The Sharks were welcome back home after a series of games on the road but did not finish on a good note

Fabian Zetterlund cellies the Third Goal of the Night for the Sharks at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Dec 14, 2024 (San Jose Sharks photo)

After winning in St. Louis with a phenomenal performance by Maklin Celebrini, Utah visited the Shark Tank for the first time under the team’s name. A game that was marked by refereeing controversy throughout the hockey game, something that severely harmed the Sharks.

The first period started with Utah scoring the first goal of the night with Dylan Guenther assisted by Cooley and Service, and the Sharks would not stay that way, Alexander Wennberg tied the game with a wrist shot assisted by Goodrow and Ceci. The first period was pretty even, with both teams trying to hurt each other, but the first intermission came with a score of 1-1.

During the second period, things remained uneventful until the Sharks made it 2-1 with a goal by Mikael Grandlund and a play orchestrated by Zetterlund and Eklund.

Utah took advantage of the penalty against the Sharks, and in a PowerPlay goal, Utah tied it with a goal by Nick Schmaltz. Once again, Logan Cooley added another point.

In the third period, Fabian Zetterlund momentarily put hopes of reaching 60 minutes of Hockey with a victory. Sharks face and score, but with the usual shortcomings, maintaining the lead in close games as Clayton Keller scored a power-play goal with 43.8 seconds left.

Michael Carcone tied the game midway through the third period, and then Utah won during a 4-on-3 game shortly after Cody Ceci was penalized for using the high stick.

Utah is coming off a hot streak, winning its last few games and in decisive instances.
Meanwhile, San Jose is losing another game always in minutes before the end of the game.

The Sharks will face a tough test this Tuesday at home against the Winnipeg Jets, the current best team in the league.