The 1999–2000 San Jose Sharks season was the team's ninth season of operation in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL). Under third-year head coach

Darryl Sutter Darryl John Sutter (born August 19, 1958) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and current head coach of the Calgary Flames. He is one of seven Sutter brothers, six of whom made the NHL ( Brent, Brian, Darryl, Duane, Rich, and ...

, the Sharks posted a winning record for the first time in franchise history; in doing so, they managed to clinch a playoff berth for the third consecutive season. The Sharks' 1999–2000 regular season is remembered, in large part, for the heroics of captain Owen Nolan. Nolan, in his fourth full season with the team, posted career-best goal (44) and point (84) totals; both figures established new franchise records. Nolan's excellent play was complemented by that of fellow forwards

Vincent Damphousse Vincent François Damphousse (born December 17, 1967) is a Canadian former professional hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for eighteen seasons. He played centre for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Cana ...

and

Jeff Friesen Jeffrey Daryl Friesen (born August 5, 1976) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played over 800 games in the National Hockey League, spending roughly half his career with the San Jose Sharks, who drafted him in the 1994 NHL Ent ...

; fan-favorite Mike Ricci, in his third season with the team, also turned in a quality campaign. All told, San Jose's offense improved considerably despite disappointing production from young forwards

Patrick Marleau Patrick Denis Marleau (born September 15, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward. With 1,779 NHL games played, he is the all-time leader in games played in league history. He passed the record previously held by Gordie Howe ...

and

Marco Sturm Marco Johann Sturm (born September 8, 1978) is a German professional ice hockey coach and former winger who played in the National Hockey League and Deutsche Eishockey Liga. He is currently the Head Coach of the Ontario Reign. Sturm began his ca ...

. By contrast, the Sharks' defense regressed despite quality play from starting goaltender Steve Shields, rookie goaltender

Evgeni Nabokov Yevgeni Viktorovich Nabokov (russian: Евге́ний Ви́кторович Набо́ков; born July 25, 1975) is a Kazakhstani-Russian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the San Jose Sharks, New York Islanders, and Ta ...

, and defensemen

Gary Suter Gary Lee Suter (born June 24, 1964) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played over 1,000 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) between 1985 and 2002. He was a ninth round selection of the Calgary Flames, 180th overa ...

and

Brad Stuart Bradley Stuart (born November 6, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in over 1,000 career games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, Det ...

. Still, the team finished the 1999–2000 campaign with franchise-record point (87) and win (35) totals. The Sharks' competent play netted them the Western Conference's eighth, and final, playoff berth. In the first round, they faced the top-seeded (and heavily favored)

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

. As expected, the Blues took the series' first game with relative ease; the Sharks shocked onlookers, however, by winning each of the next three. The Blues responded with two decisive victories of their own; in doing so, they forced a deciding seventh game in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

. There, in an upset on par with their 1994 victory over the Detroit Red Wings, the Sharks scored a stunning 3–1 victory. The game is remembered, in part, for an infamous center-ice goal by Owen Nolan on Blues goaltender

Roman Turek Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. The goal, which gave the Sharks a 2–0 lead, ultimately served as the series-winner. In the second round, the team faced the second-seeded

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...

. Unlike the Blues, the defending Stanley Cup champion Stars made quick work of the Sharks; while the latter managed to steal a game in San Jose, they were ultimately eliminated in five games.

Offseason

Regular season

The Sharks had the most power-play opportunities during the regular season (377) and scored the most short-handed goals (16).

Final standings

Schedule and results

Playoffs

Player statistics

Awards and records

Transactions

Draft picks

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:1999-2000 San Jose Sharks season San San San Jose Sharks seasons

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...