Sharks (2) vs, Flames (7) Playoff Preview

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The San Jose Sharks/Calgary Flames first round match-up wholly captures the essence of "Blue Collar" hockey: grinding, physical play, fighting, and few goals scored.

The San Jose Sharks were a team expected to be a top contender, and roll into the playoffs near the top of everyone's picks list. Despite this, many players struggled offensively, and the Sharks certainly don't look, on paper, to be a team that should have finished 49-23-10. Will their good luck hold?

The Calgary Flames, ever since their run to the finals before the lockout, were expected to do a whole lot better than they did. With names like Iginla, Phaneuf, Kiprusoff, Tanguay, Huselius, and Langkow, it's hard to believe that this team had to fight tooth and nail just to secure a playoff spot.

So, we have one team that's sum is greater than the parts, and another team that is the complete opposite. Can the Flames upset the Ron Wilson's well-oiled machine?Offense: The Flames 226 tallies put them in 6th spot among Western playoff clubs, finshing with three 25-goal scorers. Iginla's 50 goals and 98 points were both career highs, Kristian Huselius didn't wilt under Keenan's brutal coaching, and Daymond Langkow has proven himself to be a productive playmaker.

Calgary can also count on heavy offense from the point with blaster-master Dion 'Sourpuss' Phaneuf, who finished 5th overall in defensemen scoring, and Adrian Aucoin, a veteran renowned for his big slapshot.

Unfortunately for Calgary, the drop-off from the likes of Tanguay to Lombardi and the scrubs is massive, and the Flames have had troubles all season with secondary scoring.

San Jose struggled all season with their scoring, finishing right behind Calgary with 222 goals. While Joe Thornton and Milan Michalek were their usual productive selves, Jonathan Cheechoo proved that his 50-goal season was an utter fluke, and Patrick Marleau sulked his way to a 48-point season.

Edge: Even. Calgary has the far more explosive top line, but San Jose has better depth and more offensive potential with guys like Pavelski, Bernier, and even Jeremy Roenick pulling up the rear. This is evened out by the fact that San Jose's top scoring defenseman is Craig Rivet. Yeah ...

Defense: San Jose's 193 goals against was the third lowest total in the entire NHL, and they also ranked second in shots against. Ron Wilson's club plays an extremely tight defensive system with very few cracks. Sure, the defensive corps doesn't have any big names (well, Sandis Ozolinsh was a big name back when *NSync was big), but they are a hard-working group that gets the job done.

The Flames finished in the middle of the road in terms of defensive stats, and rely more on their forechecking strength than any complicated system. Yes, Keenan's teams do not play systems well, and despite the fact that the Flames have the bigger names back on D, they are much easier to score against.

Edge: San Jose.

Goaltending: I'll say it, and you make not like it: This is one of first round's worst goalie matchups.

Nabokov had the fortune to play behind a great team, otherwise his 91.0% save percentage would have exposed him as a mediocre goalie, instead of one who looks amazing because of a 2.14GAA

Miikka Kiprusoff, as I've kvetched about before, had a terrible season. He finished in the bottom half of all goalies with a 90.6% save percentage, and was hardly the elite goalie people think he is.

Edge: Calgary. Kiprusoff has a 91.6% save percentage after the All-Star break, and has started to look like his old self. Kipper is hot at the right time, and you always go with the hot hand.

Special Teams: As is usually the case, a Mike Keenan coached team finished poorly in their special teams. What do you expect from a guy notorious for not practicing Power Plays? I don't know if that is still the case, but the Flames often look like they are out of sync. The Flames finished 19th on the Power Play and 21st on the PK.

San Jose? #1 on the PK and 10th with the man-advantage.

Edge: San Jose

Prediction: The Flames match up well to the Sharks' physical, grinding game, but Ron Wilson is a superior coach to Mike Keenan, and the Sharks just have a better roster from top to bottom. It should be a tight series with no easy wins.