1976-1991: After 9 failed seasons the Bay Area's first NHL Team the California Golden Seals moved to Cleveland. In Cleveland the rechristened Barons would not do much better as they were merged with Minnesota North Stars after just 2 seasons. After 13 years former Barons owner George Gund wanted to bring hockey back to the Bay Area as fan interest in the NHL had begun to pick up in California with the trade of Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings in 1988. However, the NHL would not allow him to move the North Stars to San Jose who had a lucrative Arena deal sitting on the table. Instead the NHL decided to give Gund an expansion team that would begin play in 1991, in an ironic way reviving the former Golden Seals franchise, as he would be allowed to take several North Stars players and prospects with him to San Jose.

2001/02: Evgeni Nabokov continues to establish himself as one of the best young goalies in the NHL with a solid 2.29 GAA including 7 shutouts as the Sharks won their first division title with a terrific record of 44-27-8-3. In the playoffs the Sharks would make quick work of the Phoenix Coyotes advancing to the 2nd round in 5 games to set up a match up with the defending Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche. After alternating wins through the first 4 games the Sharks grabbed the upper hand by stunning the Avalanche on the road with a 5-3 win in Game 5 on the road. With a chance to close the series out at home the Sharks to a 1-0 lead late in the 2nd period. However, fans would not have much time to celebrate as the Avalanche tied the game just 24 seconds later. After both teams were held scoreless in the 3rd the Avalanche forced a decisive 7th game on a Peter Forsberg goal in overtime. In Game 7 at Colorado the Sharks could not get anything past Patrick Roy as their season came to end with a heartbreaking 1-0 loss as their late flurry could not force overtime.

2003/04: Coming off their disappointing season the Sharks again got off to a shaky start as they won just 1 game in October. However, in November they would turn things around as back up goalie Vesa Toskala played strong between the pipes while Evgeni Nabokov was out with an injury. Toskala had won the back up job in the preseason, leading to the trade of Miika Kiprusoff to the Calgary Flames. The Sharks continued their strong play in December as Nabokov returned, leading the Sharks to a 15-9-10-3 record at the end of December. In the second half of the season the Sharks would continue to play well as they climbed to the top of the Pacific Division winning their 2nd division title in 3 years as they topped the 100-point mark for the first time in franchise history with a record of 43-21-12-6. Leading the resurgent Sharks was Captain Patrick Marleau and Nils Ekman, who each topped 50 points while Jonathan Cheechoo had a break out season with a team-high 28 goals. In the playoffs the Sharks got off to a dramatic start as Niko Dimitrakos scored the only goal in a 1-0 overtime win over the St. Louis Blues; as the Sharks went on to win the series in 5 games. The Sharks continued to stay hot in the second round as they jumped out to a 3-0 series lead over the Colorado Avalanche. In Game 4 Evgeni Nabokov shut down the Avalanche again as the game went scoreless into overtime. However on the 36th shot Nabokov allowed a goal keeping the Avalanche alive. Sakic would strike again in overtime in Game 5 as the Sharks once comfortable lead began to slip away. However Nabokov and the Sharks would come through in Game 6 with a solid 3-1 win in Colorado to send the Sharks into the Western Conference Finals. The Western Conference Finals were uncharted waters for the Sharks but their opponent the Calgary Flames had a few familiar faces as they were led by former Sharks Coach Darryl Sutter, while in the net was Miika Kiprusoff whom the Sharks traded in November. Kiprusoff would get the best of his former teammates in Game 1 as he turned away 49 of 52 shots as the Flames won in overtime 4-3. The Sharks frustrated by their loss in Game 1 showed up flat in Game 2 and were soundly beaten 4-1. In danger of falling apart the Sharks rebounded as the series shifted to Calgary as Evgeni Nabokov stopped 34 shots in a 3-0 shutout win in Game 3. The Sharks would go on to even the series with a 4-2 win in Game 4. However as the series shifted back to the Shark Tank sloppy play would once again doom the Sharks as the Flames retook control of the series with a 3-0 win. With the Sharks needing another road win to force Game 7, would fall 3-1 as the Flames went on to the Stanley Cup Finals