Sharks to face Edmonton Oilers in first round
Bring on Connor McDavid
Update: We’ve got the schedule for the first three days.
The Sharks will face the Oilers in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Anaheim clinched the Pacific title by going to overtime against the Kings on Sunday night, putting Edmonton in second place. San Jose had already locked up third in the Pacific and will begin the playoffs on the road on either Wednesday or Thursday in Alberta.
A complete playoff schedule has not been released, though it sounds like the Sharks will play on Wednesday and Friday in Edmonton before playing a pair of games in San Jose. I’ll update this post with the full playoff schedule when it is released.
Game 1: Wednesday, 7 p.m. @ Edmonton, USA Network
Game 2: Friday, 7:30 p.m. @ Edmonton, NBC Sports
Game 3: Sunday, 7 p.m. vs. Edmonton, NBC Sports
Game 4: Tuesday, 7 p.m. vs. Edmonton, NBC Sports
Game 5: Thursday, @ Edmonton
Game 6: Saturday, vs. Edmonton
Game 7: Monday, @ Edmonton
The Sharks won the first two games of the season series against the Oilers before dropping the next three. Edmonton led in points seven to four. We’ll have more preview content in the coming days, but this should be an intriguing series for a whole bunch of reasons as an injury-plagued San Jose team battles an up-and-coming Edmonton squad.
Of course there’s a you-again factor to consider as former San Jose head coach Todd McLellan is at the helm of the Edmonton Oilers. That should make for some intrigue as the teams face off in the first round series.
This is the second time the Sharks and Oilers have met in the playoffs. Edmonton got the best of the previous matchup in 2006 as the Oilers went on to lose in the Stanley Cup Final. That was the last time the Oilers reached the playoffs.