SAN JOSE – Were it not for the previous playoff meeting between the Sharks and Kings, the principal subplot headed into the 2016 rematch would be blatantly obvious. And it’s a bit of a strange situation, frankly.
When the Kings erased a three-games-to-none hole in the first round two years ago, claiming Game 7 at SAP Center in decisive fashion, Martin Jones was celebrating the Los Angeles win, and, indirectly, the lowest point in Sharks franchise history.
Jones didn’t have much in a role in that series, seeing mop-up duty for Jonathan Quick in a Game 1 Sharks triumph, but he was still a vital part of Los Angeles’ success that year.