GATHER ROUND, for the Sharks NHL playoff season has just begun. Sounds like the beginning of a bad fable. The Ducks play possum all season only to tease the Sharks in the playoffs. And somehow, regardless of how much the Sharks try to devour the nimble little Ducks, even when Anaheim is outnumbered it still manages to confuse and beat the Sharks. The first game of the playoffs, on April 16, at HP Pavilion couldn't have been more painful to watch. By the third period the fable was a downright nightmare. The Sharks take more than twice as many shots on goal, but when I look away there are all the unused power plays glaring at me. I can't even wake up before Ducks Center Ryan Getzalf leaves the penalty box only to receive a pass that was artfully transformed into the 2-0 final score.

The second game of the series picked up where the first ended. The horror-fable, now almost a cheesy soap opera, continued to disappoint Sharks fans, with the Ducks taking the lead in the first period and ending in a 3-2 final score. One could say the series isn't won in the first game or even in the second, but now the Sharks are forced to take some serious action in Anaheim. Come on lucky beard, come on, don't let us down now!

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