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The San Jose Sharks have a lot of games in a short amount of time in the second half of the season, but they got things started off right with a dominating 6-0 shutout over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday. They'll wrap up the week with games against the Dallas Stars and Phoenix Coyotes, on Thursday and Saturday, respectively. For more on the schedule and the team in general, go to Fear The Fin.
For the San Jose Sharks, it's time to really get serious. Perhaps that's the wrong way to put it, but they've got a very hectic schedule coming up and they need to be on-point on a daily basis to remain atop the Pacific Division. While they're sitting at third in the Western Conference, they're only two points above the seventh-place Los Angeles Kings for the division lead. After a five-day rest for the All-Star Break, the Sharks will play 35 games over the next 68 days.
Their first 47 games took a whopping 115 days. They've been trailing the rest of the division in games played all season, so now it's time to see if they can set a new pace and march into the playoffs stronger than last season. On Tuesday, they'll wrap up the month of January and set out on a tough February that includes a nine-game road trip over the course of 15 days, with three back-to-backs.
Before that, they've got their first game back following the All-Star Game break, as they play host to the Columbus Blue Jackets, losers in their last four outings. They're in a rough way, with all the other teams in their division qualifying for the postseason if it were to start on Tuesday. They're on a six-game road trip and have lost the first three games of it, and are a woeful 5-17-3 away from Nationwide Arena. Injuries have not helped their season, either, with injuries to guys like Nikita Nikitin, Jeff Carter, James Wisniewski and Mark Letestu all out for extended periods of time.
Following that game, the Sharks will have games on Thursday and Saturday to close out their week, against the Dallas Stars and Phoenix Coyotes, respectively. San Jose doesn't have a ton of momentum, but still hold the lead in their division, even if they've only took home two wins in their last six. All-Star Logan Couture has played well, with three goals and an assist in his last three games, and should be full of his own confidence heading into a tough second half of the season.
Sharks Vs. Blue Jackets Final Score: Antti Niemi Records Second-Straight Shutout In 6-0 San Jose Victory
The San Jose Sharks went into the All-Star break winners in just three of their previous 10, but two of those wins were in their last two outings. Now, as the team with the least amount of games played in the NHL, they've got to hustle during the second half of the season, with a lot of games to play in a short amount of time. They wrapped up January in a big way though, as they played host to the Columbus Blue Jackets, and dominated from start to finish to win 6-0.
It was Antti Niemi's second-straight shutout, and five different Sharks players scored in the game. Joe Thornton was the Shark to score twice, notching a goal unassisted in the first period, and adding the hardly-necessary insurance goal halfway through the final frame. On top of that, Jamie McGinn, Michal Handzuz, Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski lit the lamp. Marleau put the first goal on the board eight minutes into the game, while Pavelski scored on a power play to start the second.
Steve Mason didn't actually play all-that bad for the Blue Jackets, but the Sharks were swarming, out-shooting Columbus 43-30. Antti Niemi stopped all 30 shots that came his way. San Jose was out-hit while Columbus also won more faceoffs, but it didn't matter in the end. There weren't more than a couple power players, but there was plenty of fighting and misconduct going on, with seven instances of that happening - six of which occurred in the third period.
Next, San Jose will take on the Dallas Stars on Feb. 2 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose.
Jan 31 10:32p by James Brady