if for no other reason than Corey Perry throwing a temper tantrum brings me great joy.