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Ducks look for first win against unbeaten Sharks

Oct 17, 2008 - 10:07 AM San Jose (4-0-0) at Anaheim (0-4-0), 10:00 pm EDT

ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- The San Jose Sharks are swimming freely while the Anaheim Ducks are slowly sinking.

Looking to avoid a winless stretch in their opening five games for the first time since opening 0-4-1 in 2003-04, the Ducks host their unbeaten division rival on Friday.

San Jose recorded a 4-1 triumph over Anaheim in the teams' season opener on October 9, and has continued to roll ever since. Captain Patrick Marleau, who had a disappointing 48 points last season, is tied for the team lead with four points in four games and goaltender Evgeni Nabokov has been near impenetrable, posting a 1.33 goals-against average in three games.

Meanwhile, first-year coach Todd McLellan is thriving with his new club, becoming the first coach to win his first four NHL games since Peter Laviolette did so with the New York Islanders in 2001.

San Jose, which is 22-2-2 in its last 26 regular-season games dating back to 2007-08, is coming off a 5-2 triumph over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday. Marleau scored twice and Nabokov made 31 saves as the Sharks notched their first 4-0-0 start in franchise history.

After back-to-back 100-point seasons, the Ducks fell to 0-3-0 for only the third time in team history with a 6-3 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday. The following night, they dropped a 3-2 decision to the Edmonton Oilers, even though they took only four penalty minutes.

Goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere sat in favor of backup Jonas Hiller, who made 25 saves.