Impromptu Live Game Blog: Stars at Sharks Game 5

Well the week has finally ended and somehow I made it through alive. After focusing all my time and effort for the past week on completing the semester, it's time to celebrate the arrival of a lot of free time by an impromptu live game blog. There's only one game on tonight, so if you're watching hockey, it's the Sharks looking to stay alive with a game five win at home against the Dallas Stars. So with that, live game blog time:

1st OT [18:55]
SAN JOSE GAME WINNING GOAL
PAVELSKI
Dallas 2 - Sharks 3 FINAL

It didn't take very long. A minute into overtime Pavelski circled the Stars zone and fired a high wrister sending the series to a game 6. Thats two straight for the Sharks, are we finally going to see an NHL team come back from a 3-0 series deficit? They'll meet again on Sunday night, Brendan Morrow will bide his time.

3rd Period [00:21]

With only seconds left in regulation Brendan Morrow looks to end it all for the Sharks, but is driven into the net. No call. Morrow is all business. He is channeling just a bit of Gary Robert tonight.

The scoreboard all zeros and it's still all tied up. For the first time in the series the Sharks decide to play some 3rd period hockey. Once again a game from this series is heading to overtime to find a winner. The Stars won games 1 and 3 in extra time. The Sharks are looking to stay alive and force a game 6 Sunday night in Dallas.

3rd Period [8;53]
SAN JOSE GOAL!
CAMPBELL (ROENICK)
Dallas 2 - Sharks 2

Speaking of San Jose getting to it, and of the resurgence of JR, Roenick just sent a beauty of a neutral ice pass to the tape of Brian Campbell. Campbell sent a laser of a shot a quarter inch below the crossbar, beating Turco. It hit the back crossbar and came right back out, but the goal light judge is on his game. Tie game.

3rd Period [12:21]

Dallas heading back to the powerplay after Ribiero was pulled down from behind. After selecting the text color for the last goal I am reminded that the San Jose Sharks wear teal. This is completely unacceptable.

San Jose kills the penalty and nearly has a breakaway for a chance to tie the game, but it's called off-sides. The clocks ticking for the Sharks, time to get to it.

3rd Period [13:40]
SAN JOSE GOAL!
MICHALEK (THORNTON,CHEECHOO)
Dallas 2 - Sharks 1

Michalek takes a pass from Thornton and finally solves Turco. Somehow, only a goal down, the Sharks are still in this game. No much debate on the issue, Thornton is the best passer in the NHL.

3rd Period [16:03]

Christian Ernhoff takes another penalty. This time tripping, Dallas heading to the power-play. A goal here could almost put it away. GOAL! Wait . . . . . NO GOAL! They are saying Morrow threw this one off his glove. They are going upstairs once again to the War Room, but the early review looks to agree with the man in stripes. Morrow was trying to knock down the puck to shoot it in, but he never got wood on it.

The War Room knows was good for them and they agree with me. Morrow's put three pucks in the net tonight, but only one's counted.

2nd Intermission

Keith Jones as a colorman is great, Keith Jones as an analysis is laughable. I love his stories, but when he tries to act like he knows what he's talking about everything falls apart. During the break he made the argument that the goal shouldn't of counted, without really giving any reason why. He just said "distinct kicking motion" about five times during an incoherent ramble. I like Jonesy, so I'm just gonna chalk this up to the guys behind the scenes telling the guys at the table to debate whether it was a goal or not, and Jones got the bad end. That's what we call the commercial bias.

Much like my hatred for the "delay of game" penalty, I'm not that fond of the whole no kicking business. I just don't see the purpose of it. Are they afraid that if they allowed it everyone drop those pesky sticks and try to use their CCMs to beat the tenders?

2nd Period [0:55]
Dallas Goal
MORROW (RICHARDS,MIETTINEN)
Dallas 2 - Sharks 0

I'm pretty sure this one counts, guys. But I'm 0 for 1 on the evening, so what do I know? Morrow made sure to let the refs know once again how he felt about them calling his last goal off after putting the Stars up by 2 (again). Bad angle shot, that one's all on Nabokov.

End of 2. Dallas has scored three, two have counted. San Jose only 20 minutes away from tee times. Time to grab another slice of pizza, get ready to bunker in for the final period. Sharks have to throw everything at the Stars here in the 3rd.

2nd Period [4:29]
NO GOAL?

Dallas Goal
MORROW (RIBIERO, LEHTINEN)
Dallas 2 - Sharks 0

Well it's looking more and more bleak for the Sharks. Brendan Morrow just put one behind Nabokov, although it looks like they are taking it to the War Room in Toronto to make sure everything is on the level. Looks like it went off the skate, but doesn't look like any sort of kicking motion. Every Fact of the Game says it's good, fall in line War Room.

Dallas is jobbed like nobody's business. If that is a distinct kicking motion than I am Mickey Mouse. How dare he.

2nd Period [9:56]

After the Stars nearly made it a two goal lead, save for the post, the Sharks lead a rush up the ice that resulted in Dallas taking a penalty. Let's just pause and reflect on something for a second, Jeremy Roenick is at the moment, it's 2008 let me add, playing for a chance to be in the Western Conference finals. Jeremy Roenick. Sure, he isn't the oldest guy in the league. And I really don't like him thanks to being berraged by an onslaught of commercials when he was in Philly. But has anyone resurrected their career more like JR has? When he was in Phoenix it looked like his career was over.

Sharks powerplay over, nothing doing.

2nd Period [13:46]
Power-Play Goal
LEHTINEN (ZUBOV, MODANO)
Dallas 1 - Sharks 0

Stars make good on the powerplay chance and break the deadlock. It's a dumb penalty, but if you are the Sharks in the situation to be eliminated, you just can't take something like that. Dallas wasted little time, Zubov found Lehtinen in front of the net and he took Nabokov five-hole. Time for the Sharks to respond.

2nd Period [15:21]

Still score-less in San Jose. Both these teams are smart defensively and have amazing goalies backing them up. The Stars failed to cash in on their first opportunity on the power-play, but they've got another one thanks to a Sharks "Delay of Game" penalty. Man I hate that call. Tell me how a guy throwing the puck over the glass in the defensive zone is any different then an icing? Put the faceoff back in the zone and don't let them change.

1st Intermission

Taking advantage of the break to get some food. A little Digiorno pizza, nothing but the best, after all my body is my temple. Dallas is starting of the 2nd with about a minute of carry-over man advantage.

One of the funniest things about watching games from teams all over the country and Canada is eyeing the on-ice and board advertisements. In San Jose, is all tech related. Playstaion, San Disk, SeaGate, HP, Best Buy. At the same time in Pittsburgh it's blue collar. Car dealerships, trade schools, and the like.

1st Period [00:56]

The Stars get an opportunity on the power play themselves to finish out the first period.

Scoreless through one. If you're the Sharks, you're probably looking to get on the board in a big way sometime in the 2nd period. The 3rd hasn't been friendly to the Sharks. Their season hangs in the balance.

1st Period [4:00]

Dallas takes another penalty, holding, Sharks looking to get something done on the power-play. They set up some possession time in the offensive zone, but few chances. The best chance probably went to Dallas with a nice little shorthanded play.

1st Period [6:39]

We're more than ten minute deep into the opening period, and thus far, nothing. Perhaps had I put some time thinking into this I would have put some time into picking a game that would prove to be a little more exciting, but I guess that's the fun of the impromptu blog.

1st Period [20:00]

Alright, since this was impromptu (very impromptu I just got up from a nap a couple minutes ago) I started throwing this blog together just as the game was starting, but fear not, it's been rather uneventful so far.

The Sharks just dinked one of the crossbar in the dying seconds of a power-play. If the Sharks want to keep their season going they are going to have to cash in on the chances when Turco is out of position.