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The Edmonton Oilers will be facing the San Jose Sharks, and this is one Stanley Cup playoff game that will have the hockey world's full attention.
Nobody saw this playoff match up coming. Sure, we all envisioned the Sharks doing well in the playoffs. Joe Thornton and Jonathon Cheechoo have been amazing and the Sharks got some good goaltending from Vesa Toskola after Evengi Nabokov took a nose dive. But Edmonton? I'm sure the fans of the Oilers will say they've known all along, but I know they're a little shocked along with Detroit. The many Detroit Red Wings message boards feature stunned fans still trying to figure out what happened. The AOL Detroit Red Wings Forum features threads with titles like, "Chokers of Hockeytown" and "Next year..." The fans must be muttering: "We were playing Edmonton. How could this happen?" This is their Kennedy assassination and they're beginning to look for clues on the grassy knoll. This series should be an exciting one to watch. Speed, scoring and acrobatic goaltending will surely all be a factor in this series. On offense, after the first round, Patrick Marleau lead the league in goals with seven and Fernando Pisani lead the Oilers with five goals scored. Both teams have shown that they are able to work hard for the puck and not give up. Both teams have a defense that is capable keeping other teams at bay. San Jose's Scott Hannan and Kyle McLaren are big, strong guys that know how to use their size. Edmonton Oiler's Chris Pronger is another big guy who logs a ton of ice time. Along with Jason Smith, Tarnstrom and Staios they should be able to keep the Sharks at bay. Well, as long as Pronger maintains and stays out of the penalty box. Goaltending is a little suspect on both teams, with Vesa Toskola in net for the Sharks and Dwayne Roloson in net for the Oilers. Toskola didn't have any playoff experience coming into the first round, but really delivered the goods against the Nashville Predators. Roloson didn't exactly have an outstanding regular season, but really turned it up during the first round against the Red Wings.
The copyright of the article NHL preview: Sharks vs, Oilers in Ice Hockey is owned by Mike Carr. Permission to republish NHL preview: Sharks vs, Oilers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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