Tim Chiasson

Halifax • Canada • 33 Years Old • Male

Back In The Win Column: Sharks Edge Flames In OT

Let the air out of your lungs Sharks fans.

With an unusually eerie feeling heading into overtime against the Calgary Flames, the first thought that came to mind was 'Uh-oh'. As much as I believe in patience it's hard to avoid the thoughts of the last five games and how four of them were lost in the time exceeding regulation.

Recent history wouldn't repeat itself, though, and the Sharks are back in the win column with a solid Shark-like performance. Was it pretty? Not really. Was it a good defensive performance? Sure was. The Sharks held Calgary to only 13 shots on goal for the entire game, seemingly executing a Todd McLellan game plan.

The leaders led. Thornton chipped in a pair of helpers and Marleau added a goal and an assist while the young leader, Logan Couture, got the other goal in regulation. It was just the type of game that San Jose needed to get back on track and put the recent skid to rest.

You could be critical of Alex Stalock's performance but, given the amount of shots he faced, I think he deserves a pass on sub-par statistics. These are Shark wins, 3-2, 2-1, it's their bread and butter. Good teams find ways to win these games and it's been a missing link for San Jose over the last several contests.

The Sharks also got their powerplay going 1/2 as both teams saw only two penalties called against them in a well played, well disciplined, match.

Head coach Todd McLellan chose to go with a very balanced attack that featured only one player, James Sheppard, skate for less than 10:08 TOI. You could call this one a win by committee, but spin it however you want it was a must win for a Shark team that continues its road swing against Vancouver, Edmonton and Chicago over the next 5 days. The spread of ice time should keep the Sharks fresh for their rematch with the Canucks on Thursday.

I posted this in my previous blog, and I think they got right down to the point tonight.

San Jose needs to get back to simple Shark hockey tonight, capitalizing on man advantages and playing sound defensive hockey.

With the taste of winning back in their system I doubt we will see the slide continue. Here's a fantastic tweet from the drunk social networking rep for the Sharks, or at least I assume he/she was drunk when they tweeted this because otherwise it would make no sense.



I know if I was only 1-2 in games I scored in OT I would be making one very obscene call to Gary Bettman.

Thanks for reading. Stay icy, Sharks fans.

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