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San Jose Sharks

February 5, 2012 by · Comments Off on San Jose Sharks 

San Jose Sharks, Since the All-Star break, the San Jose Sharks have found something they’ve been missing all season; their ability to score in bunches. In their two games since the All-Star break, the Sharks have put away 11 goals and given up just two. The Sharks were playing tough defense before the break and have continued that trend while the vamp up their offense.

It really seems as if the Sharks had utilized the time off wisely and come out playing like the hockey team they know they are. I feel like the Sharks are a really dangerous hockey team right now and doing everything better than before.

That’s probably the last thing that the Phoenix Coyotes wanted to hear with the Sharks coming into town on February 4. The Sharks are looking stronger on the power-play, better on the penalty kill, and have been able to control the tempo of the game very well. The Coyotes are playing their first game in February against a hot team and haven’t been so hot themselves – at least not in the month of January.

Out of the 12 games played in the month of January, the Coyotes won just three of them; despite picking up a point in four other games. Not to mention that the Coyotes’ power-play is second-to-last in the league at 12.50 percent—with only the Montreal Canadiens having a worse percentage at 12.31 percent. However, the Coyote’s penalty kill is among the top ten in the league at 83.89 percent and with some improvement lately by the Sharks, their power-play is towards the top of the league at 18.6 percent. So I would have to suspect that special teams are going to be a factor in this hockey game.

If the Sharks can keep up their torrid scoring pace, however, I’m not sure the Coyotes are going to be able to keep up. Also with the return of Ryane Clowe to the Sharks’ second line, I know that line got instantly stronger and it will only help the Sharks continue their winning ways.

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