Of the 16 teams still clawing feloniously at each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the two playing closest to advertised pre-playoff form are the San Jose Sharks and Phoenix Coyotes.

Which, frankly, is of remarkably little consolation to the Coyotes.

While the hockey planetoid ("hockey world" seems unnecessarily grandiose, don't you think?) has been riveted by the work of Patrick (Sorry, Next Window) Lalime and Brent (Get Off My Porch, You Damned Kids) Johnson, the ferocity of the Carolina Hurricanes, the comeback of the Detroit Red Wings and the whine-a-thon of Vancouver general manager Brian Burke, the Fish and Puppies have held their boundaries remarkably well.

The goaltenders, Evgeni Nabokov and Sean Burke, have played solid, level-of-competence games without having to save 40 shots or overcome bad early goals. Two defenses have minimized rebounds and extended periods in their own end. The influence of special teams have been negligible. The best players have not been as prominent as the plumbers and muckers.

They have, in short, played in character. Which, as we said, has worked against Phoenix because the Coyotes' character is still being formed, while San Jose's is playoff-tested. The Sharks are what they are, while the Coyotes are still in their formative stage.

Indeed, while the Cup often rewards sixth- and seventh-place teams who get hot at the right time, the Sharks and Coyotes, the three- and six-seeds in the West, are playing in the one series that has nearly always held to form. The six-seed in the West has lost seven of eight previous series under the present playoff format, largely because the West has developed over the years into a small group of Cup contenders and a large mob of just-trying-not-to-finish-ninths.

The only change between last year and this is that the Sharks have replaced Dallas in the gang of four, and the only difference between these Sharks and those Stars is the fact that San Jose under Darryl Sutter is more intrepid on offense than Dallas was under Ken Hitchcock.

This is not to say that the hockey hasn't been of playoff standard. Phoenix has played at the level it showed in its late-season rush to make the playoffs, but the Coyotes are in this case matched up against a team that is slightly better than it is in essentially every phase.

But the other series have been rich with anomalies more in keeping with the Cup experience. Anomalies such as Colorado scoring nine times in the first two games against Los Angeles, after going months in which five goals in a week was a huge score. Lalime and his .991 save percentage. The Blackhawks and Flyers playing without any forward lines at all. The 'Canes and Canucks trying to overcome historically unpleasant playoff histories. Peter Forsberg in. Arturs Irbe out. The return of the Islanders and Canadiens.

Why, if it weren't for Sharks-Coyotes, the Cup preview you kept in your wallet would already be shredded and ashcanned.

The only thing the Coyotes really have going for them, viz. momentum, is the location of Game 5 -- San Jose. While the East has held slavishly to geographical form (home teams: 16-3), the West has been a tourist's paradise (home teams: 5-12). Phoenix's only win was at San Jose in Game 2, and other than the first period of Game 3, it was also the Coyotes' last hurrah.

Head coach Bob Francis already played his change-the-lineup card, inserting Krys Kolanos and Branko Radivojevic in Game 4. He's done all the exhorting, line changing and making frowny faces at the officials. The Coyotes' only hope of survival now lies within themselves and their ability to find what they held so firmly in Game 2 -- control of center ice.

Sutter, on the other hand, has held his lines largely intact, and evinced no discernible concern about the fact that neither Owen Nolan nor Teemu Selanne has scored in this series. He is acting every bit the confident but sensible coach. He knows he has the better hand and has the added satisfaction of having seen it play out according to Hoyle.

Of course, there are enough examples of teams coming back from 3-1 deficits so that he won't suddenly start acting the fool. After all, there's something suspicious about a Stanley Cup playoff series going just the way everybody thought.

Ray Ratto of the San Francisco Chronicle is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.