Santacapper
Pretty much a regular
<TABLE width=627><TBODY><TR><TD width=500>[SIZE=+1]Nashville Predators[/SIZE]
Team Page | Roster | Stats
Regular Season Record: 51-23-8, 108 pts
Head-to-Head Record: 3-1
Last Stanley Cup Win: -
Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: -
Last Postseason Appearance: 2004
Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Peter Forsberg (2), Jason Arnott.
Team Analysis: The Predators boast a deep mix of veterans and young talent. As long as he's healthy, Peter Forsberg can step up in big games and has the skills and leadership to elevate everyone's play. Paul Kariya isn't the 100-point player of seven years ago, but has led Nashville in scoring for two straight seasons and has been their most consistent scorer. Injuries however, have taken their toll on the team in the final stretch. The team often struggled without regulars Steve Sullivan, Martin Erat and Scott Hartnell, and Barry Trotz will benefit from having a healthy lineup that includes J.P. Dumont, Jason Arnott, David Legwand and Alexander Radulov. Speed kills in the new National Hockey League, and the Predators have plenty of horsepower to carry them deep into the postseason. Nashville's defence is among the best in the league, with the NHL's third-ranked penalty kill and great offensive catalysts in Marek Zidlicky and Kimmo Timonen. Shea Weber was also a big contributor, establishing himself as a great hard-hitting blueliner and chipping in 40 points. Goaltending is a key to any postseason run, and the Predators have two No. 1s with Chris Mason and Tomas Vokoun. Mason was 24-11-4 with a 2.38 goals-against average, a .925 save percentage and five shutouts. Vokoun was 27-12-4 with a 2.40 goals-against average, a .920 save percentage and five shutouts.
</TD></TR><TR><TD>[SIZE=+1]San Jose Sharks[/SIZE]
Team Page | Roster | Stats
Regular Season Record: 51-26-5, 107 pts
Head-to-Head Record: 1-3
Last Stanley Cup Win: -
Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: -
Last Postseason Appearance: 2006
Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Bill Guerin.
Team Analysis: Pardon the pun, but the Sharks have a lot of bite going into the postseason. Joe Thornton hasn't missed a beat on offence, posting his second straight 100-point campaign and leading the team in scoring. Patrick Marleau has also been impressive, scoring at least 70 points for the second year in a row. The rest of the offence boasts plenty of depth, and young depth at that. Milan Michalek, Ryane Clowe, Steve Bernier and Joe Pavelski - all home grown talent - have taken turns in the spotlight this season, and will get added support from veteran winger Bill Guerin. The Sharks have a good defensive minded group on the blueline, with youngsters Matt Carle, Christian Ehrhoff and rookie Marc-Edouard Vlasic joined by veterans Scott Hannan, Kyle McLaren and the newly-acquired Craig Rivet. Carle has been the most consistent point producer of the bunch, and there isn't much spark from the rest of the corps. But with the way the Sharks were scoring in the late part of the season, they'll do just fine keeping the puck out of their zone and shutting down the opposition. In goal, Evgeni Nabokov and Vesa Toskala took turns starting every other game until Toskala was sidelined with a groin injury in February. Nabokov did very well on his own through the stretch, but Toskala holds the better win-loss record with less games played. The Sharks are solid in goal regardless of who gets the call.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Team Page | Roster | Stats
Regular Season Record: 51-23-8, 108 pts
Head-to-Head Record: 3-1
Last Stanley Cup Win: -
Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: -
Last Postseason Appearance: 2004
Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Peter Forsberg (2), Jason Arnott.
Team Analysis: The Predators boast a deep mix of veterans and young talent. As long as he's healthy, Peter Forsberg can step up in big games and has the skills and leadership to elevate everyone's play. Paul Kariya isn't the 100-point player of seven years ago, but has led Nashville in scoring for two straight seasons and has been their most consistent scorer. Injuries however, have taken their toll on the team in the final stretch. The team often struggled without regulars Steve Sullivan, Martin Erat and Scott Hartnell, and Barry Trotz will benefit from having a healthy lineup that includes J.P. Dumont, Jason Arnott, David Legwand and Alexander Radulov. Speed kills in the new National Hockey League, and the Predators have plenty of horsepower to carry them deep into the postseason. Nashville's defence is among the best in the league, with the NHL's third-ranked penalty kill and great offensive catalysts in Marek Zidlicky and Kimmo Timonen. Shea Weber was also a big contributor, establishing himself as a great hard-hitting blueliner and chipping in 40 points. Goaltending is a key to any postseason run, and the Predators have two No. 1s with Chris Mason and Tomas Vokoun. Mason was 24-11-4 with a 2.38 goals-against average, a .925 save percentage and five shutouts. Vokoun was 27-12-4 with a 2.40 goals-against average, a .920 save percentage and five shutouts.
</TD></TR><TR><TD>[SIZE=+1]San Jose Sharks[/SIZE]
Team Page | Roster | Stats
Regular Season Record: 51-26-5, 107 pts
Head-to-Head Record: 1-3
Last Stanley Cup Win: -
Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: -
Last Postseason Appearance: 2006
Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Bill Guerin.
Team Analysis: Pardon the pun, but the Sharks have a lot of bite going into the postseason. Joe Thornton hasn't missed a beat on offence, posting his second straight 100-point campaign and leading the team in scoring. Patrick Marleau has also been impressive, scoring at least 70 points for the second year in a row. The rest of the offence boasts plenty of depth, and young depth at that. Milan Michalek, Ryane Clowe, Steve Bernier and Joe Pavelski - all home grown talent - have taken turns in the spotlight this season, and will get added support from veteran winger Bill Guerin. The Sharks have a good defensive minded group on the blueline, with youngsters Matt Carle, Christian Ehrhoff and rookie Marc-Edouard Vlasic joined by veterans Scott Hannan, Kyle McLaren and the newly-acquired Craig Rivet. Carle has been the most consistent point producer of the bunch, and there isn't much spark from the rest of the corps. But with the way the Sharks were scoring in the late part of the season, they'll do just fine keeping the puck out of their zone and shutting down the opposition. In goal, Evgeni Nabokov and Vesa Toskala took turns starting every other game until Toskala was sidelined with a groin injury in February. Nabokov did very well on his own through the stretch, but Toskala holds the better win-loss record with less games played. The Sharks are solid in goal regardless of who gets the call.
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