Athletistic / Hockey. On the night of November 4-5, the San Jose Sharks lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in an NHL regular season home game with a score of 2:10. This is the Sharks’ 11th defeat since the start of the championship, as well as the second by a double-digit score. In the previous match, San Jose lost to the Vancouver Canucks with a score of 1:10.
It should be noted that the Sharks became the first team since 1965 to concede 10 goals in two consecutive games (the previous time, such a “feat” was achieved by the Boston Bruins during the 1965/1966 season). Now, “San Jose” is last in the ranking. In 11 matches, David Quinn’s team has only one point, obtained by beating the Colorado Avalanche in a shootout (1:2 B).
The anti-record for the number of matches without a victory since the start of the regular season belongs to the New York Rangers and is equal to 15 matches. It turns out that in order to conquer new heights and “go down in history”, “San Jose” must lose at least four subsequent matches. At the same time, the schedule can help the “sharks”, because in the next matches they will have to fight with the sensational Philadelphia Flyers and the injured Edmonton Oilers (both home matches), as well as visit to defending champion Vegas Golden. Knights and compete in the California Derby with the Anaheim Ducks (both away).
Photo source: NHL.com
In team sports, and particularly in North America, we like to count various statistics. And in our case, it will show even more clearly the abyss into which “San José” fell. The Sharks are the worst team in the NHL according to various indicators: by the number of goals scored (only 12), by the number of goals conceded (up to 55).
What’s interesting is that for the Sharks, this is not yet the worst start in history, but only a repeat. In the 1995/1996 season, this team achieved its first victory of the season in just 12 matches.
— I liked the first period of our performance (the team lost the period 0:2). But suddenly we became a different team. That’s what happened. Pittsburgh continued to play the same way. We missed the 3rd goal and we collapsedSan Jose coach David Quinn said.
Such excuses from the coach seem ridiculous. The “Sharks” seem to have collapsed in all their matches and lose to their opponents without any chance.
Photo source: NHL.com
Why is everything so bad for San Jose, since relatively recently (2015/2016 season) the team fought for the title, losing to Pittsburgh in the Stanley Cup final? There are four main reasons for this:
1. After defenseman Erik Karlsson left for Pittsburgh, there were no stars left on the team and there was no one to carry the team on their shoulders and drag others along with them.
2. San Jose has the weakest defense and goaltending line in the entire league. 55 misses confirm it.
3. None of San Jose’s top prospects in recent drafts have performed as expected. For example, Swede William Eklund, selected 7th overall in the 2021 draft, has only scored two (1+1) points in the goal+pass system in 11 matches.
4. Executives and coaches may deliberately “leak” the season in order to increase their chances of receiving the No. 1 draft pick in 2024.
We can already say that the management of San José has begun a long restructuring. For several seasons the team was subject to turbulence and languished at the bottom of the standings. How long it will take the team to “recover” depends on the direction and luck of the draft picks. I would like to wish patience to the Sharks fans. After all, in the NHL, any team sooner or later comes out of the bottom.
Nikita Serbakov, Athletistic
Source: Sport
I’m Emma Smith, a dedicated journalist and avid storyteller. I have been writing for news websites for the past 5 years, reporting on hockey news and delivering in-depth analysis of the sport. In my current role as Author at Athletistic, I write about hockey events from around the world to keep followers up-to-date with what’s happening in the sport.
