Game 6 Disappointment

Sharks 0, Flames 2

Sunday morning, I thought to myself, "We need Nabby to steal tonight's game so that we can just wrap things up and head into the second round." Well, there was a shutout, but for the wrong team. Miikka Kiprusoff came up big for Calgary in a must-win game, but I have to admit, the San Jose Sharks didn't do much to make it a difficult night for the goaltender. Yes...Team Teal had a chance to move on, but instead...they just disappointed their fans.

I can honestly say, the Calgary Flames played a pretty solid 60 minutes. They came out strong early, but San Jose stayed in it...at least for most of the game. Over nearly 40 minutes, the Flames outplayed the Sharks, but Nabby kept the deficit at a single goal. However, just like clockwork, Randy and Drew jinxed things and Calgary scored with less than a minute left in the second period to make it a two goal lead.

In the third, San Jose looked a bit better and put some pressure on Calgary. Unfortunately, any chances that were generated were gobbled up by the Flames defense, or Kipper himself.

I still don't know why the Sharks can't play at a high level right from the start. It's always an uphill battle before they get the legs going. Granted, they had one or two chances early, but not nearly the type of sustained pressure that Calgary put forward. Moreover, all the turnovers in the first 40 minutes were absolutely horrible...one, in fact, led to the go ahead goal and was basically the nail in the coffin.

Well, it's on to Game 7 at the Tank and I'm going to keep my fingers crossed. If the team plays at their full potential, then we will win. However, if they shoot themselves in their foot again and don't put any serious pressure on early, it will be an early exit.

(Sorry for the short post, but I'm annoyed and don't really want to think about the Sharks right now.)

Notes:

Joe Thornton looked really bad for the first time in these playoffs. There were a few times that Jumbo Joe wasn't producing in this series, but tonight, he was actually a liability on a number of plays.
Certain Sharks players continued to play hard tonight and I do want to recognize that...Cheechoo, Setoguchi, Marleau, Vlasic...keep it up.
Milan Michalek...what is there to say? You had a 3 on 1 and just stickhandled all by yourself until you lost the puck...stupid. I've asked you to step up...I've been patient with your struggles, but now, it's just too late. I really won't hold my breath for you to come out of your slump anymore. If you show up for Game 7...then great, its about time. But I assure you, I'm not expecting much.

A San Jose Sharks Blog