Bay Area Buzz 12/21: Sharks Win, Deron Williams, Jim Mora Jr
Bay Area Topics
Sharks Win
"Only one team could prevail in a matchup that featured a pair of the NHL’s hottest clubs that entered with a combined 13 wins in their past 15 games.That team was the San Jose Sharks.Marc-Edouard Vlasic tied the game late in regulation, and Brent Burns’ power play goal won it 3-2 on Saturday night over the St. Louis Blues.The Sharks completed a perfect 5-0 homestand, and have won nine of their last 10 overall, all in regulation/overtime.Prior to overtime, the Sharks tied the game with 20.6 seconds to go in the third period and goaltender Antti Niemi pulled for an extra attacker. Joe Thornton found Vlasic at the point, and the defenseman’s shot fluttered into the back of the net with Joe Pavelski setting a screen.Burns’ deciding marker came on a blast from high in the zone at 4:22 of overtime, after Pavelski drew a trip on Alex Steen to give San Jose a man advantage.San Jose has won eight in a row at home and are 10-4-2 at SAP Center, where they had the best home record in the Western Conference last season."
Deron Williams
"In a week that’s seen the Kings make news nationally for firing their coach and upsetting a locker room that was making progress, the front office apparently is not done making news.Yahoo Sports reported Saturday the Kings are actively pursuing a trade for former All-Star point guard Deron Williams of the Brooklyn Nets.According to the report, the Kings would send Darren Collison, Jason Thompson and Derrick Williams to the Nets for Deron Williams. The hangup is the Kings want to also acquire Mason Plumlee in the deal, but the Nets are reluctant to part with the emerging forward.Multiple league sources said such a deal falls in line with the front office looking to make splashy deals designed to bring fans back to the arena by enticing them with a fun style of play."
Jim Mora Jr
"Jim Mora Jr has been an NFL head coach in the past, but he failed twice at it before heading to the college ranks and UCLA, but a return to the NFL looks to be in order.Jim Harbaugh jumped from Palo Alto to San Francisco when he left Stanford to become a NFL head coach for the first time in his coaching career. The results were three straight trips to the NFC Championship Game and one Super Bowl berth.Despite all of that success, it appears that Harbaugh is out in San Francisco after this season and might get replaced by a fellow California head coach.According to Ian Rapoport from NFL Network, the San Francisco 49ers could look the direction of UCLA head coach Jim Mora Jr when it comes to finding their next head coach."