Alright so it's happened to every sports fan, your watching your favorite team and the whistle blows and a call is made that we feel is so bassackwards it's absolutely mind-blowing. Or the other scenario; there is blatant misconduct that goes uncalled and you're left wondering what the f@#*? I know some people feel this way almost every time their team plays, I mean it's all part of the game right? WRONG!

Let's take things back a little bit to the last Stanley Cup playoffs when the Anaheim Ducks walked away with the glory. Before the playoffs began the word came down from the NHL big guns assuring that officials were going to do everything they could to consistently and properly enforce the rulebook. All though accidents do happen (and they did) for the most part they upheld exactly what they promised. A blade on the body impeding progress was a hook, a player taken out of commission during a breakout to far from the puck was interference, a puck flipped out of play in the opposing teams zone was delay of game… there it was cut, dry and straight forward. So why… are these calls not consistently being called a season later… why is it not ok to "let 'em play" during the playoffs but during the season it's ok to take a lackadaisical approach to the whole gig? The last month of NHL play has absolutely made me sick, not just my own teams games but almost every game I've watched. I've seen a plain as day offside lead to goals scored, cross checking (that also could have been ruled interference) less then 10 feet from an onward looking official, pucks flipped out of play WITH NO DEFLECTION, high sticking that caused blood, goaltender interference ALL UNCALLED by onward looking officials and referees. I've watched hundreds make that thousands of minutes of hockey and seen all of this happen before but NEVER in such gross proportion and with suck negligence across the board. This is beginning to affect the integrity of the game; it's getting out of hand. I love the sport of hockey and will until the day I check out, all I'm looking for is the consistency that the NHL so diligently upholds during the playoffs and other key games. If it's a priority to uphold the rule book to a "T" during the post season then it must be during the regular season also, end of story.

Well obviously this was a disappointing loss with some VERY frustrating occurrences throughout the game. It will take a lot of will power to focus on the positive throughout this summary; I'll save my frustrations for another posting.

The Sharks began the first period much like they begin most games… slowly. They were out shot 13 to 4 going into the first intermission. The high point of the period was definitely Mike Grier's fighting major for his altercation with Cody McLeod in which he avenged the uncalled high stick causing Joe Thornton to miss a shift so the trainer could stop the flowing blood from his nose. The lone goal scored in the period by Ben Guite was actually pretty impressive display of hand eye coordination as the puck was redirected just centimeters before it found the safety of Evgeni Nabokov's glove.

For the second period the Sharks found their groove and began making up lost ground at a furious pace out driving Colorado 16 to 5. This is where the Sharks only goal of the game was scored, Sandis Ozolinsh froze the goalie with a shot turned pass the left the net wide open for Patrick Marleau to shovel one home. Even though the Sharks were able to basically dictate the pace of the period they were still unable to keep the Avalanche from scoring a power play goal on a T.J. Hensick redirected shot from the point. The third period was fairly uneventful as the Sharks posted a lukewarm effort to even up the score again out shooting the Avalanche by a smaller margin of 11 to 7. The last minute of the period was a nail-biter as the Sharks pulled Nabakov in favor of the extra attacker. The Sharks failed to capitalize and with the clock winding down Jeff Finger scored an empty net goal.

As I mentioned in the beginning of this I witnessed some VERY frustrating things that I feel are worthy of an article in themselves. I was already on edge from what I'd seen in the Caps vs. Flyers game earlier in the day, and I'm not even attached to either of those teams.

Quick Summary

In the Net:

Evgeni Nabokov (SJ) 24s â€" 2g.a.

Jose Theodore (CA) 31s -1g.a.

San Jose Playmakers: Joe Thornton, Jonathan Cheechoo, JOE PAVELSKI, Sandis Ozolinsh and last but not least Mike Grier.

San Jose Icebox: Ehrhoff (constantly caught out of position), Rissmiller (Who?), Carle (what happened to the old offensive-defenseman Carle?) and Bernier (Usually a dominant physical presence.... getting knocked around like a rag doll).

The magic day is fast approaching and trade speculation is increasing like wild fire. Who will stay? Who will go? Big names are rumored on the trade block like Hossa (ATL), Blake (LA), Marleau (SJ), and Sundin (TO).

The anticipation of Peter Forsberg's return has kept many of us on the edge of our seats. In the recent past he hasn't been able to produce much because he's been plagued with that pesky foot/ankle injury. Do we really think he can return and have a few of those Avalanche seasons that are etched in our minds?

The GM's in today's NHL are making trade predictions more challenging then ever, but here's my thought process behind some of the more "high profile" trade rumors.

Marian Hossa ( Atlanta Thrashers) â€" I don't think losing Marian Hossa is in the best interest of the Thrashers right now. I think they may have been in a position to wheel and deal prior to the minor injury of Ilya Kovalchuk which makes him a possible candidate for some rest so he can be beneficial during the push for Lord Stanley's Cup. They may want to investigate doing whatever it takes to hold onto their star right wing.

Rob Blake ( Los Angeles Kings) â€" Although I think it is going to take a hell of a trade offer to get Blake out of the grip of Kings GM Dean Lombardi I know that such a trade does exist. The Kings are a high profile team based on location alone and with the other California teams constant among the top tier the last few years they must be anxious to be considered by their Cali-counterparts and the rest of the NHL as elite contenders.

Patrick Marleau ( San Jose Sharks) - The arrival of Joe Thornton to the Sharks automatically numbered the days of Patrick Marleau. He's a talented forward often underrated among the league's giants but if you ever get a chance to watch him closely you'll see that he has lightning fast feet that generate valuable distance on the breakaway. I believe his days were numbered because of his captaincy status…. I hope I'm not to far off base with this, but given numbers alone can anyone give me one good reason why Joe Thornton shouldn't be the captain of this team? The youth and depth of the SJ sharks make Marleau expendable for someone that can put more goals in the net. The leadership is there without him unfortunately, having said that we'll see if the Sharks decide to work around that "no-trade" clause and deal him.

Mats Sundin ( Toronto Maple Leafs) â€" Let's face it… Toronto has a few things to figure out. During the off season they acquired a hell of a goalie in Vesa Toskala a goalie who managed to keep the Sharks out of hot water when the defense failed to show up night after night. Toronto is sitting in last place in the Northeast 55 games into the season, and they just got handled by the Panthers 8 â€" 0. I don't think front office changes are going to be enough to turn this ship around… watch for Sundin to get dealt in hopes of a brighter future in Toronto.

So... Those of you close to me know that I am obsessed with hockey. Though I discovered the sport fairly late in my life I've spent hours upon hours catching myself up on the dynamics of the game. I am very interested not only in actual game play but also the behind the scenes world of hockey.

Over the past year or so I've made several predictions regarding the actions of teams and players in the NHL and have been amazed to find how many of them validated themselves. During the past few months I've strayed away from my normal "hock education" routine and feel a little out of touch. I've decided to return to this routine as well as start a hockey blog here on myspace. I would like to share my analysis, reviews and predictions with everyone in an effort to better educate myself and if permitted offer some insight into the sport from my point of view. I welcome questions, comments and criticism so feel free to get involved!

Sharks vs. Blackhaws - HP Pavilion, San Jose Ca.

This game turned out to be a LONG one, finally settled in the 5th round of the shootout by none other then former Blackhawk Jeremy Roenick. The victory was the Sharks 4th in their last 5 games and the first game that LW Jody Shelley (newly acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets) was dressed. I am anxious to see the payoff of having an enforcer again even though many players have attempted to step up and fill the void created when Scott Parker went to Colorado.

The keyword for this game was PENALTIES, the Sharks found themselves in penalty trouble quite a few times in the first and were bailed out by the stellar penalty killing of Marc-Eduard Vlassic (Pickles) and Craig Rivet. Watching this game I was impressed by ongoing development of the Sharks and noticed that many players are doing a great job keeping their head up and looking for the open man. This paid off in the 3rd period on a great feed from Joe Thornton to wide open Pickles who gladly buried the puck down Nikolai Khabibulin's throat for his first goal of the season.

EXTRA, EXTRA! ***ALL ABOARD!!

Is the Cheechoo train back??? I think so....

Jonathan Chechoo scored the first Sharks goal of this game, his 6th goal in 8 games. Although he only has 11 goals to his name this season, you'll notice that lately he has been doing an awesome job moving his feet, getting to the front of the net and finding the open space. These late adjustments are paying off and I predict the Thornton - Cheechoo combination is about to make a run reminiscent to that of the 05-06 season. Let's wait and see....

Next game - Wed 2/06 vs. Colorado Avalanche.