Sutter won’t take Sharks lightly

It’s unwise to count out the San Jose Sharks. The four-time defending Pacific Division champions could still go either way over the last three days of the regular season — win the division or make the playoffs — and after stumbling in the early part of March, the Sharks have now won five of their last seven games, including a huge two-game sweep of Dallas this week. Darryl Sutter came away impressed with San Jose’s victory over Dallas on Tuesday…

SUTTER: “A good hockey club. Two great lines. There’s a reason that they were a favorite before the season, and there’s a reason that they still are. I’m not saying that because we’re playing (tonight). You’ve got Thornton, Marleau, Pavelski, and then you go Couture, Clowe and Havlat. You take Burns and Boyle. Hey, how would you like that? That’s pretty good.’’

Does Sutter view the Sharks as the “favorite”? He certainly respects them and, of course, the Sharks are only one point behind the Kings.

SUTTER: “The toughest part of that is, we’re playing a team that — for the most part — the nucleus of the team is used to winning. When you’re in that position, it does — I know, from being in that position — it does make a difference, because you can fall back on that experience. And we’re not in that position, so we have to rely on just keeping a real tight focus on shifts and periods and that type of thing.”

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