Sharks Victorious In Opener

Sharks fans have good reason to be excited: hockey is back and the Sharks won their first game on the road in Calgary, as they defeated the Flames 4-1.

Patrick Marleau scored the first goal of the Sharks' season with a beautiful move in front of Miikka Kiprusoff, dragging the puck to his backhand side, and stuffing the puck in the corner.  Throughout the course of the game, however, Marleau was not done.  He finished the night with two goals and "first star" honors.

Admittedly, the Sharks started the game with a lackluster first period performance.  The Flames demonstrated superior chemistry, scoring one goal, and peppering Sharks netminder Antti Niemi with 16 shots (compared to the Sharks' nine).  It was clear the Sharks were showing signs of "growing pains" (i.e. needing to get used to playing together), as it is commonly the case when a new season begins.  Niemi, however, displayed absolute brilliance in the net by not only stopping many shots, but many quality shots.  Star players on the Flames team, such as captain Jarome Iginla, had clear opportunities to score, but Niemi was right there to keep the shots from barreling past him.  The reason the Sharks had the opportunity to recover from the first period was due to Niemi's shot blocking mastery.

The Sharks' performance during the second period put all of the doubters to rest.  Three unanswered goals were scored during the second period by the Sharks, with an additional fourth during the third period.  During the second and third periods, the Sharks' chemistry was beginning to come together, and Niemi continued to demonstrate his unbelievable skills.  The combination became too much for the Flames.

Advantages Sharks fans are familiar with, such as dominance in the corners and in the offensive zone, were beginning to be demonstrated.  Joe Thornton was beginning to display his passing skills.  Dan Boyle was beginning to show his ability to stay out on the ice and still make great plays.

The all-familiar Sharks were back.

Let us hope the Sharks cam continue to win a significant amount of games.  With an abbreviated 48 game season, there is no time for the team to gradually develop into a "hot" team.  They must win now.  The Stanley Cup is up for grabs.

Some honorable mentions for today:
- Matt Irwin, Sharks defenseman, played his first NHL game today, and was paired up with the veteran Dan Boyle.  Despite claiming to have the "first game jitters," he played a fantastic game and provided opportunities for the team to get chances on net, and finished the game with a +1 rating.
- Adam Burish, Sharks forward, played his first game with the Sharks today.  As some fans remember, he was the agitator type player on the Chicago Blackhawks when they made their run for the Stanley Cup in 2010.  We would like to welcome him to the Sharks and would like to wish him a great and successful season with us.

Dig Into the Past at History San José’s Archaeology Days at Peralta Adobe at San Pedro Square Market

San José, CA – December 18, 2012

On Sunday, January 27 and again on February 24, from 11 AM to 3 PM ---
Archaeology Day at the Peralta Adobe at San Pedro Square Market will offer children an opportunity to be junior archaeologists.

Stanford Archaeology Center students will be at the Peralta Adobe historic site conducting a mock excavation, screening,  artifact identification and artifact reconstruction.

“It’s exciting for us to be able to share our research on San Jose’s past with today’s current residents,” said Barbara Voss, Associate Professor of Anthropology at Stanford University. “We’re looking forward to meeting the next generation of young archaeologists.”

This free family educational program will allow individuals to collect stickers for each activity to place in Archaeology Passports and become ‘certified’ as a Junior Archaeologist.

The oldest home in San Jose, the Peralta Adobe, serves as a perfect archaeological location. It is the centerpiece for San Pedro Square Market at 175 West Saint John Street in downtown San Jose.  It is just across the street from the Fallon House, a mid-19th century Victorian home.

The public archaeology activities are free. While at the Peralta Adobe, visitors can also take tours of the Peralta Adobe and the Fallon House, which are $8 for adults, $5 for seniors (62 and older) and students with a valid school identification card; and $5 for children who are accompanied by an adult. As usual, members of History San José receive free admission.

Adult tours, and tours for children ages seven and older, will be held through the Peralta Adobe and the Fallon House, at 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.  Tours especially designed for children ages 4 through 9, accompanied by an adult, will at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. These historic buildings are not wheel-chair accessible.

For more information or to make reservations for a tour, call 408 918-1047 or visit www.historysanjose.org

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The Fallon House was built in 1855 by one of San José’s earliest mayors. The Victorian mansion showcases 15 fully-furnished rooms typical of the Victorian period. Thomas Fallon was a frontiersman in the John C. Fremont expedition, and Carmel Fallon was the daughter of one of the most prominent Mexican landowners in California.

The Peralta Adobe is San José’s oldest address. Built in 1797, the Peralta Adobe is the last remaining structure from El Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe. See the Adobe’s horno, an outside working oven or venture inside the home and see two rooms furnished as they might have been when they were occupied by the Gonzales and Peralta families. It is now surrounded by the new San Pedro Square Market.

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About History San José:
History San José is a non-profit organization that collects, preserves and celebrates the stories of diversity and innovation in San José and the Santa Clara Valley. HSJ manages one of the largest and most comprehensive regional history collections in the State of California, from 1784 Spanish governmental records to twenty-first century Silicon Valley technology.
History San José     1650 Senter Road     San José, CA  95112       408.287.2290

Website:  historysanjose.org
Blog: historysanjose.org/blog
Facebook: /historysanjose
Twitter: @historysanjose

Saturday Stats: San Jose Has Lowest Housing Vacancy Rates in the US

The San Jose area has 650,700 housing units, and only 28,100 of them are empty. That gives San Jose a vacancy rate of just 4.3%, the lowest in the country by a significant margin. The next lowest is Lancaster Pennsylvania at 5.6%. Surprisingly San Francisco is at 7.12% and New York is at 9.92%. I suppose that means it's time to start breaking ground on some more residential units--preferably in dense urban parts of San Jose.

Source: SVBJ

Die Hard Sharks Contest Winner

Thank you all for the amazing participation in our contest! We had a total of almost 800 entries, far more than what I was expecting. Please support Die Hard, the San Jose-based sponsor of the contest. They have a great assortment of Sharks and 49ers gear, not to mention your other Bay Area favorites.

Congratulations to Eric Anthony! You have a Sharks hoodie and tee coming your way.

As for everyone else, stay tuned. More contests are coming up, including one next week!

Fair Isaac Corp (FICO) is Moving HQ to San Jose

It sounds like yet another major company has decided to make San Jose its home. Fair Isaac, the company behind your FICO score, is moving their HQ from Minneapolis to offices in San Jose near SJC where they already have 90 employees. They have just signed a lease for an additional floor and do plan to increase their headcount with a focus on technology and big data--which is one of the main reasons for the relocation. The talent pool for engineers in Silicon Valley in unsurpassed, making San Jose a logical choice for their headquarters.

Source: SVBJ

Last Chance: Die Hard Sharks Hoodie Contest!

This is you last chance to enter the contest for a Sharks hoodie and tee sponsored by our friends at Die Hard Co. Just follow the directions in the widget below. Winner announced on Friday!

Wednesday Wishlist: Light-rail Expansion

I think it's time to start pushing expanding our rail infrastructure, especially with several factors that are going to increase ridership substantially over the next four years such as:

• Increased density and new housing and jobs being built near transit lines
• BART extension to San Jose
• The new 49ers Stadium
• Increased traffic on our freeways as the economy grows

However, I'm not sure if the proposed Los Gatos extension is the way to go. It would cost $175 million to add two stations extending from Campbell to the Netflix Offices in Los Gatos. The estimated increase in ridership is about 200 people. Even though this number seems too low to be true, the actual number probably won't be dramatically higher. I think we should focus on improving service where there is already some density such as Downtown, First Street, Japantown, Midtown, etc. The ultimate light-rail line would be along Stevens Creek connecting Downtown to Santana Row, Valley Fair, DeAnza College, Valco Mall, and the new Apple HQ. Unfortunately, that will probably cost the same amount as building the BART subway or even more, so I don't have high hopes for that.

What likely makes the most sense is to start working on the extension to Eastridge mall, where there is a huge bus hub along with future planned BRT. That is expected to cost $310 million and get around 1,000 new riders a day. Still quite expensive but the larger the network becomes, the more riders it will attract system-wide. 

Where would you like to see the next Light-rail extension?

Source: The Merc

George Gund III, 1936 - 2013

The San Jose Sharks just announced the passing of the team's original owner and Bay Area hockey ambassador, George Gund III.  He succumbed to cancer at the age of 75.

The Sharks have also posted a memorialized image of the famed owner on their website, sharks.nhl.com.

The Sharks are arguably one of the most successful sports franchises, due to the contrast between the team's immense popularity today, and the time when the Sharks were granted their expansion team in the early 1990s, when ice hockey was virtually unheard of in the Bay Area.  Although the California Golden Seals existed as a Bay Area professional hockey team in the 1960s and 1970s, the team never maintained the massive popularity the Sharks do today.  Mr. Gund was an investor in the Seals at the time, and knew that if given another chance, professional hockey could have an opportunity to thrive in the Bay Area.

Sharks fans have Mr. Gund to thank for taking a chance on what would become one of the most popular and successful hockey franchises in the NHL, especially since the prospects of a successful professional hockey team in San Jose were bleak at the time.

Rest in peace, Mr .Gund, and thank you for bringing the Sharks to us!

It is noted from a few sources that the Sharks will be wearing jersey patches and helmet sticker decals emblazoned with "GG III" for the current season, in memory of their late, great owner.