The San Jose Sharks face the St. Louis Blues with both teams looking to improve from rough starts to the season. The Sharks have a 3-8-3 record while the Blues have a 3-8 record and have lost eight games in a row. Both teams are looking to climb out of last place in their divisions and the upcoming game should be a good one as a result.
The Sharks are having an awful season with their offense struggling and scoring only 2.57 goals per game. Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl have scored seven goals and 15 assists while defenseman Erik Karlsson has added 10 goals and nine assists from the point but the rest of the offense has struggled. Only four skaters have scored three goals or more while only four skaters have added six assists or more and opposing defenses can eliminate the hapless offense as a result.
The offense has struggled but the defense has also let the Sharks down, allowing 3.29 goals per game including 19 goals in the last four games. Erik Karlsson and Jaycob Megna have combined for 1.9 defensive point shares and 24 blocked shots but the rest of the unit has struggled, allowing opponents to carry the puck into the offensive zone and create open shots on the net. In addition, goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen has struggled in the net with a .878 save percentage and a 3.62 goals-against average on 148 shots.