The Sharks placed a large emphasis over the weekend on finishing their five-game road trip the right way.
When it didn’t happen Sunday, and they got away from their structure in a 6-4 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, it just made the start of their upcoming seven-game homestand that much more important.
The Sharks (13-11-1) host division-leading teams in Calgary and Minnesota on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, and finish the week against old friend Joe Pavelski and the Dallas Stars, who entered Monday on a six-game winning streak.
Those three teams will no doubt test the Sharks’ ability to stay near a playoff spot. San Jose entered Monday in fifth place in the Pacific Division, three points back of third place, and in 11th place in terms of points percentage in the tightly bunched Western Conference.
The Sharks are 5-4-1 at home this season.
“Except for the third period, we played pretty well throughout the whole road trip,” Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson said Sunday. “We’ve got to move on. We play again on Tuesday against a good team.”
Here are five thoughts on the upcoming homestand.
PROPER STRUCTURE: The Sharks keep looking for ways to create more offense but as was witnessed Sunday night, can’t do so at the expense of their defensive structure.
“Just dumb plays and they come back to haunt you,” Sharks coach Bob Boughner said after the loss to the Blue Jackets. “You score four goals on the road, and you feel like you should come away with at least a point.”
The Sharks know what works for them and what doesn’t by this point of the season.
The Sharks play the stingiest team in the NHL in the Flames on Tuesday and can’t get caught trying to cheat for offense. Thursday, they play the league’s third-highest scoring team in Minnesota and can’t afford to get into a track meet. Dallas has allowed eight goals total in six games before Monday.
The Sharks are 13-2-1 this season when they allow three goals or less, and 0-9-0 when allowing four goals or more.
THE GOALTENDING SITUATION: James Reimer was unavailable to start Sunday because of illness and it’s unclear if he’ll be able to play Tuesday. If he’s healthy and gets on another roll, it might not be a surprise to see him play all three games this week.
Adin Hill was exceptional in the Sharks’ two games in New York, but his performance against the Blue Jackets was a step back, and perhaps a reminder that he is still going through his first full NHL season (he played two AHL games last season).
If Reimer is playing well, Hill could still see action against Seattle on Dec. 12 and one of the two games against Vancouver – either Dec. 16 or Dec. 21 — to stay fresh as the Sharks do not want to let one goalie sit for too long.
TIME FOR A SWITCH?: Timo Meier and Jonathan Dahlen have had such terrific chemistry with Logan Couture since the start of the season that it would be surprising to Boughner to break that line up for Tuesday’s game.
Still, Tomas Hertl, Dahlen, and Meier worked well together for the final few minutes of Sunday’s game as they created three high danger chances, per Natural Stat Trick, and didn’t allow any. Hertl snapped a five-game goal drought.
Couture, Dahlen, and Meier were on the ice for three even-strength goals against versus Columbus.
Couture with Noah Gregor and Alexander Barabanov did not fare as well in the chances department as Hertl, Dahlen, and Meier. But perhaps Boughner gives that Couture line another look against the Flames with the benefit of having last change.
DEFENSIVE JUGGLE?: Will the homestand be a time to rotate more fresh faces into the defense corps? In particular, moving Radim Simek out in favor of Santeri Hatakka or Nicolas Meloche?
Hatakka played two games with the Barracuda and it would be a surprise to see him stay in the AHL for the duration of the Sharks’ homestand. Meloche got another taste of the NHL on Friday against the Rangers and played pretty well with Marc-Edouard Vlasic.
Depending on what happens Tuesday and Thursday, it’s not unreasonable to think that Hatakka or Meloche will get another game or two before the Christmas break.
BURNS OFFENSE RETURNS: Brent Burns had no points and just six shots on net in nine games from Nov. 16 to Dec. 2. But he had a combined seven shots in games against the Rangers and Blue Jackets and got a shot from a point to go in Sunday to snap an 11-game point drought.
That’s an encouraging sign for the Sharks, who are now 6-3-1 this season when Burns scores a point, and 7-8-0 when he does not.
SHARKS’ SEVEN-GAME HOMESTAND
All games on NBC Sports California. Sharks Audio Network
Tuesday vs. Calgary Flames, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday vs. Minnesota Wild, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday vs. Dallas Stars, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 14 vs. Seattle Kraken, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 16 vs. Vancouver Canucks, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 21 vs. Vancouver Canucks, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 23 vs. Edmonton Oilers, 7 p.m.
