The San Jose Sharks will play against the Calgary Flames today for the second time in just over a week, with the good guys taking home a huge 7-4 win in a crazy offensive game during their last meeting. Evander Kane recorded his first ever hat-trick in the win and finished the game with four goals, while 11 other Sharks players chipped in with a point.
The Sharks enter tonight sitting second place in the Pacific Division with a record of 42-23-9 whereas the Flames are currently sitting fifth place in the Pacific Division with a record of 35-30-10.
San Jose is coming off a huge 2-1 overtime win against one of the best teams in the league in the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night, where Logan Couture scored the winner just 39 seconds into overtime. That win extended their winning streak to six games, lead by a super-charged offense that has scored 29 goals within that time while only allowing 16 goals.
Calgary, on the other hand, is currently coming off a brutal 4-0 loss against the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday night. The Flames have now fallen out of a playoff spot and have been playing some of their worst hockey of the year, only winning one out of their last five games and riding a four-game losing streak.
Can the Sharks keep up the hot pace and extend the winning streak to seven games?
San Jose is playing some of their best hockey of the year right now, outscoring opponents by 13 goals over the last six games. The Sharks will look to win their seventh game in a row today and will need this win to keep the gap between themselves and the Los Angeles Kings. The win should come easy: they are facing a struggling team in the Calgary Flames with a slacking goaltender in Mike Smith. San Jose will hope Evander Kane can have another “once-in-a-lifetime games” and lead this team to victory.
Will the Sharks take advantage of the struggling Flames team?
As previously mentioned, Calgary is currently riding a three-game losing streak and is falling off when it counts the most, which is good news for Sharks fans. Calgary has only scored two goals in the three games since they last saw San Jose, both coming in a 5-2 loss to Arizona, get shut out in two of those three games. Johnny Gaudreau has been the only bright spot for the team as of late, recording three points in his last five games.
Will the Sharks keep their red-hot offense alive against a struggling defensive team?
The Sharks are a team who has been absolutely offensively on fire as of late. While the Flames can’t seem to buy a goal, they’re also struggling to keep pucks out of their own net. Today is a perfect game for the Sharks to not only extend their winning streak, but also keep their red-hot offense alive. Joe Pavelski (four points in five games), Logan Couture (seven points in five games), and Kevin Labanc (four points in five games) have been major offensive contributors for the Sharks, but contributions have come from throughout the line up. All four lines are picking up the pace at the best time for this Sharks squad.
Bold Predication: San Jose will extend their winning streak to seven games today and will defeat Calgary 5-2. Evander Kane will record three points in the game and Couture will add two goals.
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