Coyotes at Sharks
THE STORY: The dogfight for playoff spots in the Western Conference continues Saturday when the Phoenix Coyotes visit the San Jose Sharks. Phoenix, which will be without captain Shane Doan as he sits out the second of the three-game suspension, is seventh in the West - one point ahead of both Dallas and Colorado. The Sharks, who have won three of four at home, are one point behind the eighth-place Stars.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), CSN California (San Jose)
ABOUT THE COYOTES (37-26-12): Ray Whitney extended his points streak to six games with an assist in Thursday's win over Colorado. It was the team-leading 70th point for the 39-year-old, marking the fifth time in his career he has reached the plateau. Whitney needs four points to become the 79th player in NHL history to hit the 1,000 mark. His recent play has drawn rave reviews from general manager Don Maloney. "He's a star every game out there, and it's not a fluke," Maloney said. Game in and game out, in a playoff atmosphere and against the best defenders in the league ... he's producing and he looks great doing it."
ABOUT THE SHARKS (37-27-10): Despite scoring fewer than four goals for the 19th straight time, San Jose was proud of its effort in Thursday's 2-1 win over the reigning Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins. "That's probably our most complete game in a long, long time," captain Joe Thornton said. "We'll just take any win. It was a good win, but we still have eight games to go and we still have a lot of work to do." Thornton notched an assist Thursday for his 1,070th career point. He moved past Dave Taylor for 59th on the all-time scoring list.
OVERTIME:
1. Phoenix has scored first just twice in 11 games this month.
2. The Coyotes have won three straight meetings with the Sharks after losing 10 of 11.
3. San Jose has won six of seven at home against Phoenix.