12/8/07 buffalo 600, SHARKS ??

Ok, so maybe it wasn't that bad, but it was pretty bad. In a reversal from the last time the Sharks and Sabres met, this time it was Buffalo who came onto San Jose ice and made a mockery of the home team.

After a hard fought battle in Phoenix a night earlier, the Sharks just looked plumb tired Saturday against the Sabres. Buffalo, coming off a 8-2 shellacking in LA a couple nights earlier, was just much hungrier for this game. Sandis Ozolinsh had the lone goal for the Teal, a point shot that bounced off several legs and found it's way past a prone Ryan Miller. Evgeni Nabokov started his 28th game in 28th games this year, but the much vaunted Dmitri Patzold got a chance to finish it. Nabby will be saddled with the loss, giving up 4 goals on 25 shots, Patzy just gets some practice, allowing 3 goals on 9 shots. Guess we now know why Nabokov has started all 28 thusfar.

It's real simple to get terribly upset about this game, hell, I was/am pretty unhappy about it. But at this point, I'm not sure that it means a whole lot, as the team has been poor at home, and been poor when returning from a roadtrip, this was just a continuation of the trend. From having played a grind it out contest in Phoenix the night before, the Sharks, hopefully, were just really really tired. Regardless, the big picture really hasn't shifted at all from this game, despite how ugly and horrible it was. The Sharks still sit atop the Pacific Division, tied in points and wins with the Dallas Stars, but with 2 games in hand. The Ducks are looming just 2 points back, but have played 3 more contests than the Teal.

December sees 11 more contests, 6 at home, and 5 on the road. The Sharks 4 game homestand continues with game #2 Tuesday night against the Minnesota Wild (7:30). The Wild share the same point total as the Sharks (34 points), while having played one more game, and are in 2nd place in the Northwest Division. Last year the Sharks won 3 of 4 from Minnesota, splitting games at the Tank, while taking both games at Xcel in St. Paul. Let's hope the Sharks success runs wild on the Wild tomorrow.

GO SHARKS (Must...Forget...Drubbing)
-Jess