SAN JOSE
Last week, a sick or injured white shark somehow wound up on the beach in Santa Cruz. The fish was clearly in distress, flailing about and causing consternation among bystanders until the rising tide and some brave rescuers maneuvered it back into the waves. But the shark still looked to be in trouble. It later washed ashore again and died.
The temptation is to say that the Santa Cruz shark is in just slightly worse shape than the entire San Jose Sharks roster as the National Hockey League playoffs begin Wednesday.