Sharks Take 3-1 Lead

San Jose
Sharks

"I think we have to be taken seriously now," San Jose's Tony Granato said.

Gary Suter scored the game-winning goal with 8:37 remaining with a slap shot that hit the stick of Blues' Jamal Mayers and bounced once off the ice into the net.

"The team we're playing is not going to quit. Things are going our way, the puck is finding a way to get to you," Suter said. "We still have a long way to go. We have to remain focused. They're a good team."

Sharks are looking to repeat their 1994 feat, when they as an eight-seed upset Detroit in the first round.

"We have taken a page out of their book," San Jose captain Owen Nolan said. "We have to be patient, play basic hockey and take advantage of our chances. We're not surprised on how we're playing. You can't come into a series, thinking you are going to lose."

The Blues are searching for boost from last year's playoffs when they came back from 3-1 deficit in the first round against Phoenix.

"We're frustrated. We are not getting the bounces we got last year," Mayers said. "We've got to work harder. It doesn't matter how hard we work, it doesn't matter if we don't win."

"Right now, they are finding ways to win. They are getting the bounces," Blues defenseman Al MacInnis said. "If anyone is thinking just because you finish first it would be easy, they would be wrong. Now we got to do what we did last year. We're a little frustrated but we've got to stay positive."