So, the Sharks are out. I’ll probably have more to say later, once this really sinks in and I can fully digest it, but here is my first post-series reaction that I posted over at Fear the Fin:

This season was a great season by all accounts. We finished first in the Western Conference in the regular season, setting records of the most third period regulation comebacks. We scored 6 goals in the third period against Nashville. We beat Calgary 9-1 (!!!) in a busting of schnides.

Even in the playoffs, where we are known for not quite performing up to expectations, we did well. We were so kick-ass, we decided to score 6 game winning goals against Chicago, instead of the four that you’re supposed to. We rose above the own-goals and decided, “To hell with it,” and beat Colorado. I know I was a bit despondent after Game 3 (I had a post-it on the door warning people to not talk to me about hockey of any sort), and that they came out and righted ship immediately was awesome.

Detroit… We slayed some serious demons there. Five games. Five games! And we won a game in the Joe! Honestly, as soon as they beat Detroit, I had declared this post-season a success. For years, Detroit has been in our heads. For years, we could not beat them, in the regular season or the playoffs. And then this year, we did it. And not in seven games, like in 1994. But in five. I’m proud of the boys for that. I don’t care what anyone else says – they showed heart in that series.

As for Chicago, well, it sucked, not going to lie. The first series I could actually watch on TV was the series where they went winless (I maintain that if I stayed in LA, they would have won, but whatever). The fact is, despite the sweep, the boys played great. A few bounces that go the other way, and Chicago might have been swept. There was no giving up by the Sharks; they were always pushing back, trying to get the win. That shorty by Marleau was a thing of beauty (also, something I totally called right before the PK). Unfortunately, they couldn’t, and here we are today.

Pavelski was the hero against Colorado, Thornton stepped up against Detroit, and Marleau was pretty much the entire offense against Chicago. Nabokov was a steady presence in goal, allowing a few softies but keeping out what needed to be kept out for the most part. Our big guns were our big guns (except for Heatley, who I suspect is still injured).

We ran into two goalies standing on their heads. We got past one, but fell to another. That’s how things work. I’m not going to bitch and complain about the lack of scoring or penalties called (during the game, sure, but afterwards what’s done is done). The Chicago Blackhawks were the better team. We knew this going into the series, and we know this coming out. Not by much, but still, better. They are the consensus pick for the Cup, well, except for those who picked Washington. It was not a surprise to lose to them; when we entered this series, and when I woke up this morning, I fully expected that the Sharks would not get past this round. Not that I didn’t hope the Sharks would manage to win it, but my expectations were set low. And I’m okay with that.

This was a great season. This off-season will suck, I’m not gonna lie. All the upcoming free agents – restricted and not – kicked ass in the playoffs. Pavelski was a man possessed. Setoguchi provided a good physical force. Marleau was over a point per game. Nabokov stood tall in net. Malhotra was great in the faceoff circle and on defense. Nichol was the little ball of energy we all know and love. Blake looked like he was 30, not 40. But choices will have to be made, unless all of them will play for less than $2M each, which I highly doubt. We’ll likely be losing one of Marleau or Nabokov, and my bet is on our quirky Russian.

But that’s for the future, for the rest of May and June and all the way up through October, when we’ll be starting in Sweden. Faces will stay, and faces will leave, but one thing will stay the same:

Go Sharks.

Also, I’d like to apologize to anyone that I offended or insulted in my last post. I do hate the Blackhawks (especially Dustin Byfuglien) and I hate their bandwagon fans. But lumping all of them in together with the good fans was not fair of me. I got a little (HAH!) emotional during the series, and wanted to vent. And I did. In doing so, however, this stopped being the quasi-professional blog and became more like a Livejournal, which I don’t think anybody wants. I can’t promise it won’t happen again, but I will try to refrain from writing something so emotional and pointed and posting it without sleeping on it first. To make up for it, I present you with a few GIFs that will hopefully cheer you up. Or make you more depressed, depends.