Shawnna and I went to this game which was opening night. After some grub at the Old Spaghetti Factory, it was game on at the tank. The give-away was a poster featuring Jonathan Cheechoo (winner of the Maurice Richard Trophy as top goal scorer) and Joe Thornton (winner of the Art Ross Trophy as top point scorer and the Hart Trophy as league MVP). The trophies were on display in the arena as well. The biggest changes from last season seamed to be an increased ability to project images on the ice during the build-up to the opening faceoff and the change in the song that is played when the Sharks score - it's "Holiday" from Green Day.
Opening night got off on the wrong foot as Dan Hinote scored 36 seconds into the game to give the Blues a 1-0 lead. Matt Carle tied it with a goal 2 minutes later, but that was short lived as Jamal Mayers struck back 1 minute later. Things settled down after that initial flurry and the period ended with the Blues up 2-1.
The 2nd period saw the Blues spending a lot of time in the penalty box and the Sharks took advantage with Milan Michalek storing 2 goals 46 seconds apart - both on 5-on-3 power plays. That put the Sharks up 3-2, but the Blues tied it up when Lee Stempniak deflected a Bill Guerin shot past Vesa Toskala.
The 3rd period featured a lot more than goals as a referee had to leave the game after being hit in the eye by a shot from Milan Michalek. Also, the game was delayed for 20 minutes while the maintenance crew repaired a hole in the boards caused when Jonathan Cheechoo crashed into them. Amongst all that, Mark Bell scored his first goal as a Shark to give them a 1 goal lead with 5 minutes to play. Just when it seemed the Sharks had it in the bag, Bill Guerin scored with 6 seconds to play in the game after the Blues pulled their goalie, sending the game to overtime.
The overtime period was owned by the Sharks. They held the Blues without a shot and Curtis Brown scored on a deflection halfway through the period to ensure the Sharks started the season off on the right foot with a 5-4 victory. Hockey's back!
Score: W 5-4 OT
1st Period
Blues - Dan Hinote (Jamal Mayers, Dallas Drake)
SJ - Matt Carle (Mark Smith, Marcel Goc)
Blues - Jamal Mayers (Dan Hinote)
2nd Period
SJ - Milan Michalek(PP) (Joe Thornton, Jonathan Cheechoo)
SJ - Milan Michalek(PP) (Joe Thornton, Steve Bernier)
Blues - Lee Stempniak (Bill Guerin, Eric Brewer)
3rd Period
SJ - Mark Bell (Jonathan Cheechoo, Joe Thornton)
Blues - Bill Guerin (Keith Tkachuk, Martin Rucinsky)
Overtime
SJ - Curtis Brown (Matt Carle, Steve Bernier)
SJ SOG: 35
Blues SOG: 35
Winning Goalie: Vesa Toskala
Losing Goalie: Manny Legace
Tickets: Section 205 Row 12
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