from Tal Pinchevsky of ESPN,

The San Jose Sharks didn't exorcise all the demons of past playoff disappointments with their 5-0 Game 7 rout of the Nashville Predators on Thursday night. But they did take a big step toward rewriting the history of a franchise long associated with tough luck in the postseason.

Big names such as Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture still make up the core of this team, combining for four goals and six points in Game 7. But look past those familiar names and you'll find five ways this group is very different from Sharks teams of the recent past.

1. The torch has been passed: The Sharks initiated a philosophical shift in 2014 when stars Thornton and Marleau were stripped of their captain's "C" and alternate captain's "A," respectively. Two years later, Pavelski wears the "C" and Couture wears the "A," a wardrobe change symbolizing the final stage of that shift. And with Pavelski and Couture's performances in these Stanley Cup playoffs, they established themselves as faces of this team.

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