San Jose Sharks and National Hockey League 2008-09 schedule released Thursday

The NHL released the full 2008-09 regular season schedule on Thursday. The San Jose Sharks have posted downloadable and printable versions here. The NHL will kick off 2008-09 with back-to-back games in Prague and Stockholm. Tampa Bay will face the New York Rangers in the Czech Republic Oct. 4th and 5th and Ottawa will meet Pittsburg at the Globe Arena in downtown Stockholm also on Oct. 4th and 5th.

The Sharks will play 24 games within the Pacific Division (6 games against Anaheim, Dallas, Los Angeles and Phoenix), 40 games against Western Conference opponents (four games against Northwest Division opponents Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton, Minnesota, Vancouver, four games against Central Division opponents Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Nashville, St. Louis), and 18 games against the Eastern Conference.

The Sharks only have to face a longest road trip of 5 games this season (Feb. 7 at Columbus, Feb. 10 at Boston, Feb. 11 at Pittsburgh, Feb. 13 at Buffalo, Feb. 15 at New Jersey), after enduring a monster 11-of-13 road trip in 2007-08. The Sharks dropped the first three games of that road trip before winning the next 10 as part of an 11-game winning streak. San Jose finished with a point streak of 20 games before dropping the final two games of the regular season to Los Angeles and Dallas. San Jose will have 14 back-to-back games in 2008-09, and will participate in the lone NHL game on Feburary 23rd against the Dallas Stars in a WCSF playoff rematch.

The Sharks open the preseason and regular season against Pacific Division rival Anaheim in contests that will instantly test new head coach Todd McLellan. The Sharks and former Bolts Dan Boyle and Brad Lukowich will visit Tampa Bay on the back end of a 3-game Eastern Conference road trip in October. Hockey fans in the Bay Area will see back-to-back games against Stanley Cup Finalists Pittsburgh and Detroit October 28th and 30th, and the Toronto Maple Leafs and former head coach Ron Wilson will return to the tank December 2nd. Boston, Buffalo, Florida, Montreal, New Jersey, and Ottawa are the Eastern Conference teams that will not visit HP Pavilion this season, four of those teams played road games in San Jose last season.

During the Sharks home opener against the Boston Bruins last season, the power cut-off during the pregame skate cutting short the introduction of the new gigantic HD video screen and wrap-around video boards. The "Power Outage" game continued without national anthems, and without interior music and many video or display functions. Boston defenseman Aaron Ward broke a 1-1 tie with 12 seconds left in the third period to give the Bruins the road win, but it was one of the most unusual and entertaining games of the season. The Sharks need to have a t-shirt giveaway on the opening game of 2008-09 against the Ducks. All black shirts with a simple "Beat Anaheim" on the front. With Dan Boyle and Rob Blake manning the points on the San Jose power play, there are not going to be too many outages on the power play next season but they could start with a fan black out.

Preseason

September:
Sep. 24 at Anaheim, 7:00 p.m.
Sep. 26 Anaheim, 7:30 p.m.
Sep. 29 at Phoenix, 7:00 p.m.
Sep. 30 Phoenix, 7:30 p.m.

October:
Oct. 2 at Vancouver, 7:00 p.m.
Oct. 5 at Los Angeles, 5:00 p.m. (Salt Lake City)

Regular Season

October:
Oct. 9 Anaheim, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 11 Los Angeles, 7 p.m.
Oct. 12 at Los Angeles, 6 p.m.
Oct. 14 Columbus, 4:30 p.m.
Oct. 17 at Anaheim, 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 22 at Philadelphia, 4 p.m.
Oct. 24 at Florida, 4:30 p.m.
Oct. 25 at Tampa Bay, 4:30 p.m.
Oct. 28 Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 30 Detroit, 7:30 p.m.

November:
Nov. 2 at Colorado, 6 p.m.
Nov. 4 Minnesota, 5:30 p.m.
Nov. 6 St. Louis, 5:30 p.m.
Nov. 8 Dallas, 7 p.m.
Nov. 9 at Phoenix, 5 p.m.
Nov. 11 Nashville, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 13 Calgary, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 16 at Chicago, 4 p.m.
Nov. 17 at Nashville, 5 p.m.
Nov. 22 Washington, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 26 Chicago, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 28 at Dallas, 5:30 p.m.
Nov. 29 at Phoenix, 6 p.m.

December:
Dec. 2 Toronto, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 4 Columbus, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 6 Edmonton, 7 p.m.
Dec. 11 Anaheim, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 13 St. Louis, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 15 at Los Angeles, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 17 at Columbus, 4 p.m.
Dec. 18 at Detroit, 4:30 p.m.
Dec. 20 N.Y. Rangers, 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 23 Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Dec. 27 at St. Louis, 5:30 p.m.
Dec. 29 at Dallas, 5:30 p.m.
Dec. 31 at Minnesota, 3 p.m.

January:
Jan. 3 N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 6 at Calgary, 6 p.m.
Jan. 9 at Edmonton, 6 p.m.
Jan. 10 at Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Jan. 13 Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 15 Calgary, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 17 Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 20 Vancouver, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 24-25 (NHL Allstar Weekend in Montreal)
Jan. 27 at Colorado, 6 p.m.
Jan. 29 Phoenix, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 31 Chicago, 7:30 p.m.

February:
Feb. 5 Carolina, 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 7 at Columbus, 4 p.m.
Feb. 10 at Boston, 4 p.m.
Feb. 11 at Pittsburgh, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 13 at Buffalo, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 15 at New Jersey, 10 a.m.
Feb. 17 Edmonton, 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 19 Los Angeles, 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 21 Atlanta, 1 p.m.
Feb. 23 at Dallas, 5 p.m.
Feb. 25 at Detroit, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 26 at Ottawa, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 28 at Montreal, 4 p.m.

March:
Mar. 3 Dallas, 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 5 Minnesota, 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 7 at Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Mar. 10 at Minnesota, 5 p.m.
Mar. 12 at St. Louis, 5:30 p.m.
Mar. 14 Los Angeles, 7 p.m.
Mar. 15 at Anaheim, 5 p.m.
Mar. 17 at Phoenix, 6 p.m.
Mar. 19 Nashville, 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 21 Dallas, 1 p.m.
Mar. 22 Colorado, 5 p.m.
Mar. 25 at Chicago, 5:30 p.m.
Mar. 26 at Nashville, 5 p.m.
Mar. 28 Phoenix, 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 30 at Calgary, 6 p.m.

April:
Apr. 2 at Edmonton, 6 p.m.
Apr. 4 Anaheim, 7 p.m.
Apr. 5 at Anaheim, 5 p.m.
Apr. 7 Colorado, 7:30 p.m.
Apr. 9 Phoenix, 7:30 p.m.
Apr. 11 at Los Angeles, 1 p.m.

[Update] Inside the 2008-09 Schedule - NHL.com.

Shark Notes: July 15th

- San Jose Sharks center Jeremy Roenick fired a 2 under par 70 to lead the first round of the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship last weekend in Lake Tahoe. Roenick registered a 6 over par 78 on day 2, and a 2 over par on day 3 to finish 9th overall (9 birdies, 14 bogeys, 0 penalty minutes). The official tournament website is available at tahoecelebritygolf.com. Video of Roenick's birdie put above courtesy of Yahoo's Greg Wyshynski, who has more on Roenick saving playing partner Tony Romo from a water hazard.

Also getting in on the golf action is new Shark defenseman Dan Boyle, who is competing in the 7th Annual Rautins-House Celebrity Classic held at the Rivermead Golf Club in Ottawa.

- The Sharks announced the signings of centers Marcel Goc, Tom Cavanagh and defenseman turned right wing Brad Staubitz on Monday. Marcel Goc registered 5 goals and 8 points in 53 games played for the Sharks on the checking line last season. In the past he competed for Team Germany in the 2008 World Championships and 2006 Olympics. The Sharks need Marcel Goc to fill out a more of a defensive specialist role, a player who can win key faceoffs and make high percentage plays in his own zone. Right wing Tom Cavanagh signed a 1-year contract after registering 12 goals and 32 assists in 77 games played with the Worcester Sharks last season. Cavanagh earned an assist on a Joe Thornton goal 36 seconds into his only NHL game played last season against Los Angeles. Right wing Brad Staubitz also signed a 1-year contract. "Brad is a big, strong player that has shown improvement in his three seasons in our organization. We asked him to change from defense to forward and he has accepted the challenge and is making the most of it." San Jose Sharks General manager and EVP Doug Wilson said of Staubitz.

- The box office dropoff for Mike Myers' Love Guru has been precipitous. After opening with a $13+ million weekend, the Guru drew just under $2 million in week 3, and $549,853 in week 4. The number of theaters airing the movie has dropped from 3,012 to 909.

- Eurohockey.net announced the Worcester Sharks signing of former Worcester Icecats defenseman Brendan Buckley from the Iserlohn Roosters of the Deutscher Eishockey Liga. Prior to his season in Germany, Buckley was the captain of the AHL's Manchester Monarchs in 2006-07. The Worcester Telegram and Gazette's Bill Ballou also notes that veteran sniper Cory Larose is expected to sign with the Sharks top AHL affilate after the loss of the two top scorers in Mike Iggulden and Graham Mink. The AHL Sharks have holes on defense they will need to fill with the loss of Wishart, Carle and Brennan Evans. Bill Ballou reports that those may be addressed with Matt Kinch and Brett Westgarth.

- An "open source" rumor from Daniel Sallows that the San Jose Sharks and Montreal Canadiens are interested in 39 year old veteran Brendan Shanahan after he turned down the Vancouver Canucks. If he reportedly turned down a $2M offer from Vancouver, how is he rumored to go to a team with less than $1.4M of cap space with left wing Ryane Clowe still unsigned?

Shanahan's agent Rick Curran denied the Canucks even made an offer today in the Vancouver Province.

- San Jose Mercury News beat writer David Pollak offered an update of sorts on the Sharks progress signing restricted free agent Ryane Clowe. Pollak previously reported that Clowe and general manager Doug Wilson had a handshake agreement on a deal, but the length of the contract was still not determined. Pollak contacted Clowe's agent Paul Cobeil, who would not comment on the negotiations.

The situation is compounded by a serious knee injury Clowe suffered in October that needed surgery. He missed 65 games of the regular season, returning to register 2 assists in the final 4 games of the year. Clowe exploded in the first round of the playoffs, scoring 4 goals and 4 assists in the first 5 games of the Western Conference Quarterfinal series against Calgary. He was held to 1 goal in the subsequent 8 playoff games against Calgary and Dallas. Also compounding the situation is a DUI arrest that happened earlier this season, and prior injuries that have limited the rugged Newfoundland power forward to only 126 NHL/AHL games played in the last 3 seasons. Ryane Clowe lead the AHL Cleveland Barons in scoring in 2004-05, but it took time for him to adjust his game to the NHL level. He skated hard in his first callup, but in subsequent seasons he has learned where to skate and how few NHL defenseman can knock him off the puck.

The situation is also compounded on the Sharks side by the lack of cap room available and the fact that Ryane Clowe fills a role that few others in the organization are suited for. Rookie Devin Setoguchi's development mitigated the loss of Steve Bernier, but Bernier and Clowe were the two Sharks most effective setting up in front of the opponent's crease. Without Clowe the Sharks will still have a quick transition game and a dominant power play, but hard nosed goals in front of the net come at a premium in the postseason. With 7 NHL roster defenseman under contract and Clowe expected to fill out the top 12 forwards, more roster maneuvering may still be in the works for general manager Doug Wilson. Worcester RFA's Lukas Kaspar, Mike Morris and Riley Armstrong also remain unsigned.

There was no update on the Clowe negotiations from the Sharks on Monday.

- On the July 10th episode of the Leafs Lunch podcast, available for download free on Itunes, San Jose Sharks general manager Doug Wilson discussed playoff expectations, the recent acquisitions of Dan Boyle and Rob Blake, how the Sharks are looking to initiate offense through the defense, how the core Sharks players are coming into their prime, what the Sharks could expect from new head coach Todd McLellan and what the Toronto Maple Leafs can expect from coach Ron Wilson among other topics.

- Not Sharks related, but there has been another massive round of layoffs in local newspapers and newsrooms. 29 jobs were eliminated by MediaNews in the East Bay, 17 at the San Jose Mercury News, 6 at the Palo Alto Daily News, and 8 for NBC's local KNTV station in San Jose. There were also several recent departures at CBS's channel 5. In southern California the Los Angeles Times announced cuts of 250 employees, 150 from the news department. One small bright spot, a new free daily has launched in the penninsula with the Palo Alto Daily Post. Created by former Palo Alto Daily News founders Dave Price and Jim Pavelich, the Post focuses on local and national news Monday through Friday.

[Update] Sharks Ice Supports LIVESTRONG Challenge, Sharks Ice Volunteers Turn Power Stop #2 Into Sharks Territory - SJsharks.com.

[Update2] Wilson doesn't stand pat after Sharks fall short - retools contending team - CP.

"We played five good playoff games out of 13," Sharks GM Doug Wilson told The Canadian Press on Thursday. "That's not acceptable. We decided to make some changes." Say hello Todd McLellan, Rob Blake, Dan Boyle and Brad Lukowich. "We've added four people and every one of them has won a Stanley Cup," said Wilson.

The message couldn't be any more clear than being slapped on the head with a two-by-four. Yes, the Sharks have a talented roster led by the likes of Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Milan Michalek and Jonathan Cheechoo but the group needed a little push to get over the hump. Blake won a Cup with Colorado in 2001, Boyle and Lukowich with Tampa Bay in 2004 and McLellan sipped champagne last month. They've been there. They know what it takes.

[Update3] The Sharks released the 2008-09 preseason schedule today:

Wednesday, Sept. 24 @ Anaheim
Honda Center 7.00 p.m.

Friday, Sept. 26 - Anaheim
HP Pavilion at San Jose, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 27 - Vancouver
HP Pavilion at San Jose, 7:30 p.m.

Monday, Sept. 29 @ Phoenix
Jobing.com Arena, 7:00 p.m.

Tuesday, Sept. 30 - Phoenix
HP Pavilion at San Jose, 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, Oct. 2 @ Vancouver
GM Place, 7:00 p.m.

Sunday, Oct. 5 @ Los Angeles
Energy Solutions Arena, Salt Lake City, UT, 5:00 p.m.

According to the Sharks, the final two pre-season games against Vancouver and Los Angeles will be broadcast on 98.5 KFOX and the San Jose Sharks Radio Network.