Free Republic

The cat slipped onto the ice Friday before the Sharks won a big playoff gameThe San Jose Sharks got an unexpected visit Friday. Before the NHL team beat the Nashville Predators 5-2 at the SAP Center, a black cat crept out of the player bench area and scurried onto the ice. As the Sharks warmed up for the first game of their best-of-seven playoff series, fans watched the small feline making a beeline for an oversized, fiberglass shark head, only to escape under the seats at "the Shark Tank," as the arena is known. The venue’s staff was able...

SAN JOSE -- The Sharks are not backing down from their plan to recruit "ice girls" to help clean the playing surface during each game despite a backlash from a segment of their fan base. "Fans take pride in the Sharks not objectifying women. Please keep the Tank a family environment," SharksFanTX wrote on Twitter. Another ended her Twitter complaint with an "#icegirlsareadealbreaker" hashtag, vowing to cancel season tickets if the team sticks with its plan. And with little publicity, a "Say NO to Sharks Ice Girls" page on Facebook, as well as a similar petition at change.org, attracted more...

Todd McLellan stopped short of labeling the Sharks' regular season a disappointment. "We got where we wanted to go," the coach said Saturday night after the Sharks were eliminated by the St. Louis Blues in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series. "We wanted to get into the tournament." But whenever a franchise loses its standing as one of the NHL elite, it's a disappointment. So now what? The angriest segment of the fan base has been calling for a roster makeover for weeks, and the volume will only increase after a five-game playoff stay that was the shortest in...