Sharks impress Murray

By Rich Hammond on October 10, 2008 4:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) |

The Kings will get real familiar, real quick, with San Jose. The Kings and Sharks play Saturday (there) and Sunday (here) and the Sharks opened the season Thursday with an impressive 4-1 home victory over the Ducks.

Question: Did you get a chance to watch San Jose last night?

MURRAY: ``I watched it this morning. Very good team, one of the premier teams in the league. They took the level of play to another level in the middle part of the first period. They got on the power play in the second and, wow, they moved the puck around and they were tremendous on the power play. They've got Blake back there last night and he's loading up with seven shots on net, and they end up with 40 as a team. They have a real strong mentality right now, that they have something to prove, and they have started off in the right direction.''

4 Comments

Matt George

said:

Seven shots.

Thanks Blake...loved your "work ethic" while u where here.

(wait...anyone smell that?..that's sarcasm)

anyway

October 10, 2008 4:22 PM

JonG

said:

The analyst on NHL Network had an interesting take on San Jose the other night. Their new coach intends to employ a puck-possession style similar to Detroit, but San Jose might not have the right defensemen to play that style. According to the analyst (Dave Reid?), only Dan Boyle will thrive in that environment.

I don't know enough about their D to agree or disagree with that comment, but I did find it interesting. I also wonder whether Patrick Marleau will ever learn to compete in the playoffs.

On a separate note, I must admit that I jumped the gun in criticizing The NHL Network the other day. I've seen several interesting shows over the past few nights, and the nightly highlights show is better than I expected. I particularly like the fact that it's on late at night, which happens to suit my schedule.

October 10, 2008 4:23 PM

jet said:

Rich,

You have put up some incredible stuff over the past week. The interviews were as insightful and pertinant as any as I have ever read in the hockey world.

Feel free to take off two days next year also.

October 10, 2008 4:52 PM

Anonymous said:

JonG,

Thanks for that nugget about SJ using a Detroit-style puck-possession game this year. They have the FWs for it, but I agree----Not quite the D.

Actually, in a couple years, WE might have a Defense (and FWs) best adapted to that Detroit PuckPos-style.

With Doughty, JJ, Hickey, Voinov, Martinez,et al,
who knows, Kings might be the "next Detroit".

=========================================================
--Sergei Prozacutov

October 10, 2008 8:03 PM

J.P. Hoornstra writes about NHL and IHL hockey for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group. He welcomes any and all dialogue on the finer points of hockey. E-mail J.P. at jp.hoornstra
@inlandnewspapers.com.

Jill Painter joined the Daily News in 2000 and during the last eight years she's covered the Dodgers, Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Kings, golf and everything in between. Even though she's from Colorado, she still freezes in the Staples Center press box but always manages to thaw her fingers in time to make deadline. E-mail Jill at jill.painter@dailynews
.com.