Sharks current record: 15-38-5 (.302)
Sharks projected record: 22-55-5 (.299)
NHL record for worst season in 82-game history: 14-57-11 (.238)

The Sharks Sterility Stare is getting close(r) to the end of a long season, and we’re feeling the pain now as the San Jose Sharks slip back into a long losing streak. The team just finished an 0-5 home stand, which was pretty embarrassing. It started off on the wrong skate, of course, and the Sharks just never really recovered from that blunder. The defensive effort seems to have taken the comforts of home too close to the vest, too.

In the 5 games at home, San Jose coughed up a whopping 25 goals—while netting just 11 scores itself, and that’s not a recipe for anything but more losses. What’s most telling is how the attendance dropped across these 5 matchups: the first one on Saturday, February 17, attracted 17,435 people to the Shark Tank. However, the numbers just went down from there as the last 2 losses drew a combined 21,519 fans. That’s a big drop.

The team had been on a 5-2-1 stretch when it came home, so excitement was high … and then quickly dashed with the inexcusable loss to Columbus, the whitewashing by Vegas, and the closer-than-it-looked loss to Nashville last Saturday evening. Even with the last 2 games—losses to New Jersey and Anaheim, respectively—came on weekday work nights, that’s still no excuse for the low attendance, sadly.

San Jose used to be a proud hockey town, although success may have spoiled the locals despite the obvious patterns for bandwagon fandom on display over the last few decades by Golden State Warriors, San Francisco 49ers, and San Francisco Giants fans. Those teams have a lot of fans when they’re winning titles, but when they’re losing? People suddenly find better things to do with their money and time. We hate that.

(We don’t include the Oakland Athletics in this comparative, because that organization has an established cycle and pattern of success and rebuilding phases. Plus, they’re leaving town for Las Vegas, anyway.)

When we’ve been “fans” and not “historians” or “journalists”? We’ve always enjoyed watch teams rebuild: it’s fun and exciting to see younger players trying to prove themselves, even if it is very frustrating some times. But you’re not a real fan of a team unless you take the bad years, too. In the end, you get higher highs and lower lows following a team faithfully, instead of just showing up, sunshine patriot style, for the winning:

“These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like Hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.”

Amen. Stick with the Sharks, folks, even if you get mad at them for losing winnable games at home. Your true faith will be worth it … someday. We promise.