Sheng’s Tip Jar

Every Sunday at Peng to the Point, we talk about the world away from the San Jose Sharks.

This is how much I believe in delivering the best possible coverage of the San Jose Sharks.

The 2015-16 Ontario Reign were the first pro team that I covered. I was with SB Nation’s Jewels from the Crown — I wasn’t even paid a stipend then — but I refused to give a minor league team minor league coverage.

Among other things, I manually tracked individual player Corsi for every game, home and road. It took three-plus hours to decipher each game — and I mean decipher. This was AHL Live’s video quality five years ago:

It wasn’t just about the stats either — I watched the game. I attended every Ontario home game at Citizens Business Bank Arena. I was the only member of the Reign press crops to fly to Cleveland for the 2016 Western Conference Finals.

Take a guess at whether or not SB Nation took care of my travel.

A year later, I moved to Las Vegas to cover the inaugural season of the Vegas Golden Knights for HockeyBuzz. I was in Dallas for the first game in Vegas history. I was the only independent reporter at every Golden Knights playoff game in that magical run to the Stanley Cup Final — on site at Los Angeles, San Jose, Winnipeg, and Washington, all out of my own pocket.

You get the idea: I’m all about providing top-notch coverage, no matter what.

In 2019, I was covering the San Jose Sharks for Fear the Fin. I was paid $50 a month. But Vegas, Colorado, and St. Louis, I was there.

By no means am I independently wealthy: Otherwise, I wouldn’t be staying at $30 AirBNBs in Winnipeg or taking red-eye Frontier Airlines flights to St. Louis.

No, I give my best because I love my work. It’s what I want to do with my life.

This brings us to San Jose Hockey Now.

We’re a subscriber-supported site and I’ve been overwhelmed by the response since we opened in July. Concurrently, my commitment to superior coverage is even stronger now because of your belief in me.

That means going on the road, even in these challenging times.

With that in mind — and with no expectations, as you’ve already done so much for me — I’ve set up a Tip Jar to help fund my travel this season. You can also find the Tip Jar on the SJHN home page. 100 percent of what you contribute will go toward getting me to and from Sharks road games. There will be full transparency with how these tips are used. Anything is appreciated!

Of course, safety is still paramount. I’m going to avoid flying for now, but I’ll drive to Arizona, Vegas, Los Angeles, and Anaheim, getting tested as much as possible. If the Sharks make Arizona their home base, I will make Arizona my home base. If they make the playoffs, I will be on site for every game.

That’s my commitment to providing you the best possible San Jose Sharks coverage around.

Thanks for reading and all the support you’ve given San Jose Hockey Now. Let’s hope for a fun and safe 2021 NHL season!