by Ivan Makarov and Kahlil Najar

SAN JOSE–The NHL All-Star break was a Godsend for the San Jose Sharks after dropping two straight games on Jan 17th & 19th and then winning three straight games and they needed it and the Sharks are really starting to play some solid hockey and their getting into their rhythm and certainly in the big games and the games really matter they played against some really good teams in L.A. and Anaheim and things are really starting to pick up for the Sharks.

Of course they beat them and shutout the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday as well 2-0 that’s a good sign. The break helped and they had one player that went to the All-Star break Brett Burns and the rest of the team got to rest up and got ready for the next stanza of the NHL season and now it’s a key stretch of the season leading to the playoffs and they looked like they were making a run for the Stanley Cup and it was a great time for them to take a break.

The defense is making the biggest difference so far compared to earlier with a shaky defense the Sharks are really getting their bearings down and their starting to play more conservatively and their getting into the rhythm of playing a lot and playing them well. Antti Niemi is getting into the flow of not letting a lot of pucks into the net during this period. You can spot a huge difference in the Chicago game Niemi was the biggest difference maker on the ice and played one of his best games as a Shark and that was important.

The Sharks who struggled through the first two periods of Monday’s game getting aced 3-1 through the second period face the Edmonton Oilers who are one of the younger teams that we can see today on the ice and they have a lot of talent and the goal that Jordan Eberle scored for Edmonton was one of the best goals he scored this season and that’s the first time this season where he just walked past two players and put it in the net and the Oilers have a lot of talent when you look around.

There are a lot of number one draft picks but the Oilers are generally struggling on defense and goaltending and confidence and it’s strange to see they are number 28 with all that talent they have a couple years ago they had one of the top units losing a lot of games but now nothing is happening for them.

The Oilers and Sharks played tooth and nail in Monday night’s game. You just can’t tell what’s going to happen on the ice sometimes. Every year you hear critics say that this is the year the Oilers get better and this could be the year their going to continue to change the team and change the coaches but at this point with all the talent they drafted it could be any year that they succeed.

The Sharks still have the reputation of a team that any top team can lose to a bottom team on any given night something they still can overcome.There’s plenty of time left in the season with some key games coming up for San Jose as they are scheduled to meet in Calgary and Vancouver and they’re trying to improve their position in the standings and maybe get a nice home advantage in the playoffs for one or two series there’s still a lot of hockey to play.

Ivan Markarov is a beat writer covering San Jose Sharks hockey and Kahlil Najar will be covering the AHL team in San Jose in the fall for http://www.sportsradioservice.com catch their podcast below