Almost every season, it's the same story for the San Jose Sharks: Make the playoffs easily then succumb much earlier than they hoped. In four of the past six seasons, the Sharks have won the Pacific Division, but they have made it to the conference finals just twice, winning one game.
Despite Tuesday's 3-2 loss against the Panthers, the Sharks are tied with the Ducks for first place in the Pacific Division. Antti Niemi has 34 wins, tied for the league lead, and he's won a Cup with the 2010 Blackhawks.
Add that to the Sharks' offense, which boasts three 60-point scorers — Joe Pavelski (66), Joe Thornton (66), Patrick Marleau (60) — and a league-best 26-5-4 record at home, and San Jose will be a force if it wins the division and has home ice. Last season, the Sharks lost to the Kings in seven games in the conference semifinals with the home team winning every game.
San Jose ranks seventh in goals, fourth in goals against, and fifth on the penalty kill. Hard to believe with all that talent, the Sharks are 22nd on the power play at just 15.9 percent. But that's really the only flaw they have right now. If they fix that come playoff time, the Sharks might be able to bring another Cup out west, following the hardware won by the 2007 Ducks and 2012 Kings.
1. Blues (1): The first team to 100 points, the Blues are on some kind of run right now, and haven't allowed more than two goals in regulation in their past 11. They've opened up an eight-point lead on the Avalanche in the Central Division.
2. Bruins (4): Ten straight wins for the Bruins, who are playing like a team on a mission to win the Cup — not just the conference — this season.
3. Sharks (3): Go figure the best home team loses to one of the worst road teams (the Panthers) on Tuesday. No matter, the Sharks are still in the upper echelon of the league.
4. Penguins (2): After a dismal sweep versus the Flyers this weekend, the Penguins dismantled the Stars, 5-1, on Tuesday with goals from Sydney Crosby and Chris Kunitz, two of the league's top scorers playing on the same line.
5. Avalanche (7): Patrick Roy's return to Montreal on Tuesday didn't go well. Thomas Vanek had a hat trick for the Canadiens in a 6-3 rout.
6. Ducks (5): The Ducks have lost five of seven, including four straight at home. A huge showdown looms Thursday when they travel to San Jose.
7. Canadiens (11): Good week for the Habs, who got Carey Price back in goal and have won three straight.
8. Blackhawks (8): They may be averaging 3.3 goals per game – tops in the league – but the defending champs are loaded with issues right now.
9. Flyers (10): Claude Giroux scored the overtime game-winner Tuesday over the Blackhawks. Remember when he said the Flyers would make the playoffs back when they were 3-8-0? Looks like he'll be right.
10. Kings (6): The power rankings curse strikes again. The week after we spotlight a team, they struggle. The Kings have lost three straight, allowing three goals per game, despite leading the league in goals against at 2.1 per game.
11. Wild (12): In his return to Long Island on Tuesday, Matt Moulson was the game's first star with two goals and an assist.
12. Maple Leafs (9): Without the injured Jonathan Bernier in net, the Leafs are in trouble. Backup James Reimer has allowed 12 goals in four games.
13. Rangers (15): The Rangers routed the Senators, 8-4, on Tuesday and Martin St. Louis didn't have a goal. That's zero in eight games since being acquired by the Lightning.
14. Lightning (16): The Lightning are back on track, winning three in a row thanks to Steven Stamkos (four points in three games) and Ben Bishop, who set a new team record with his 31st win of the season last week.
15. Stars (13): Lost two big games in blowout fashion, 7-2 against the Jets on Sunday and 5-1 against the Penguins on Tuesday, to fall two points behind the Coyotes for the final wild-card spot.
16. Blue Jackets (14): Alternated wins with losses the past six games. If they keep that up, they likely won't be able to hold on to the final playoff spot in the East.
17. Capitals (22): Washington has climbed back into the playoff race with three straight wins. Alex Ovechkin and his league-leading 46 goals sure help the cause.
18. Coyotes (17): Their next five games are against the Eastern Conference, but the points count just as much to the Coyotes, who are clinging to the final wild-card spot in the West.
19. Red Wings (19): This could finally be the year the Red Wings miss the playoffs. A Thursday showdown with the Penguins before a back-to-back weekend set with the Wild will be key.
20. Devils (18): A 5-3 loss to the Panthers Friday after they held a 3-1 lead likely was their undoing. The Devils have too many teams to pass and not enough time to make the playoffs.
21. Jets (20): Their luck appears to be over. Losers of seven of eight games, Winnipeg is now six points back of the Stars for the final playoff spot, having played one more game.
22. Hurricanes (24): The Hurricanes may be out of the playoffs, but Anton Khudobin saved their bacon Tuesday with 46 saves in a 3-1 win against the Blue Jackets. The Hurricanes were outshot 19-0 in the third period.
23. Canucks (25): Fact of the day: In their past 31 games, the Canucks have just one winning streak.
24. Senators (21): Go figure. A team largely intact from last season – but now healthy – has somehow struggled all around and won't match last year's surprising playoff run.
25. Predators (23): If they weren't 1-7 in shootouts, their season might look a little different. As it is, they'll battle the Jets for the Central Division cellar.
26. Flames (27): In 10 games in March for the wait-til-next-year Flames, Mike Cammalleri has seven goals and three assists.
27. Oilers (28): Nine of their final 10 games are against playoff teams, so the Oilers will have a say in who ends up where in April.
28. Panthers (29): Just another ho-hum night for Roberto Luongo, who made 52 – yes, 52 – saves in Tuesday's win against the Sharks.
29) Islanders (26): It doesn't matter whom they throw in net, the Islanders aren't budging from last in the league, allowing a whopping 3.4 goals per game.
30) Sabres (30): The first – and only – team to be eliminated from playoff contention, Buffalo has scored six goals during a seven-game losing streak.
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