Why do you do that to Pekka Rinne. What is the purpose of pulling him that late in the third period? If he pulls a Patrick Roy, I personally would not blame him. He’s the only guy who played his heart out in Game 7. He put himself on the line and was stripped bear due to faulty defense – something that never happened to the Predators, who were entirely defensively built all year – especially from Shea Weber. I don’t think Pekka Rinne liked what he saw. I know I didn’t. The Predators had one exciting Game 7. That’s their limit.

San Jose played like they played all series. They played with all members of their team actively participating, with the depth and determination that makes a winner. It’s quite easy to see how they got dominant wins throughout this series, including this game.

Martin Jones should enter the third round with some confidence, after getting a shutout in a clinching game. It’s what Ben Bishop does and he starts hot. Jones isn’t an elite goaltender, but in the playoffs you don’t need to be. You need to be good and you need to make the stops necessary to win. So far, Jones has proven beyond capable of doing so, and he has kept the Sharks in some games they didn’t otherwise deserve to be in.

The San Jose defense was the far superior in Game 7. Nobody played too many minutes, and it shows how well rounded the Sharks are as a whole. There’s not one active weak spot on the Sharks D, unlike the Stars and the Blackhawks, and it’ll be interesting to see how they fare against the Blues. Brett Burns continues to be a dominant defenseman and continues to prove why he should be in ultimate contention for the Norris – which he is.

There isn’t one line on this team that you can shut down and keep them from winning. If you shut down the first line, the second/third/fourth will find ways to score. If you focus on Couture, Thornton/Pavelski/Marleau will beat you. If you take away Brett Burns you’re keeping everything down low active and shooting. The Blues strategy has been to take away one or two key players – Kane and Toews; Benn and Spezza – but they can be beaten by depth players coming out of nowhere. The Sharks have had plenty of this, and will continue to do so against St. Louis – the Blues may take away Pavelski and Thornton/Couture/Marleau – but they will leave two of those open and will be attacked for it. Not to mention the depth they have on the wings, with Joel Ward capable of scoring, same with everybody from the first line to the fourth.

The Predators stopped playing like they had and they suffered for it. If the Blues make the same mistake it will be their demise. And the Sharks aren’t the same team as the Stars or Blackhawks – they will grind just as hard as St. Louis. They will out work them, and they will out perform them. If the Blues make it out of this series, it will be because of missed calls and puck luck and nothing more.

Sharks in 6.