Why Sharks-Oilers will be must-see TV

As previously mentioned, yes -- the Sharks have only just now won their first game of the 2023-24 season.

The Silicon Valley squad was projected to have a slow start to their season. But fans and experts alike were still stunned when they started 0-10-1 -- tied for the second-worst start in league history -- and gave up 10 goals in back-to-back games -- which only three other teams in the history of the league have done. As you can imagine, that kind of start drove the team's morale into the gutter, leading to heated postgame pressers and a closed-door meeting with general manager Mike Grier.

Then, the Sharks finally got into the win column on Tuesday against the Philadelphia Flyers in a rather ugly 2-1 victory that was full of big hits and time-stopping tussles with John Tortorella's players.

Is this the start of San Jose turning their season around?

"We can celebrate for a couple of minutes and then tomorrow is another practice," Sharks forward Tomas Hertl told the local media following the win against Philly. "We have Edmonton coming and they are in similar shoes as us, so we have to be ready."

Unlike the Sharks, the Oilers were expected to be a Stanley Cup contender prior to the start of the 2023-24 campaign. And why wouldn't they be? They have a stacked forward assault led by two of the top scorers on the planet in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. 

However, Edmonton enters Thursday's matchup with just two wins on the season (2-8-1) and fell 6-2 to the Vancouver Canucks in its last outing. The Oilers are getting heavily outscored despite their offensive weapons, and their goal differential is the second-worst in the NHL at -18. 

The tension is high enough that head coach Jay Woodcroft is in the hot seat. Woodcroft was even ejected during the loss to Vancouver, which has escalated tension surrounding the team.

Keeping all of this in mind, Thursday's game between the Sharks and Oilers in San Jose is bound to have its fireworks.

The Sharks will be desperate to make Tuesday's win the start of something positive, while the Oilers will be desperate not to collapse and become the worst team in the league.

On that note: There are just two points separating the Sharks and Oilers in the standings, and a win on Thursday could help push San Jose above Edmonton in the NHL standings. 

These teams don't like each other when they're both playing well -- what kind of shenanigans are we going to see now that they are two frustrated franchises on the brink of exploding?

Have your favored streaming service cued up and ready. This is one frozen fete you won't want to miss.