Sharks vs. Blues Preview: Looking to clinch a winning road trip

A win would guarantee the Sharks six out of 10 possible points on the trip.

After a not-so-pretty loss against Carolina on Friday, San Jose plays its fourth game of a five-game road trip in St. Louis. The Sharks will play the Blues one more time after tonight's contest, and there's always a (slim) chance the teams meet up again in the playoffs.

Possession-wise the teams are relatively even, with the Sharks holding a slight edge in Fenwick. The Blues have the best penalty kill percentage in the NHL and are fifth in the league in even strength save percentage. I think we're all painfully aware of where San Jose sits on that list. So the Blues are a tough team to score against, a category the Sharks have been pretty good in this season.

While first place is still very much a possibility for the Sharks, the team only needs one point over the next two games to guarantee a .500 points percentage on the road swing. Not bad.

Tale Of The Tape
San Jose Sharks

@

St. Louis Blues Logo
31-21-5 Record 35-17-9
3rd in Pacific Rank 3rd in Central
52.8%
Score-Adj. Fenwick 51.7%
100
PDO 100.7
22.2
PP% 20.6
80.5
PK% 87.1

5PM PDT | Scottrade Center | St. Louis, MO.
TV: NBCSN, SNO, SNW, SNP | Radio: SJSharks.com, 98.5 KFOX
Know Your Enemy: St. Louis Game Time

Last Meeting

A pair of second-period goals paced the Sharks over the Blues in their first meeting of the season.

Storylines
  • San Jose got a couple days off after playing three games in four days. We'll see how fresh the team looks in St. Louis.
  • St. Louis has the best penalty kill percentage in the NHL, which should make this a good strength-vs-strength matchup.
  • The Blues have won five in a row and seven of their last nine./