Sharks-Wild: Ryane Clowe Fuels Sharks to Fifth Straight Win

On an election night that gave bay area folk many happy returns, the Sharks got in on the good times.

Thanks in large part to a Gordie Howe hat-trick by Ryane Clowe (one goal, one assist, one fight) the Sharks won their fifth in a row Tuesday night, 3-1 over the Minnesota Wild.  The Sharks improved their overall record to 11-2, and their fans could not be more excited about the team.

It may only be the Nov. 4, but the Sharks look 10 times better than they did at this point last season; and it starts with the changes made in the lineup.  Clowe, who scored his sixth goal in his past seven games Tuesday night, suffered a devastating knee injury early last season in Columbus.  Clowe was out from the middle of October through March last year, missing the majority of the regular season.  He only played a handful of games before the playoffs.  Right now, he is making up for lost time. 

Clowe has started off the season with 10 points in the first 13 games, and is using his size effectively to create numerous scoring chances.  Clowe's style of play was something the Sharks were missing in the regular season last year when they struggled against physical teams like the Red Wings and Ducks.

But a healthy Clowe has paid huge dividends for the Sharks so far this season.  Four of his six goals have come on the power play as a part of the Sharks' second power play unit.

Along with Clowe, another offensive difference maker the Sharks did not have last regular season was Devin Setoguchi.  Last season was Setoguchi's rookie year, during which he was up and down from the Sharks' minor-league affiliate in Worcester, and with the big club.  Setoguchi often struggled with his defensive responsibilities, and Sharks fans wondered if he was the right selection for the Sharks in the 2005 draft.  The Sharks passed over the now All Star center Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings.

However, the sophomore Setoguchi is a much different player, one who has been extremely exciting to watch.  Not only scoring but forechecking and backchecking effectively helping out the Sharks' defense.  His 12 points (seven goals and five assists) coming into the game Tuesday were good for a tie for the team lead.  On a line with Thornton and Marleau, Setoguchi has been able to simplify the game with his blazing speed.

Both Setoguchi and Clowe have been major contributors so far this season, but Tuesday night was the Ryane Clowe show.  The Sharks' first goal that tied the score at one looked like it would be credited to Clowe, who took a centering feed and wristed a shot toward the net.  The shot apparently went off Mike Grier, who was credited with his second goal of the year at 17:21 of the first period.  Assists went to Clowe and Tomas Plihal.

The second period was scoreless for a change; it has been a period the Sharks have dominated so far this season. But they turned up the heat in the third.  Sharks rookie forward Jamie McGinn scored his second career goal at 3:11 of the third on a rebound off a shot by Jeremy Roenick.  Marleau's attempted pass to Roenick caromed off a skate perfectly onto Roenick's stick, and he who fired it on net.  McGinn was there to recover the rebound and deposit it in the back of the net. 

A little more than two minutes later, Clowe fired a wrister that was blocked right back to him; he re-loaded and fired a shot past Niklas Backstrom on the short side.  If it wasn't obvious that Tuesday was the Ryane Clowe show, it would become so four minutes later.

After the Wild goaltender covered the puck, defenseman Erik Reitz took offense to Clowe's looking for a rebound, and the pair dropped the gloves.  Clowe ended up with a decisive victory in the bout, hammering the Wild defenseman with multiple upper-cuts.

The fight gave the Sharks their ninth Gordie Howe hat-trick in franchise history, and they hope to see more of the same from Clowe.  With Clowe out of the lineup last season, the remaining group of forwards was without one of their main policemen, who would often be the first to stick up for his teammates.

The Sharks were often considered soft by hockey fans around the league and experts who closely follow the Pacific Division.  But with the midseason acquisition of Jody Shelley last year, and a healthy Ryane Clowe, the Sharks are anything but soft this season.

Evgeni Nabokov once again played a solid game in goal, turning away 23 of the 24 shots he faced.  Nabokov has now turned away 52 of the last 56 shots he's faced and is finally seeming to find his groove between the pipes.

With the win, the Sharks remain the only team to be undefeated at home, a perfect 7-0 on the season.

They play again inside the Tank on Thursday against the St. Louis Blues.