Martin Havlat

Eleven games into the season, the San Jose Sharks hold a record of 7-4-0.

Martin Havlat played in his seventh game of the season the other night. So far, Havlat doesn't have any goals yet, which is a big surprise to me. But he has seven assists, averaging a point per game.

The Sharks started slow, but in their last seven games, the Sharks are 6-1-0. Coincidence? I don't think so.

The San Jose Sharks won their fourth consecutive Pacific Division title last year, and their sixth in the past nine seasons. However, with four of the division's five teams making the postseason (and Dallas, the fifth, finishing a mere two points out of the playoffs), the Sharks have their work cut out for them this year.

Year after year, the San Jose Sharks are one of the NHL's best teams; they are a perennial Stanley Cup contender. Year after year, the San Jose Sharks fail to live up to their goal: Win the Stanley Cup.

With so much competition in the West, rivalries are beginning to intensify. A perfect example of this would be what is currently occurring in the Golden State. With three possible cup contenders, the division rivalry between teams in California is heating up.

Let's take a look at what each Californian team has to offer.

ANAHEIM DUCKS

In a Northwest Division that is seeing many changes and makeovers, one team has made a particularly large splash this offseason.  In a pair of blockbuster trades that saw the departure of Martin Havlat and Brent Burns, the team acquired Sharks Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi.

There is always a lot of speculation about trades when the draft and the offseason shows up.

There has already been a little bit written about one team that might have interest in trading with the Avalanche.

That got me thinking, if the Avalanche were to go the trading route this particular summer, who might be the ideal with whom to trade?

The fourth NHL Winter Classic will take place on Jan. 1, 2011 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pittsburgh Penguins will play host to the Washington Capitals in the upcoming outdoor game.

The first Winter Classic took place in 2008, seeing the Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres by a score of 2-1 in a shootout.

2009 saw the Detroit Red Wings defeat the Chicago Blackhawks by a score of 6-4 at Chicago's Wrigley Field.

The Minnesota Wild, the state's seemingly only competitive team this year (I mean, let's be honest, who actually didn't expect the Twins to not break our hearts like they do every October) is off to an expected solid start at 10-6-2 and third place in the Northwest division.

Expected start? Yes, it was highly publicized that the normally good home team would have eight of their first eleven contests in the friendly confines of St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center, where they typically win 60% of their games or more.

Ah, popular culture.

What an age we live in when we can click around on the Internet and find out what our favorite sports heroes think about the latest episode of Glee, or how much they hate their former team.

If you've caved in and created a Twitter account, here's eight NHL personalities you'll want to subscribe to.

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Numerous rumor mills are suggesting that the Ottawa Senators and Minnesota Wild are talking trade, leaving NHL experts to speculate on a number of possible scenarios.

The Senators are off to one of the worst starts in the history of the franchise, going a paltry 1-4-1 in their first six games, leaving them tied for last place with the fledgling New Jersey Devils.