When we last saw the San Jose Sharks, they were getting skated off the ice in the Stanley Cup finals by a Pittsburgh Penguins team that was faster, deeper and more than San Jose could handle in a long series.The sour ending overshadowed a remarkable run by the Sharks, one that saw them return to Western Conference power status. That was further underlined by the strong presence of San Jose players on Canadas World Cup team, where Joe Thornton, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Logan Couture all played important roles.NHL history hasnt been kind to the Stanley Cup runner-up. Its hard to climb that mountain, get knocked off and then begin that long climb again.The Lightning did well to get to the Eastern Conference finals last year, but they certainly had their regular-season issues along the way.Guys are excited to get back and get this season started, said Couture. There was a sense of disappointment once it ended. Throughout the summer, talking to guys, everyone is just excited to get back and get going again.They have a full season under coach Peter DeBoer, so there should be a heightened comfort level in his system. They also will be playing with the confidence that comes on the heels of a long playoff run, one that included a payback series against the rival?Los Angeles Kings.The Pacific is wide open, and the Sharks are best built to take advantage.Best new facesThe Sharks used team speed to beat the?St. Louis Blues?in the Western Conference finals but didnt quite have enough to match up with the Penguins. The addition of Mikkel Boedker helps address that. Boedker is a great skater who adds to an already-deep group of forwards in San Jose.We got better this summer, Couture said. [Boedker] is a quick guy. We played against him a lot in our division. Hes going to help our power play. Hes going to add speed and depth. Hes going to push guys down in the lineup where we can have an edge in matchups.It was a nice signing by GM Doug Wilson, similar to the unheralded additions of Joel Ward and Paul Martin the previous offseason.The addition of David Schlemko on defense was another quiet but effective addition. Hell bring mobility and puck-moving to the bottom end of the Sharks defense.Biggest unknownsLike the Lightning -- runners-up in 2015-16 -- before them, the Sharks have contract issues to resolve, and you just know how thats going to impact play on the ice. Defenseman Brent Burns?is a dynamic defenseman who has emerged as one of the best in the league -- but he needs a new deal and is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season.?Wilson has traditionally gotten his core players to stay in San Jose at a discounted rate and very reasonable terms. As other general managers were giving out crazy, decade-long deals to their players when that was allowed under the previous CBA, guys like Thornton and Patrick Marleau instead signed team-friendly deals to keep the Sharks competitive.Both Marleau and Thornton are also entering the last years of their contracts. The expectation is that Thornton wont be going anywhere, but Marleaus status isnt quite as clear.Sure thingsLets make this section a Marc-Edouard Vlasic appreciation. He got some love during the Stanley Cup finals and occasionally his game was highlighted during the World Cup, but when you play with a wildman like Brent Burns, you tend to get overlooked.Vlasic is a sure thing. DeBoer knows what hes getting every night from Vlasic and sends him out on the hardest assignments every game. Vlasic and Justin Braun face the toughest competition and still control the play a majority of the time. The Sharks controlled 52.7 percent of the even-strength shot attempts when those two were on the ice together last season.Vlasics presence frees up Burns to play against slightly easier competition, usually starting in the offensive zone. Vlasic, meanwhile, started just 42.8 percent of his even-strength shifts in the offensive zone. Hes invaluable to the Sharks.Hes, in my mind, the best shutdown guy in our conference and I think the NHL, Couture said. Hes just a quiet player and he plays that effortless quiet game.PredictionThe Sharks are going to win the Pacific and enter the postseason as a favorite to represent the Western Conference again in the Stanley Cup finals. Joe Thornton is winding down his career and this is a team capable of giving him a real shot at finally hoisting the Stanley Cup. First in the Pacific;?Stanley Cup finalists. Replica Shoes .ca! Kerry, Two nights after the Scott-Eriksson incident in Buffalo, the Bruins returned home to play San Jose. In that game, Zdeno Chara put a check on Tommy Wingels that clearly targeted his head. Fake Shoes From China . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. https://www.fakeshoes.net/ . Pence singled in the winning run with no outs in the ninth inning to give the Giants a 7-6 victory over the San Diego Padres on Sunday. Wholesale Fake Shoes . -- There were a lot of firsts for the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. Fake Jordan . Dukurs winning time was 1 minute, 45.76 seconds, a quarter-second better than Russias Alexander Tretiakov. Lativas Tomass Dukurs was third, 1.41 seconds off the pace. Jon Montgomery of Eckville, Alta. International Melbourne Victory pair Marco Rojas and Natasha Dowie have been voted as the A-League and W-League players of the month for November.New Zealand winger Rojas has scored or assisted in each A-League game hes played in this season, earning him the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) monthly gong.The 25-year-old, whose side faces cross-town rivals Melbourne City on Saturday night, said he was delighted to have hit the ground running on his return to Australia.Im very happy to be back in the A-League with Victory, he said.The support I have received from the club, my teammates and the fans has been brilliant and Im really enjoying my football.Rojas missed last weekends 3-0 win with Westeern Sydney with a hamstring complaint and could be restricted to bench duties for the derby.ddddddddddddDowie, a former England international who harbours hopes of returning to the national team through her W-League displays, netted three times during November.Victorys womens side is struggling on the bottom of the league but Dowie has provided invention and effort up front.This award means a lot to players and to have been chosen by my peers as the PFA W-League Player of the Month is a real honour, she said.The awards are voted on by A-League and W-League players each month. 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