@ 7:30 PST
1-2-0, 2 points		2-2-0, 4 points
14th in Western Conference		8th in Western Conference

Four games in and I have no idea what Sharks team will hit the ice tonight.

The first period and beginning of the second against Columbus was an example of how a hard forechecking team can expose the blueline of San Jose- the Sharks had a lot of trouble moving the puck up the ice on the breakout, and once they hit the neutral zone, didn’t move their feet as well as I would have liked. It should be interesting to see if they can get things going for the full sixty minutes tonight against a Minnesota Wild team that will come in with the same gameplan as the Jackets. Forecheck hard, clog up the neutral zone, sit back and wait for mistakes….

Wait, what’s that you say? Todd Richards is at the helm now and Admiral Ackbar is coaching in a state that prides itself on political corruption? Never thought I’d see the sequel to that movie.

The Wild have emulated the pre-season opener San Jose Sharks thus far this year, posting a paltry two goals at even strength while getting scored on eight times. As was the key to the game on Thursday, punishing Minnesota five on five will go a long ways towards getting two points in the standings column and help alleviate some concerns about San Jose’s ability to beat teams without the powerplay. Something tells me Nabokov is going to have a good night as well- the Wild are going to be putting a lot of shots on net off the rush because that’s what their system wants them to do, and Nabokov does a good job of redirecting rebounds into the corners when he can see them from the point. With the Wild new to this whole “offensive zone” thing, he should see a lot of easy saves and hopefully not have to resort to cross-checking rookie defenseman when he’s mad about blown coverages.

In other news, Joe Ike has been let go from the San Jose Sharks organization. If you are dissatisfied with this decision, feel free to contact the San Jose Sharks via this contact page. In early September, his “Sharks on the power play” call was ranked in the top ten of things to look forward to this season by yours truly- it’s a damn shame to see him go, and hopefully the situation can be rectified with some amicable complaints. Don’t go in there spouting your head off and expect to get things done. You won’t win any Nobel Peace Prizes like that.

Prediction: Sharks win 4-2. Goals by Marleau, Clowe, McGinn, and Blake. Blah blah blah, insert forced joke here- weekend gamedays are a bear to write.

Go Sharks.