Sharks in six, and with a bit more class this time around

Mark Purdy
Mercury News Columnist

Article Launched: 04/25/2008 01:35:37 AM PDT


How to explain this? If the last series was Ozzy Osbourne, the next one will be Jordin Sparks.

If the Sharks' first-round series against the Calgary Flames was a vicious and bloody mess, then the next series against the Dallas Stars will be as nastily competitive as "American Idol," but far more compelling to watch.

The hockey in this series, for lack of a better phrase, will be a beauteous collision.

Not soft, understand. Definitely not soft. But the Sharks and Stars try to win games the same way. They try to control the puck. Then they try to do something skillful with it.

Refreshing concept, eh? We didn't see much of that from the Flames, who lacked skill throughout their lineup and tried to compensate with a lot of dumping the puck, then smothering and smashing, then throwing the kitchen sink at the net. It took the Sharks seven games to figure out a way to beat it. This series, which starts tonight at HP Pavilion, shouldn't last as long.

The pick here: Sharks win in six games. Maybe even five, if they can maintain their concentration and not blow any more three-goal leads.

Dallas is nothing close to being a pushover. In the Stars' opening-round victory over Anaheim, there was a lot of impressive shutdown stuff going on.

"To beat a team like Anaheim," the Sharks' Joe Thornton said Thursday, "they must have been playing well."

Yes, but as in any playoff series of any sport, it's all about the matchup. The Sharks have more offensive firepower than Anaheim. So the Stars' shutdown program will not be as effective - even if defenseman Sergei Zubov suits up for the first time since undergoing sports hernia surgery in January.

Zubov, 37, still has All-Star talent. But while his repaired lower abdomen might be ready for some offensive contributions, he can't possibly be as effective marking the Sharks' better skaters. Remember how long it took the Sharks' Jonathan Cheechoo to find his groove when he came back from the same surgery last fall?

Whatever you do, forget the hype that Sharks vs. Stars will be a continuation of the fisticuff clown act we saw in the regular-season finale between the teams 19 days ago. With both teams locked into their playoff spots, it was just a bunch of guys letting off steam and settling scores.

"That's not going to happen again," said Sharks Coach Ron Wilson, after making this point: "One of the reasons Dallas beat Anaheim was Anaheim's lack of discipline."

This, of course, is the polite hockey way of saying that Anaheim had way too many knuckleheads taking way too many penalties. And the Ducks paid the price, with the Stars scoring 10 of their 20 series goals on power plays. But the Sharks don't take penalties the way the Ducks do. Presto. That eliminates a good chunk of the potential Dallas offense.

The Sharks attackers, meanwhile, will be drawing a bead on Dallas goalie Marty Turco. And that's where the fun should really start. After some shaky playoff performances in the past few years, Turco is on top of his game and has always played well against the Sharks.

But with Turco, it's not so much what he does that annoys opponents. It's how he does it. Turco is among the best goalies at handling the puck behind the net. But while doing so, safe in the knowledge that goalies can't be hit, Turco often likes to make subtle contact with forecheckers to gain an edge in his passing angles. This can lead to a lot of mouthy moments - with the crowd joining the conversation.

You read it here first: In this series, we could see another classic Sharks Fans vs. Dr. Evil The Goalie scenario. It will follow in the tradition of those old confrontations between the Tank crowd and former Dallas goalie Ed Belfour.

Like Belfour, Turco can lose his temper. How often do you see a high-sticking penalty by a goalie? It happened here with Turco last month. This season, he tied for second place among NHL goalies with 16 penalty minutes - and six of those minutes were accumulated against the Sharks. This included the aforementioned high-sticking violation, committed in overtime against Joe Pavelski on March 27 at the Tank. Turco drew blood from Pavelski's face and set up the Sharks' winning power-play goal.

You think the demented HP Pavilion howlers have forgotten that incident? You think that Turco has? Of course not.

"They disliked me in the regular season and I haven't played there in the playoffs yet," Turco said of the Sharks' fans in an interview with NHL.com this week. "I'll be the guy who'll be chumming the waters out there, stirring up some interest. We know what it's like in the regular season. So we've got a pretty grand idea how it'll be in the postseason."

We've also got a pretty grand idea of which Dallas player will be the most dangerous against our beloved Los Tiburones. Mike Modano, another 37-year-old Dallas stalwart, may not be the Mike Modano of yore. But whenever he sees teal uniforms, Modano magically grows younger. This season, he scored almost one-fourth of his 21 goals against the Sharks - five in eight games, vs. 16 in the 74 games against everybody else.

The guy simply must love Northern California ice. Back on Nov. 7 at HP Pavilion, Modano scored two goals to become the all-time NHL points leader for an American player. The classy Sharks fans gave him a standing ovation.

Don't expect that to happen again tonight. The only American Idol around here is Jeremy Roenick. He might not be as handsome as Modano. But hey, which performer do you want in the clutch? Telephone lines are open. But don't bother to call. The pre-faceoff judging is done. Sharks in six.


Copyright 2008 Mercury News

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Contact Mark Purdy at mpurdy@mercurynews.com