Sharks vs. Canucks preview: Tierney sent down, Kennedy to make season debut
After a four-day break, the Sharks return to the ice to take on Vancouver.
Following a peripatetic early schedule, the Sharks have finally had the chance to rest at home over the past week and get a few practices in. They'll host the Canucks this evening for their first game in five nights and only their third meeting of the season with a Pacific Division opponent. After a successful conditioning stint in Worcester, Tyler Kennedy will make his 2014-15 debut for the Sharks while rookie Chris Tierney was sent down to the AHL to create the requisite roster spot.
Tale Of The Tape
 | @ |  |
| 9-4-0, 18 points | Record | 7-4-2, 16 points |
| 2nd in Pacific | Rank | 5th in Pacific |
| 52.8% | Score-Adj. Fenwick | 50.0% |
| 98.8 | PDO | 101.5 |
| 20.8 | PP% | 25.0 |
| 88.2 | PK% | 82.5 |
7:30PM PST | SAP Center | San Jose, California
TV: CSNCA-HD, NBCSN | Radio: SJSharks.com, 98.5 KFOX
Know Your Enemy: Canucks Army, Nucks Misconduct, Pass It To Bulis
Projected Sharks Lineup
Matt Nieto - Joe Thornton - Joe Pavelski
Patrick Marleau - Logan Couture - Tommy Wingels
Tomas Hertl - James Sheppard - Tyler Kennedy
Barclay Goodrow - Andrew Desjardins - Adam Burish
Marc-Edouard Vlasic - Justin Braun
Mirco Mueller - Brent Burns
Scott Hannan - Jason Demers
Antti Niemi
Alex Stalock
Projected Canucks Lineup
Daniel Sedin - Henrik Sedin - Radim Vrbata
Chris Higgins - Bo Horvat - Alexandre Burrows
Shawn Matthias - Brad Richardson - Zack Kassian
Derek Dorsett - Linden Vey - Jannik Hansen
Alex Edler - Chris Tanev
Dan Hamhuis - Yannick Weber
Ryan Stanton - Kevin Bieksa
Ryan Miller
Eddie Lack
Last Meeting
Tomas Hertl scored to tie the game in the final minute of regulation before Dan Boyle won it in overtime following a video review. Inexplicably, this game was the Sharks and Canucks' final meeting of the 2013-14 regular season all the way back on November 14th, 2013 so it's been nearly a full calendar year since these division rivals have faced each other.
Storylines
- With Tierney demoted, James Sheppard will move over to the third-line center spot between Hertl and Kennedy.
- Tierney getting sent down comes as a surprise but given that Tye McGinn would need to be clear waivers in order to be assigned to Worcester, the organization's thought process here is understandable.
- Everyone's favorite Canuck Alex Burrows will return to the lineup tonight after serving a three-game suspension for his hit on Montreal defenseman Alexei Emelin.
- It's Miller vs. Niemi in net as Antti Niemi makes his fifth consecutive start of the season for the Sharks. Expect to see Alex Stalock either in Dallas on Saturday or Chicago on Sunday.