The Sharks will surely use the experience from their regular-season series against the Golden Knights and apply what they learned from Vegas' first-round sweep when they meet in the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal.
One miscue they won't repeat, however, is the gaffe head coach Peter DeBoer committed during San Jose's first visit to the expansion team's home on the Vegas Strip.
"I won't make the mistake again of walking to the rink through a mob that probably started drinking 4-5 hours earlier," DeBoer said good-naturedly. "I took a lot of heckling."
The Sharks come in as villains who threaten to halt this magical inaugural season that has captured the imagination of a new market and sent a boisterous and supportive fan base on a seven-month spiral to hockey heaven.
Well, into the second round at least, which is light years from what was expected.
"We understood they were a team that was going to compete right from the start," Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said, "And that's what they're going to hang their hat on."
As we embark on only the eighth series in Stanley Cup history to pit two teams fresh off sweeps in their preceding seven-game series, here are the keys: