The struggles for the San Jose Sharks continue as they suffered a disappointing 4-0 loss to the Anaheim Ducks Monday. This loss only pushes the Sharks further away from getting a playoff spot.
Things were going downhill for the Sharks early on, giving up three goals in the first period.
It’s not a good way to start the opening period by any means.There’s no doubt that frustration began to build up for the Sharks.
To make matters worse, the Sharks were having a hard time getting any good shots off of Ducks’ goalie Anthony Stolarz. He was basically a rock in between the pipes for his team.
On behalf of the Sharks, there were many golden opportunities to score.
Stolarz stopped every single shot coming his way, finishing off the night with a total of 44 saves.
The Sharks, on the other hand, seem to be struggling all the sudden. They previously won fourt straight games between March 29 to April 3.
However, it seems that things have changed. Since then, the Sharks are 1-3-0. Keeping that in mind, the Sharks are 18-19-4 and are four points behind the St. Louis Blues, who rank fourth place in their divison.
The Sharks have only 15 games left in the season to play. There’s not a lot of time left.
This means that the Sharks are losing more opportunities to get into the playoffs. It doesn’t help that their schedule gets tougher by the day.
This week, the Sharks begin a four-game road trip, facing the Minnesota Wild Friday and Saturday, then the Vegas Golden Knights Monday and Wednesday.
Each team has performed a bit stronger than the Sharks and have very high chances of making it into the playoffs.
So, for the Sharks, they will be competing against two potential playoff teams, which means they will need to bring their A-game when they lace up and hit the ice.
Martin Jones, the Sharks’ goalie, was shaken up during pregame warmups after taking a shot to the collarbone region by Patrick Marleau. Jones stayed on the bench for a short time. After that, he went to the Sharks’ dressing room.
For the Sharks, time is at hand. They really don’t have time to waste. These next 15 games are critical if the Sharks want to keep their playoff hopes alive. They need every win they can possibly get in order to stay alive in the fight for a playoff spot in the West Division.
The Sharks know they need to step up if they don’t want their hopes getting shattered. However, it will not be easy since they will be facing some pretty tough teams over the next couple of weeks.
In addition, the Sharks have many tough questions to answer as the end of the season draws closer. Once again, there isn’t much time left. So the Sharks will have to work harder and put on a more stronger and efficient effort on the ice if they want to pull off a win.
Their shutout loss against the Ducks was frustrating, but the Sharks will certainly want to evaluate their playing style and performance to change up some things for their next rematch against the Ducks Wednesday night at 9:30 p.m.
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