A San Jose Sharks Blog

Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to kick a team while they're down. Over the past two weeks, I have gained a lot of respect for the Predators. Who knows what may have happened if they had a healthy squad throughout the series. I think Team Teal was very fortunate that they did not have to face Steve Sullivan, Martin Erat, Jordin Tootoo, and Vitaly Vishnevski over all five games. Sullivan had 22 goals and 60 total points in only 57 games played during the regular season; whereas Vishnevski would have added a lot of size to their blue line at 6'2" / 215 pounds. These two are very good players who could have potentially changed the result of this series given that all the games were relatively tight (except for Game Two).

With that said, the actions of Scott Hartnell, Alexander Radulov, and Scott Nichol still would have impacted the series as they did. These three players tried to get physical, but only made bad decisions that eventually hurt Nashville's chances of winning the series. Let's take a look at how each of these players' game misconducts/five minute majors help put San Jose into the second round of the playoffs.

Hartnell Knees Cheechoo
This five minute major in Game One really helped the Sharks turn the tide while on the road. At 9:00 of the second period, Hartnell put his team down a man with the score tied at two goals apiece; a very inopportune time. This penalty resulted in a power play goal that put the Sharks up by one. In addition, San Jose gained the momentum and was able to score again in the period to extend the lead to two goals. Granted, this lead eventually vanished in the third period, but Nashville could have possibly won the game in regulation if San Jose had not first grabbed that two goal cushion.

Radulov Checks Bernier (from behind)
This major penalty did not affect the outcome of Game Two because Nashville was able to kill off the five minutes and keep the momentum with a short-handed goal. However, this penalty did affect Game Three; thanks to the illegal hit, the league suspended Radulov for one game. This kept the speedy winger out of the lineup and forced Coach Barry Trotz to mix up his lines. After a first period goal, Nashville was not able to muster up any other offense. In fact, the Preds were limited to only 20 shots on goal the entire game which helped the Sharks win by a score of 3 - 1. If Radulov had not been suspended, Nashville may have been able to get more scoring opportunities and pucks on net.

Nichol Spears Ehrhoff
This may have been the stupidest major penalty of the three; with a one goal lead, in an elimination game, the veteran center decided to take a selfish penalty. Ehrhoff had been playing Nichol tough and physical; eventually, Nichol lost his cool and speared Ehrhoff in the groin right in front of the referee. This led to yet another five minute major; fortunately, the Sharks were finally able to put in a power play goal and tie the game. Thanks to Nichol's penalty, the Sharks were able to regroup after giving up two quick goals. With Patrick Marleau's goal in the third period, San Jose won both the game and the series.

Unfortunately for Nashville fans, a few of their players didn't use their heads. Fortunately for San Jose fans, the men in teal were able to take advantage of their opportunities...a sign of a smart, focused team.