San Jose, Calif. – Saturday, October 8 officially marked the opening night in the HP Pavilion as the 2011-2012 campaign began for the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks faced their Pacific Division rivals Phoenix Coyotes

A very busy off-season for the club as well for the front office as many transactions were made to assemble to arguably the best Sharks squad ever in its franchise history.

It is a totally brand new team improving its blue line with the addition of one of the top-four defensemen in the league, Brent Burns.

During the pre-season, it foreshadowed what the Sharks offered as they recorded a 5-1 record with dominant performances on both ends.

The Sharks entered the game with high hopes to give the fans what they wanted, a win. And the fans got what they wanted.

The Sharks dominated majority of the game as they controlled both blue lines. 

Both Joe Pavelski & first-year player, Andrew Desjardins, tallied up 2 goals each in the game.

Ryan Clowe contributed in the 2^nd Period as he scored on a PP. In addition, serving his first stint with the Sharks, Michael Handzus scored his first goal of the season in the first period with the help of Torrey Mitchell & Jason Demers.

Phoenix’s Captain Shane Doan showed up as he contributed a pair of Power Play goals including a scored-goal from their own Defensemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the 3^rd Period.

It was evident that the Sharks looked rejuvenated. The hustle and second effort was there. The question is will they keep it up for the rest of the season?

Phoenix stays on the road as the travel to Dallas to face the Dallas Stars in the American Airlines Center at 6:00p.m. ET

The Sharks will be back in action on Friday, October 14 in Ahaheim as they face the Ducks in the Honda Center.

Puck Drops 10:00p.m. ET

Game Notes:  A moment of silence was held before the game for Raiders owner Al Davis, Apple Co-Founder Steve Jobs, & the lives lost in the recent shooting in Cupertino, Ca. Martin Havlat was inactive as he is recovering from a shoulder injury.