Things going for the Sharks tonight:

1) Gray will not be at the game. The 2 playoff games we went to together, the Sharks lost.  The one game I went to with someone else (Thanks for Game 7 Mom!), the Sharks won. Coincidence? I hope not.
2) I am going with my Canucks friend Rob. Every Sharks v. Canucks game I have gone to with Rob, the Sharks have won. Coincidence? I hope not.
3) 3 is my lucky number. Game 3 in Round 3.
4) Orange is my favorite color. The Sharks won Game 7 when there were orange rally towels. I am bringing my orange rally towel tonight. (I know it's not game 7 but does it really matter?)
5) Breaking out the Flying Hockey Hippo. (I found this magnificent picture here: http://mosshippohaven.info/)

All of this should create a recipe for a sure win. Either that or the fact that the Sharks don't want the possibility of being swept from the 3rd round of the playoffs for the second year in a row and finally put together their best 60 minute effort of the whole playoffs and make my friend cry.  One of those 2 things.

Shortly after securing victory last Thursday night over the Red Wings in what was one of the most nerve wrecking, stomach clenching, flip flop, shark hopping game 7s I have ever seen, the NHL's talking heads were already billing the series with the Canucks as a Tale of Two Failures. No heart, no grit, no success. Ignoring, of course, the Sharks amazing comeback in the second half of this season, the Canucks ability to overcome the Blackhawks in 7 games and best a playoff foe, the Sharks amazing game 3 comeback against LA, or how the Sharks had just bounced the team to beat in the West for the second year straight. Clearly, hope only springs eternal in historically lauded markets.

Had either team lost it's respective game 7s, both would have been labeled "chokers", a label not applied to those who faced them and lost. It's a narrative written by trite denunciation of both team's accomplishments, following outdated story lines and ancient criticisms. It's so much easier to stick to the lines of old that to realize that both teams have grown and the old story lines don't work anymore. Yes, someone will leave disappointed at the end of this series, but that's how the playoffs go. For so many teams, that doesn't equate to a lack of success, so much as it does a simple, but disappointing, defeat.

The playoffs aren't easy; they're not supposed to be. This isn't a tale of two failures, it's a tale of two teams who haven't met pundit set expectations. Two teams that have made those who make a living making predictions look bad. Hockey isn't played on paper, it's played on the ice. In the end, the only words that matter are those said as the teams leave the ice after 60 minutes of play. With any luck those words will be "Sharks win."

Go Sharks!

Hope springs eternal, in the form of pooped out rainbows

Tonight at 5pm Pacific, amidst a sea of red and failing eight limbed beasts, the Sharks will take the ice to do the deed. Tonight, they will slay the big red wheeled monster. They will play a full 60 minutes of strong, opponent crushing hockey, and at the end, they will stand on Detroit's ice and shake the hands of their rivals in front of the Wings faithful.

Clowe is out. We don't know why yet, but that is motivation to win it for the one they had to leave behind. Marleau was thrown under the bus, backed over, and then run over three times by JR after Sunday's third period let down loss. Will he rise to the occasion? Hell yes he will.

At the end of the night, one team will stand victorious. One team will be ready to enter the semi promised land, one team, and that team will be the Sharks.

Stick that in your doubters pipe and smoke it.

Go Sharks!

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Tonight @ 5pm

 The Eastern Time Zone, making it hard for West Coasters to watch games since 1879

 

That's right everybody, game 3 is here, and with it, a chance to take a crushing lead on this series. The Wings and some of their fans are complaining, the Sharks are getting away with too much, snow is cold, stop covering Jimmy Howard with it, this game is unfair; welcome to how the rest of the league feels when playing the Wings. Yes, the snow showers are likely being done to get into Howard's head, but it's working. The Wings wouldn't hesitate to do the same, and their fans would likely support it if they did. That's justhow it is. What's great for your team is horrible to the opposing side.

The playoffs are both mental and physical. If you can't take the heat, you will be booted out of the kitchen.

For years now, we Sharks fans have wanted a bigger, meaner, tougher, grittier team. Well, now we have them and the rest of the league is starting to take notice. The Wings were a long time foe, a marker of where the Sharks need to be in order to have any hopes of getting to the promised land, a dream of what a this team could be. Now, they are a foe we can beat, one we have beaten, and one we can out play. Maybe it's not a new world order yet, but get ready Detroit, because the Sharks are coming, and they're coming for you.

Go Sharks!

-Yours,

The Couch Tarts

Round 2 is set! The schedule is here. After a full week plus of first round, overtime, game 7, hockey crazy madness action on the ice, round 2 kicks off Friday. Just our luck, the Sharks start back up then too! So what are the Sharks chance v the Wings this time around? Other blogs will give you numbers and facts on which to draw conclusions. We hear at CouchTarts will give you GUTS, and an Aggrocrag if you're lucky. (please don't sue us Nick or Mr. Colbert. We don't make enough anyway.)

Sharks Chances v Detroit:

San Jose didn't fair too badly against the arch western conference rivals this year, taking 3 of the four games they played. Last playoff season they took the Wings in 5. There's a big chance for history to repeat itself, but it will require a few things. 1) it was said on Twitter last night by Ivano or Puckguy, or Donholio; if any team can take advantage of the Sharks playing poorly, it's the Wings. Miscues are deadly against a team this skilled. The Sharks will have to play hard, play smart and play consistently throughout the series. Game 3 against LA might not happen here. Sure, it did last year, but Detroit will pounce if given an inch. It's best if the Sharks shut them down, and shut them down early. If the Sharks want to win this, they'll have to do it in less than 7 games. Sure, game 7 would be at the Tank, but a game 7 vs Detroit is not a nightmare I wish to have on anyone's ice.

My fan bias says that the Sharks can do this. It won't be easy, but it can be done. I'm sticking with that.

Predictions: Hockey will be played. At least 4 games of it. Mark that down and call your bookies. That's a sure bet.

Could Sharkie Beat Up a Red Wing?

What the hell is a Red Wing anyway? A bird? A brand of shoe? A tire? Hot wings? We're not really sure, but whatever it is, by the simple fact that he has a corporeal form, Sharkie could totally take a Red Wing. When he was done, he'd sit on its lap and toss popcorn in its face.

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