The San Jose Sharks seem to be caught up in some sort of cruel loop.

It's been the same pattern for three straight years since the NHL lockout ended: preseason picks to challenge for the Stanley Cup, excel to a certain extent in the regular season, then get eliminated in Game 6 of the second round.

It went that way again for San Jose, which now faces a number of key decisions moving forward. If the coaching staff led by veteran Ron Wilson was closely scrutinized following last year's second-round bow-out against Detroit, why should we believe it will be any different this spring?

In fact, it might be a surprise to see Wilson along with assistants Tim Hunter and Rob Zettler back again next season. It's not to suggest what has happened is their fault, but clearly the Sharks are a young team with a lot of talent, a low payroll and many of their stars under long-term deals.

It's not likely general manager Doug Wilson will opt to blow up the team and start over. Ultimately, however, the decision might be taken out of his hands, as the last time there was a coaching change -- Darryl Sutter fired and Ron Wilson hired almost midway through the 2002-03 campaign, it was team president Greg Jamison pulling the trigger and not then-GM Dean Lombardi.

SEASON HIGHLIGHT
From Feb. 21 through April 1, the Sharks did not lose in regulation during a span of 20 games. In going 18-0-1-1 to earn 38 out of a possible 40 points, San Jose leapfrogged both Dallas and Anaheim to win the Pacific Division for the third time and set a franchise record with 108 points in the process.

TURNING POINT
It came suddenly at 9:03 into a fourth overtime during Game 6 against the Dallas Stars. In surrendering a power-play goal with defenseman Brian Campbell sitting in the penalty box, the Sharks' season of high expectations came crashing down with a 2-1 loss and a 4-2 series' defeat at the hands of the Stars. Losing the first two games at home at the outset of the series was pivotal, but San Jose rallied from an 0-3 deficit and had hopes of pulling off one more road win to send the series back to San Jose for a deciding Game 7. But the Sharks managed to put only one of 62 shots past Stars goalie Marty Turco and suffered a second-round ouster for the third straight postseason.

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