NHL Playoffs 2011: 5 Things We Learned About the Sharks/Kings Series in Game 1
In many ways it's the least important game of the playoffs.
The second game is always a must win for the loser of the first, game three is always a big momentum shifter, and game four and beyond are always must wins for either one or both sides.
And after the first round, the games only become bigger as the competition gets tougher and the Cup gets closer.
Given that, game one sets the tone for any playoff run, and for a team that lost three straight game one's (and has been bounced before the finals in each of those seasons), game one was a chance to prove, once again, why this is a different team.
But there were many more insights about this team, L.A's team, and this series that game one provided us with.
1. Jarret Stoll Has No Business Playing in the Remainder of This Series
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If Jarret Stoll sees the ice again this series, the NHL is seriously messed up.
In the first period, the Kings' forward put Sharks' D-man Ian White into the boards behind the net. After what was already a dirty, penalty-worthy hit, Stoll pressed his arm into the back of White's head and held him there, pinned against the high board. Stoll gave him a final shot before leaving the likely-concussed White, allowing him to be helped off. He did not return.
It wasn't simply a dirty play, it was an execution. It was a conscious decision to likely end the season of one of the Sharks most important defenseman.
This series can and will be physical, spirited, and edgy. And it should be. But plays like this don't belong in the NHL, and players like this don't belong in the playoffs.
He should be suspended for the season, but at the very least should not be allowed back on the ice against San Jose. Which hopefully means the rest of L.A's season.
2. The Second Line Is Second to None for the Second Straight Post-Season
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Last year's second line of Ryane Clowe, Joe Pavelski, and Devin Setoguchi single-handedly carried the Sharks through round one and was front and center again in round two.
This year, Seto is one the top line, Clowe remains on the second, and Pavelski is on the third. But the second has already shown that they are number one once again.
The 2011 edition, featuring Clowe, Logan Couture, and Dany Heatley, single-handedly won this game. After Dany Heatley scored on their very first shift, the line responded to the King's first equalizer with a smooth break up the ice, led by the rookie Couture, who buried the Sharks second and final goal of regulation.
Couture began building on what was an excellent playoff debut in 2010, and Heatley continued his excellent play this month. If Heater gets going, this line could be the Sharks, and maybe even the league's most scary threesome.
Clowe was in on both goals with primary assists and added a third while on the ice with the third line in OT. Clowe was, in my mind, the MVP of this game, and being the only carry-over from last year's second line, it'd be tough to argue against Clowe as the Sharks' best playoff forward.
3. Jonathan Quick Is Scary Good
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The NHL has a lot of excellent goaltenders. About half of the starters around the league are considered "one of the league's best," and honestly, about half of the starting goalies right now have legitimate cases for elite status. The stats are all so close, so many guys are unbeatable down low, and so many can, when they're at their best, be as effective as a brick wall in front of the net mouth.
But if I had to name a definitive top five, Jonathan Quick would be in it. Not only is he as "quick" as they come, covering the entire crease with speed, reflexes, intelligence, and flexibility, but he is an absolute risk-taker, who's so solid fundamentally that it always seems to pay off.
Quick will venture seemingly dangerously out of his crease to cut off shooting angles, but because he is so insanely talented at freezing the puck, there's nothing dangerous about it. Quick will dive towards loose pucks around the net, seemingly leaving an open net for any Shark who can get their stick on it, but because his reflexes, athleticism, and coordination is so crazy, he always is the first guy to it, freezing it, and ending the scoring chance.
The Sharks are a team that shoots the puck a lot, and scores a lot of goals in front of the net. In past years, against guys like Jonas Hiller and Craig Anderson, San Jose simply didn't get in the crease enough, didn't create screens, rebounds, and deflections. Against Quick, this may not even be possible. He is one of four or five goalies in the league who I believe are good enough to truly steal a series, no matter their competition.
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4. Drew Doughty Will Be Tough...but Tire-Able
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Doughty is one of the NHL's best young defensemen, as everybody around the league knows. However, he had a down year compared to last in essentially every category.
Doughty still remained one of the best in the business this year, and in game one of the playoffs, played incredibly well. He and Jack Johnson limited the Sharks big line by focusing in on Thornton, and forcing all the action to the wings.
But late in the game, the Sharks' top line started having better, longer shifts. Doughty logged 30:28 total ice time tonight, and the big line that didn't do much early was able to take advantage.
Still, because they didn't do much early, they didn't have Doughty so on the ropes that they were able to beat him late, not even on a power play with 2:11 remaining in regulation.
If Doughty and Johnson continue to deny Thornton entering the zone from the middle, it's up to Marleau and Setoguchi to get the pucks deep, hit Doughty and Johnson a lot, and allow the Sharks blue-liners time to set up shop. Throwing shots at the net is usually a good idea, but this is exactly what the Kings' top D-pair wants. Quick can handle unscreened shots without any issue, and the L.A. forwards are excellent in support when the puck never gets deep.
If the big line plays a more patient, physical game, starting in the first period of game two, Doughty may not be able to deny Jumbo in the third period, let alone late in the series.
5. Joe Pavelski Is Not a Human Being
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Maybe it was luck. Maybe it was coincidence. Maybe it was a random hot streak. Maybe it was the seven best games he'll ever play.
These were all possible ways to rationalize Joe Pavelski's incredible run last year, from game two against Colorado through the end of that series and into the Detroit series. He seemed to always find the puck on his stick in the right position in the biggest moment, and every shot he took seemed to wind up in the net.
After tonight, the only answer that any rational, knowledgeable hockey mind should accept is that Little Joe is simply one of the greatest post-season performers in the game.
After a ridiculously long shift, Kyle Wellwood received a pass in the neutral zone from Ryane Clowe. Spent, Wellwood was expected by most to dump it deep and change, along with Pavelski. Rather, he saw that Joe somehow still had a burst in him, and the panting Wellwood made a beautiful pass across the ice just past the blue line, that Pavelski cleanly received.
Quick had been playing out of his mind ever since Couture had beaten him five-hole a couple hours earlier. But Pavelski, like he did numerous times last year, fired a wrist shot so hard, so elevated, and so immaculately located, that he beat Quick by an inch to the right, and the post by a centimeter to the left, and ended the game with a shot that I don't think anyone else could have made.
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