Goalies loom large in California showdown

SAN JOSE, CALIF.— For more than a decade there have been no questions about who will start in goal for the San Jose Sharks come playoff time.

Whether it was Evgeni Nabokov or Antti Niemi, the Sharks have had a clear-cut No. 1 goalie and stuck with him through good and bad.

That could change this year as coach Todd McLellan has yet to commit publicly to either Niemi or Alex Stalock for Game 1 of the first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night. While Niemi started 64 games in the regular season, Stalock put up better numbers, especially down the stretch. That led to questions about whether Niemi will start the opener and whether McLellan will stick with him if he struggles at all against the Kings.

“Either way you’ve got to prepare yourself to be ready,” Niemi said.

Niemi has started all 34 playoff games since joining San Jose in 201011, including 13 against the Kings. But with Niemi struggling late in the season (3.11 goals-against average in his final six games) and the emergence of Stalock (12-5-2,1.87 GAA, .932 save percentage) McLellan has a tougher choice than usual. “It’s more about what we do than what they do,” Kings defenceman Drew Doughty said. “We know it’s going to be a challenge to score on either guy.” There are no questions about who will start for Los Angeles as Jonathan Quick leads the NHL in playoff wins (25), shutouts (6), goals-against average (1.62) and has a .940 save percentage the past two post-seasons. Quick won the Conn Smythe trophy as playoff MVP after leading the Kings to the Stanley Cup in 2012 and was outstanding in knocking out San Jose in the second round last year.