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The San Jose Sharks have been a team defined by inconsistency during the first half of the NHL season, but one thing has been constant in their game. When the Sharks have been matched up against their California brethren, San Jose has played their best games of the season.
The trend continued Thursday night as the Sharks dominated their Southern California rivals in the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 at SAP Center. The win improved the Sharks to 6-1-1 against their rivals from down south thus far, including an impressive 4-0-1 record against the Pacific Division and NHL-leading Ducks. Those four losses are the only regulation losses Anaheim has suffered against the Pacific Division this season.
The Sharks began their strong play against their rivals on opening night against the Los Angeles Kings. After the Kings won four straight to close out the Sharks in the opening round of last season’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, San Jose had something to prove. The Sharks took it to the Kings on that night, winning comfortably by a 4-0 score.
As he’s done all season, Joe Pavelski has been the catalyst for the Sharks against the Kings and Ducks. In the eight games so far, Pavelski leads the Sharks with eight goals, including his league-tying 13th power play goal against Anaheim Thursday. In fact, seven of Pavelski’s eight goals have come on the power play against San Jose’s rivals.
While the wins have been nice for the fans who always enjoy heckling the Southern California teams, the most important aspect has been that the Sharks have been able to accumulate points against their divisional foes. San Jose is currently second in the Pacific Division with 58 points, due in large part to their performances against their rivals. While the Sharks won’t be able to catch the Ducks atop the standings in all likelihood, their play during the regular season sends a strong message to Anaheim that the Sharks are still a factor.
San Jose wrapped up their series against Anaheim on Thursday, but still has two games left with Los Angeles that will both be huge games. The Sharks and Kings will meet at Levi’s Stadium on Feb. 21 in the Stadium Series, and will meet on the final day of the regular season at Staples Center, which could determine playoff seeding.
The Sharks will hope to build off their impressive opening performance of the second half and try to distance themselves in their playoff chase. If San Jose can find the form that they’ve displayed all season long against their rivals on a regular basis, watch out for the Sharks during the stretch run.
Patrick Leiva is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @pleiva4 and add him to your network on Google.
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