San Jose Sharks History
The San Jose Sharks are located in San Jose, California. They are a pro ice hockey team in the Pacific Division of the NHLýs Western Conference. The Sharks play their home games in the HP Pavilion at San Jose.
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San Jose had to go through a lot to get a hockey team in the Bay Area. Many people do not consider Northern California to be a good hockey area in America but that area once had two hockey teams. After nine straight losing seasons and meager attendance, the California Golden Seals were moved to Cleveland, OH and became the Barons.
George and Gordon Gund had wanted for a while to bring hockey back to the area but the NHL vetoed the move. Howard Baldwin and others also wanted to bring a hockey franchise to the Bay Area where a new arena was getting constructed. The NHL struck a compromise. In the compromise, the Gunds would have to sell their share of the North Stars team to Baldwin's group, and the Gunds would receive an expansion team in the Bay Area and begin playing in the 1991 season. They could take a specific number of players from the North Stars to start their new team. The North Stars would participate in an expansion draft with the new team.
In May 1990, the Guns sold their portion of the North Stars. They were given their new team in San Jose. They received thousands of entries on what to name the new team. The winner by mail was ýBladesý but they didnýt like the connotation of the word. The runner up was ýSharksý and thatýs the name they chose.
From 1991-1993, the Sharks played their home games at the Cow Palace which is right outside of San Francisco. Doug Wilson was named the Sharksý first All-Star representative and captain. As with all new franchises, the Sharks were one of the worst teams in the NHL in their first few years. In the 1992-93 season, the team lost 71 times, which is an NHL record. Also, they had a 17-game losing streak during that time. They earned an unimpressive 24 points all year and won 11 games. Coach Kingston was fired after the 1992-93 year.
The Sharks moved to their new home during their third season. They impressed many of the critics by turning around a new franchise and making it as the 8th seed into the playoffs. They finished the 1993-94 season with a 33-35-16 record and 82 points. Thatýs a 58 point differential from the previous season. The Sharks pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NHL history as they beat the heavily favored Detroit Red Wings in seven games. It looked like they were going to pull off another upset in the second round as they were just one win away from advancing to the third round. The Toronto Maple Leafs won the last two games and sent the Sharks home.
The Sharks ended the 1999-2000 with their first winning record in franchise history and was due in large part to Darryl Sutter being the coach.
Ron Wilson was the coach from the 2003-2007 seasons. During the 2005-06 season, the Sharks fell to last place in their division. Many people blamed their struggles on the team not adding any players during the previous off-season. The Sharks proved they are tough and bounced back from last place in the division to fifth in the conference as the playoffs started. Todd McLellan, previously an assistant coach to the Detroit Red Wings, was hired for this 2008-09 season.
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