Game 1 Wednesday 10:35pm NBCSN

Two perennial playoff disappointments square off in the night cap Wednesday. One of the two will find themselves in the second round the other will be headed home early once again.

Outside of the Canucks finals run that was upended by the Bruins Vancouver has disappointed in May. Last year they were ousted by the #8 seed yet eventual Cup champion Kings. This season they are not as good plain and simple. Though he should be reserved for a backup role, they still have Roberto Luongo haunting them to go along with a much less talented offense and defensive unit compared to 2011. They only tallied 59 points which was good for a tie for the 4th most points in the West this year but good enough to land them the #3 seed thanks to a shit division. If they want to make a run they need Ryan Kessler to stay healthy and get back to his MVP like ways, while having the Sedin twins get back to the top of their game. That is a lot to ask for.

The Sharks also have disappointed year after year when the playoffs roll around. They seem to be exactly mediocre for a playoff team. The one thing they have going for them is their great home record. They only lost twice in regulation at home all year long. So if they can hold home ice that means they just need to steal one on the road. When you draw Vancouver that is absolutely possible.

The Bet:

Sharks win the series Even money

Niemi should make the biggest difference. He was arguably the best goalie this season and they have some talented offense in Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau, amongst others. They should be far more hungry than the Canucks since their team really relies on it. If they bust out in round one this year you will likely see the coach get fired and a lot of the players traded preparing for a rebuilding year. If they would like to call San Jose home for much longer they will win this series.

Bonus Bets:

Sharks win in 6 +400

Sharks win in 7 +450

They have to win one game in Vancouver if it comes early on the Sharks should win in 6 if they can’t muster one of the first two I think they win this thing in 7.

mlz

Wednesday, May 1, 2013