Author: M Walsh

Sharks v. Predators: NHL Playoffs 2nd Round Preview

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By Mary Walsh

SB Nation photo: Nashville Predators come calling at SAP Center in San Jose against hosts the Sharks in game one of second round

“Sharks versus Predators” sounds a little bit like a made for tv monster movie, but the San Jose Sharks will face the Nashville Predators to start the second round of the NHL Playoffs on Friday.

The Predators came out of the Central Division as a wild card, so the Sharks did not see as much of them in the regular season as they saw of their first round Pacific Division opponent, the Los Angeles Kings. Nashville’s wild card status also gives San Jose home ice. The Sharks will have to do without their road advantage to win this series.

Probably the most important information to glean from the first round is the most obvious: the Predators played seven games, while the Sharks played only five. The Predators spent more travel time going between Nashville and Anaheim, while the Sharks traveled back and forth to Los Angeles. Round One put more mileage on the Predators than the Sharks by a big margin.

Another question would be about goaltending. Pekka Rinne has long been considered one of the league’s top goaltenders, despite his team’s conspicuous lack of playoff success. Martin Jones has performed admirably so far, despite this being his first time as a playoff starter. Neither goalie has been perfect but they have both been crucial to their team’s success.

Pekka Rinne gave up 17 goals through seven games, with a save percentage of .915. Martin Jones gave up 11 goals through five games, with a save percentage of .912. Martin Jones’ 2.18 GAA ranks fifth among playoff goalies, while Rinne’s 2.85 ranks ninth. Their save percentages are seventh and eighth in the same field.

Noteworthy in the rankings of 2016 playoff goaltenders is that two of the top three goalies in save statistics played for teams that have been eliminated. Maybe goaltending statistics do not tell you much about how a series will go.

Both Rinne and Jones finished all of their first round games, so the quality of their backups has not been an issue. If it were, I would give the edge to the Sharks’ James Reimer over the Predators’ Carter Hutton.

On paper, the Sharks have a better record in most categories than the Predators, in both the regular season and the first round. The Sharks scored more against a Pacific Division team than the Predators. But the Predators have not been and still are not an offense-first team. Much of their success comes from stingy defense. The Predators are a completely different kind of opponent than the Kings were.

In the few meetings between San Jose and Nashville this season, the Sharks lost the series 2-1. Their one win was in a shootout, and they lost one game 6-2. The Sharks have not fared well against the Predators. There is a glimmer of hope in that record, that the shootout win was the most recent game, played just 26 days ago. It caught the Sharks on the upswing, which is where they started these playoffs. It is reasonable to put more stock in the April 4th game than in the February 6th game, but those six goals have to be in the back of the Sharks’ minds. While the Kings are generally considered a more offensively loaded team than the Predators, the Kings that the Sharks played were not as they were a couple of seasons ago.

Colin Wilson and Shea Weber led the Preds in the first round with five points each. Goal scoring was pretty spread out, with Wilson, Weber, James Neal and Mattias Ekholm each scoring two goals. Six other skaters, including Filip Forsberg and Ryan Johansen scored goals against the Ducks. Forsberg and Johansen were both scoring at a good clip during the regular season so they bear watching. Defenseman Roman Josi was second in points during the regular season and he had three against the Ducks.

Craig Smith also scored a goal for the Predators, but missed two games and most of a third with an injury. The Predators did not win the games he missed. He was third on the team in goals scored with 21 in the regular season. He played the last two games in the Ducks series without much of a drop in minutes, so the Sharks can probably expect to see him on Friday.

The Sharks had more points as a group, though they played two fewer games than Nashville did. Brent Burns had eight points in the first round, with Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture collecting six apiece. Patrick Marleau and Joel Ward each had four and Joonas Donskoi and Joe Thornton each had three. That last one is a surprise, and Nashville will probably pay as much attention to Thornton as the Kings did to keep his numbers low.

Donskoi could also be considered a surprise, but a happy one for Sharks fans. His playoff performance might be attributed to a couple of things.Donskoi was a consistent points producer all season, and his time in the Finnish league cannot be overlooked. It could not have been assumed that his MVP performance in the Finnish playoffs would translate to success in the NHL playoffs, but it was a strong possibility.

Another factor that benefitted Donskoi is the fact that the Kings did not have the depth to match the Sharks. Do the Predators? Can they keep Joe Thornton in check and also stay on top of Donskoi, and for that matter, the likes of Chris Tierney, Melker Karlsson and Matt Nieto? Those three scored goals against the Kings. I don’t believe the Predators will have an easy time of it keeping all of the Sharks shooters off the board.

How successful will they be against the Sharks defense? The Sharks gave up almost as many goals as they scored in the first round. In total, they scored 16 and gave up 11, which does not seem that close unless you look at it in goals per game, where there is a difference of just one: 3.2 goals for and 2.2 goals against. One goal is enough to win the game but it leaves little margin for error.

The Sharks’ power play was pretty good against the Kings, at 23.8%. Their penalty kill was nothing special, with a 78.6% success rate. Nashville’s power play success was tiny, at 3.8%, but their penalty kill chugged along at 84% against the Ducks’ formidable power play.

The Predators scored a miniscule 0.13 more goals than they gave up in the regular season. In the first round, their numbers dipped into the negative as they scored 14 goals but gave up 18.

This is the challenge for the Sharks, to ignore what happened in the first round. The team with the most goals wins, but somehow the Predators turned that rule on its head. Obviously, the numbers are explained by a couple of bad losses that skewed the averages. That would be the second and third games where they lost by three goals both times. They also won one by 3-0, and then, like the Sharks, usually won by a single goal.

I think the Sharks’ offensive depth will again be their best asset. That is always a safe bet, but with a stifling defensive opponent like the Predators, nothing is certain.

Sharks Win Game 4, Take 3-1 Series Lead

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick was kept busy all night by the Sharks here a shot goes wide in the first period at SAP Center on Wednesday night

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks defeated the Los Angeles Kings at SAP Center on Wednesday, by a score of 3-2. The win gives San Jose a 3-1 series lead, sometimes called a stranglehold. Despite rumors that there would be changes to the Sharks lineup for Game 4, there were none. Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer did not even alter his line combinations. The lack of change paid off. The team as a whole was sharper and more balanced than it had been on Monday. Even when they gave up two goals early in the third period, they corrected quickly enough to hold on for the win. It was altogether an impressive performance.

The fourth line that struggled in Game 3 pulled themselves together and played very effective minutes. After Wednesday’s game, coach DeBoer talked about the line of Chris Tierney, Tommy Wingels and Nick Spaling:

They were excellent. Again, I think with our group, every time this year that we’ve challenged them to be better, they responded and I think that speaks to the character in the room. And those guys I thought were excellent tonight for us. I didn’t hesitate to put them out with four or five minutes left in the game.

All three Sharks goals were power play goals, scored over four power plays. This was a vast improvement over their 0-5 power play performance Monday. The game winner was scored by Patrick Marleau, with additional goals scored by Brent Burns and Joe Pavelski. Martin Jones made 26 saves for the Sharks. Jonathan Quick also made 26 saves, for the Kings. Los Angeles goals were scored by Trevor Lewis and Luke Schenn.

The Sharks spent most of the first five minutes in the Kings zone, but could not find any good shots. Near the five-minute mark, the Kings went the other way, frst two on one, then when Justin Braun caught up to them, three on two. That led to a prolonged attack in the Sharks’ zone. Martin Jones stopped the three shots that came his way, but when the Sharks finally got the puck out it was by icing it. The Sharks were on their heels for several minutes even after that. Their forays into the Kings’ zone were short and not productive. Slowly, the Sharks started pushing back. They were spending less time trapped in their own zone when the 10 minute mark ticked by. But the shots were still 7-2 Los Angeles.

By the time the period ended, the Sharks had corrected that disparity. They saw a good number of excellent chances pass them by, since no one was in the right spot to take advantage of unexpected, glaring opportunities. The shots were 11-8 San Jose, and 9-2 San Jose for the second half of the period. The teams were even in faceoff wins.

Jeff Carter started the second off with a roughing penalty 30 seconds in, against Marc-Edouard Vlasic. The Sharks maintained the attack for a solid 40 seconds and then a crazy bounce sent the puck off the back boards and through the crease, then off a skater and back through the crease, still not going in. This disrupted the play enough for the Kings to clear the zone.

The Sharks retrieved the puck behind their own goal line and resumed the attack. This time the Sharks did not take long. A cross-ice pass from Joel Ward to Brent Burns found him above the left faceoff circle. Quick could not get across in time and Burns’ trademark shot blew by him to give the Sharks the lead. Assist went to Ward and Vlasic.

Before the cheers died down, play had resumed and Jonathan Quick was handling the puck behind his net. Matt Nieto, chasing the puck down, caught Quick in the back of his skates. Both players went down and Nieto went to the box. The Sharks penalty killers started out well and had a short-handed chance half way through the penalty, with Chris Tierney almost skating in front of Quick for a shot before being held up by Kings defenders.

In the final seconds of the penalty kill, Karlsson, Vlasic and Thornton carried play back into the offensive zone and set the Kings spinning for a shift.

Unfortunately, that penalty kill was followed by another less than a minute later. Joel Ward was called for high sticking. The Kings had a good chance about half way through but an overhead clear by Vlasic allowed the Sharks to regroup and change.
The Sharks finished that up with another short handed chanced, and not long after it expired, yet another outrageously improbable missed chance. A Kings skater got tangled up with his goalie and a Shark and all were out of play for several seconds, with the puck sitting in the blue paint. No Sharks skater could get to it, including the one trapped in the body tangle inches away.

The score remained 1-0.

The Sharks drew another power play when Tomas Hertl was tripped next to the Kings net by Rob Scuderi. 39 seconds into the power play, Patrick Marleau sent the puck behind the net to Thornton, who sent it out front for Joe Pavelski. A fast shot as he fell to his knees earned Pavelski his fourth goal of the playoffs.

The game tempo increased after that. The Sharks drove play for a long spell after that. When they did not have th epuck, they wasted little time stripping the Kings of it, or knocking them off of it. Brenden Dillon made Dustin Brown pay for sendng the puck around the boards, and Patrick Marleau added a solid hit or two.

The Kings finally did get some traction in the last three minutes of play, but it did not last for more than a minute. The Sharks were back in the Kings’ zone at 7:30 when Luke Schenn was caught roughing Joe Thornton. The Sharks did not convert on their third power play but the Kings did not take any leisurely skates into the Sharks’ zone either.

The shots for the period were 13-8 San Jose.

The teams picked up where they left off for the third. 1:34 into the period, Jamie McBain caught Joonas Donskoi in the face with a high stick. Five seconds into that penalty, Patrick Marleau stopped the puck with a skate, kicked it to his stick, and put the puck in the net. Assists went to Logan Couture and Brent Burns.

The Kings got on the board just 69 seconds later when Luke Schenn’s shot from the blue line got by Martin Jones. Trevor Lewis was in front of Jones, wrestling with a Sharks defender. As the shot came in, Lewis fell into Jones. Coach DeBoer challenged the goal for goaltender interference but the call stood up. The goal went to Lewis, with assists to Luke Schenn and Kris Versteeg.

The game got a little more interesting at 6:44, when Schenn took a shot through a long line of traffic and beat Jones, closing the gap to one goal. Assists went to Anze Kopitar and Marian Gaborik.

After that, the Kings tried more of those shots, but Jones seemed to see them better. The Kings kept pushing, they caught up on the shot clock, and as the final minutes ticked away, the game lost none of its intensity. The Sharks spent a lot of time with the puck but they were not getting the shots or the chances they had before. Even with the Kings net empty, the Kings kept the Sharks from taking good shots. The Sharks managed a couple of shots from their own zone but missed the net.

With 18.3 seconds to go, Los Angeles took their time out, then sent six skaters back on the ice for an offensive zone draw. It was to no avail as Game 4 slipped away from the Kings.

Game 5 will be back in Los Angeles at Staples Center on Friday.

Sharks Lose Game Three to Kings

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: LA Kings Tanner Pearson (bottom) celebrates his game winning goal in overtime as the Kings take game three 2-1

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks lost the third game of the Western Conference Quarter Finals to the Los Angeles Kings by a score of 2-1 in overtime. The Sharks still lead the series by 2-1. The game followed a peculiar statistic for the NHL playoff games Monday: all three games saw a goal scored in the first minute of the game, by the losing team.

In San Jose, that goal was scored by Joe Thornton. Anze Kopitar scored the tying goal for Los Angeles, and Tanner Pearson scored the overtime winner. Jonathan Quick made 29 saves for Los Angeles, and Martin Jones made 22 saves for San Jose.

Monday’s game was a grueling affair for both teams, with all the regulation scoring coming early in the first period. After that, it was a push-me-pull-you match up and down the ice for more than 40 minutes. The Sharks did a very good job of limiting the Kings’ chances, but they could not take advantage of the chances they had to score. They outshot the Kings 30-24, and in the third period by 9-3.

After the game, Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer said:

Over the second and third, I thought we grabbed it back, did a lot of good stuff tonight. Reality is, they’re a very good team. They’ve got multiple Stanley Cup winners over there.

We knew this wasn’t going to be a sweep. We’re in a good spot, I think we could have won the game tonight too, need to keep rolling out the same kind of game.

Through much of the game, the Sharks played well defensively but were less sharp in the offensive zone. Their power play stood out as being especially ineffective. It went 0-5 while Los Angeles went 1-3. Joe Thornton talked about the fifth power play after the game:

The last one especially, it felt like we were going to get it. The crowd was into it, we were into it, they broke a stick, we got a lot of shots and it felt like it was right there. But unfortunately it just didn’t happen.

Pete DeBoer is not overly concerned about the lack of results on the power play:

We had a lot of good looks, we had a lot of zone time. Because we don’t score doesn’t mean we’re not doing the right thing. That’s how the NHL goes. You’re not going to score on your power play every time. If we weren’t getting in and getting set up and getting looks, I’d be worried.

Did the Kings change their game much after losing two in Los Angeles? Shark goaltender Martin Jones did not think so:

Not really. They have their game plan, it’s crash the net, put pucks to the net. I thought we’ve done a really good job keeping them to the outside. But, yeah, I don’t think too much changed for them.

It took 30 seconds for the Sharks to score their only goal of the game. After pushing the puck out of their own zone, and touching it through the neutral zone with a pass or two, the Sharks’ top line made a couple of moves in the corner and suddenly Joe Thornton was skating behind the net and picking up the puck. He looked for a pass but did not see one so he carried it into the slot and took a shot. The puck went under Jonathan Quick without any fuss. The shot was so subtle that no one reacted for a beat. An assist went to Tomas Hertl.

The Sharks did not convert on their first power play of the game, at 5:33, but the Kings did score on their first, at 7:50. While Tommy Wingels sat in the box for hooking, Anze Kopitar picked up the rebound off of a Milan Lucic shot. A second assist went to Jake Muzzin.

At the half way point of the first period, things were not looking great for the Sharks. The score was tied, the shots were tied, but the Sharks had blocked more shots and the Kings had won 73% of the faceoffs. The Kings were bearing down.

At 11:50, Nick Spaling was called for tripping Rob Scuderi, putting the Sharks on their second penalty kill of the period. The Sharks did kill it off, but Los Angeles managed some good chances during the power play.
By the end of the period, Los Angeles had outshot San Jose by 13-7 but the score was still knotted at 1.

The Sharks started the second period with some energy, and had an early power play when [] went off for []. The Kings’ penalty kill was formidable. They not only prevented the Sharks from taking any shots, they kept most of the play outside their zone.

For the middle half of the period, the Sharks had trouble getting far beyond the Kings’ blue line. Any attempt to dump it in or carry it in was met with fiercely efficient resistance.

The Sharks had another power play at 13:01, after an interference call against Marian Gaborik. This power play was a lot more effective, but still did not score. The Kings still played well in front of their goaltender, blocking shots and crowding any skater that came near the blue paint.

Chris Tierney had a good chance near the 16 minute mark, a point blank shot on Jonathan Quick. Tierney caught a pass as he skated through the slot and tried a reverse shot, but Quick got his body in the way.

In general the second period was a frustrating one, with many missed calls and failed chances. The Sharks gained ground on the shot clock, but saw their power play fall to 0-3. With 2:19 left in the period, the Kings had still only taken two shots to the Sharks’ ten.

With 1:23 left in the period, Chris Tierney was called for playing the puck with his hand. The resulting Kings power play was fairly good, keeping the Sharks on their toes. The Sharks weathered the last seconds of the period and finished the second still tied at 1.

The Kings had six shots during the second period, to the Sharks 11.

The Sharks killed off the last seconds of the Tierney penalty and jumped out to a good start in the third. They put a couple of good shots on net in the first 90 seconds.

The period ground along after that, with neither team making any progress to speak of. At 9:40, Milan Lucic was called for slashing and the Sharks power play had another chance. The first 1:50 of the penalty was all Sharks, with the Kings’ penalty killers unable to change or get control of the puck at all. But the Sharks did not score.

With 5:56 left in regulation, the Kings’ Tanner Pearson put the puck over the glass in the defensive zone. The Sharks had only allowed the Kings one shot in the period to that point, and had taken five. Their power play, however, still could not produce a goal.

Peter DeBoer used his timeout with just under four minutes left, after an icing trapped some tired Sharks on the ice.

With 53.8 left in regulation, Tomas Hertl and Dustin Brown received roughing minors. They went to their respective rooms and the teams finished the period 4-on-4.

Heading into overtime, the shots were 27-22 San Jose.

3:47 into overtime, Tanner Pearson ended it after a miscue on the Sharks blue line by Brenden Dillon. Dustin Brown knocked Joonas Donskoi off the puck and Dillon tried to do the same to Brown. The puck escaped and Pearson picked it up behind Dillon and re-entered the Sharks zone two on one with Vincent LeCavalier. Neither Couture, Wingels, nor Hertl could catch him and Roman Polak could not block his shot. Assists went to Dustin Brown and Vincent LeCavalier.

Game Four will be Wednesday at 7:30 PT at SAP center.

Sharks And Kings Preview: Playoff Remix 2016

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By Mary Walsh

photo credit docsportstalk.com: San Jose Sharks Joe Thornton and teammates will be in L.A. to try and take the Kings out of the first round of the playoffs starting Thursday

The San Jose Sharks will face the Los Angeles Kings Thursday, in game one, round one of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs. They say that lightning does not strike twice. A lot happens in a hockey game, and a playoff series can produce the same result in many different ways. But it is probably safe to predict that the Sharks will not win three games in a row and then lose four. The odds of that happening again are very slim indeed, and I don’t need to be a math genius to know that.

The Los Angeles Kings are probably the best first round opponent for the San Jose Sharks. The Kings are not only a “must play” for any team trying to get through the western conference, they also have a special place in San Jose’s heart. The last two seasons have been dark for San Jose, starting with their humiliation at the hands of the Kings two seasons ago. While the meek of heart would probably want to avoid Los Angeles entirely, few professional hockey players can be described as meek.

Two seasons is long enough to see any team change, even if change is not their objective. The Sharks have made several changes. Head coach Pete DeBoer brings a new angle to the Sharks’ game. The Kings have seen DeBoer’s Sharks several times this season, but they are nowhere near as familiar with them as they were with Todd McLellan’s team. DeBoer has coached against the Kings in the playoffs, when the New Jersey Devils faced them in the 2012 Stanley Cup Final. That was a long time ago, and he has a very different team now, except in one respect: the Kings are still the favorites to win.

Those expectations are a little bit strange. Even though the Sharks were embarrassed by their lost 3-0 lead in 2014, they did beat the Kings three times before losing. The Sharks also won the 2015-16 regular season series 3-2, going 3-1-1. The Kings have a terrible habit of starting slowly, in the regular season and the playoffs. That is a habit that is bound to trip them up eventually. It is far from unlikely that the Sharks could win this series.

The Kings have the home ice advantage over the Sharks, but that advantage has proven to be less and less significant over the past few seasons, not only for the Sharks but for most playoff teams. What has been true for the Sharks over the past couple of seasons is that they play better on the road. It is not a stretch to say that the Sharks have the “road advantage” in this series.

Wherever they play, the Sharks have every reason to be hungrier and angrier than the Kings. The Kings have won two Stanley Cup Championships. The Sharks have not gotten to the Final yet. If NHL parity is not a myth, it is the Sharks turn for a shot.

Both teams have made significant changes to their rosters since 2014. For the Sharks, Martin Jones and James Reimer are a more formidable goalie tandem than Antti Niemi and Alex Stalock were. Jones’ star is rising. He proved this season that he can be a reliable presence in net, and can even steal a game here and there. James Reimer has proven that he can gut out some pretty gruelling playoff games, and he has already turned in some very impressive performances for San Jose.

With Martin Jones in net, the Sharks are starting the goalie who carried them through most of the season with only a few hiccups. That he used to play for the Kings should not be much of a factor, since any familiarity the Kings have with Jones will be matched by his knowledge of their skaters. Jonathan Quick is not exactly an unknown quantity for the Sharks, either. The Sharks know him well from many meetings.

The Sharks have Matt Nieto and Marc-Edouard Vlasic coming back from injury. The last time the Sharks appeared in the playoffs, also against the Kings, the collapse began with the loss of Vlasic to injury. The Sharks have added a couple of veteran defensemen since then, in Paul Martin and Roman Polak, but Vlasic’s importance cannot be understated. The Sharks played pretty well down the stretch without him but they will need all their best blue liners to go far in the playoffs.

The Sharks also have some added depth in the scoring department, in Joel Ward and Joonas Donskoi. Ward is a seasoned veteran of playoff games, and scored timely goals for Washington. Donskoi is going into his first NHL Playoffs, but he has some experience with championship games from his time in Finland. Both players were consistently helpful during the regular season, and as additions to a group that has been to the playoffs together many times, they could be difference makers for San Jose.

Melker Karlsson joined the team last season and showed that he could contribute in the scoring department. He has spent a lot of time this season on the fourth line, but DeBoer’s fourth line is very different from the fourth line that Todd McLellan would put together. It is reasonable to expect more offense and fewer penalties from the likes of Karlsson and Dainius Zubrus.

If there is an x-factor for the Sharks, I would say it is Joel Ward or James Reimer. Any of the rookies could surprise the Kings and all have to contribute to get the Sharks through the first round. But Ward and Reimer both have enough playoff experience to do some heavy lifting. Even if Reimer does not play, he provides an added sense of confidence and security that should permeate the team’s mental game.

On the Los Angeles side, defenseman Alec Martinez and forward Marian Gaborik have returned from late season injuries. The team has confidence in their readiness to play, as they recently reassigned forward Nic Down and defenseman Kevin Gravel to the AHL. Other changes to their roster over the last season include the addition of Milan Lucic, and the losses of Justin Williams and Jarret Stoll. The last two were historically problematic for the Sharks, if in very different ways. Lucic combines some of both of those, as a cagey and tough competitor.

The Kings also picked up some scoring depth in Vincent LeCavalier. LeCavalier is nothing if not streaky but he should not be ignored. He has a lot to prove after his dismal stay with the Philadelphia Flyers. Since he is supposed to retire after this season, he can be expected to give it his all.

For the Kings, I would not identify particular players as x-factors. Rather, their tendency to start slowly should be seen as the critical factor. If they let the Sharks get ahead of them, they might not catch them again. If the Sharks can avoid having key players injured early, the Kings might not need to spot them the lead. They might just take it fair and square.

Sharks Win Last Game Before Playoffs

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: Arizona Coyotes goaltender Mike Smith stops a shot from the San Jose Sharks Tomas Hertl (48) during the first period at SAP Center Saturday

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks defeated the Arizona Coyotes to win their final game of the 2015-16 regular season. The lone goal of the game was scored by Joe Pavelski in a third period power play. Martin Jones made 20 saves for the shutout. It took the Sharks 32 shots to get one by Arizona’s Mike Smith.

In Los Angeles, meantime, the Kings fell in a shootout to the Winnipeg Jets. As a result, the Anaheim Ducks have a chance to supplant the Kings at the top of the Pacific Division on Sunday. The Sharks, therefore, do not know yet who they will play to start the first round of the playoffs.

Paul Martin did not play on Saturday, and Mirco Mueller got the call to fill in. Mueller started the game with Justin Braun, while Dylan DeMelo was paired with Brent Burns. Dainius Zubrus was back in the lineup after missing Thursday’s game, on a line with Tommy Wingels and Chris Tierney.

The Sharks were on the penalty kill early in the first, after a boarding call to Roman Polak. Arizona did not do much with that, and not long after the penalty expired, the Sharks had their first power play. With Connor Murphy in the box for two minutes, the Sharks did not even manage a shot on goal.

The teams were almost half way through the first when Polak dropped the gloves with Shane Doan. That sprouted from some bumping and pushing in the Sharks’ zone that also involved Joe Pavelski. Polak went to the box for his five minutes, but the Sharks wound up with a four minute power play, as Shane Doan received two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct, two minutes for instigating a fight, five minutes for fighting, and a ten minute misconduct. Anthony Duclair served the four minutes for Doan.

The Sharks power play still did not produce. Better chances came back at even strength, where the Sharks kept the pressure on the Arizona defense.

The Sharks had a third power play in the first period, when Oliver Ekman-Larsson went to the box for hooking. The Sharks went 0-3 on the power play in the first period.

To start the second period, coach DeBoer switched his defensive pairs around, putting Justin Braun with Brent Burns, and Mueller with DeMelo. Arizona came out with some grit, trapping the Sharks in their own zone for a couple of minutes, but that seemed unrelated to the line adjustments, as Polak and Dillon were on the blue line for that unhappy spell.

The Coyotes had their second power play at 5:20 of the second, a cross checking call to Joel Ward. The Sharks’ penalty kill was a little fast and loose but it was effective and showed the Sharks to advantage. That was the only penalty for the second period, and by the end of forty minutes the game was still scoreless.

It was on the Sharks’ fourth power play of the game that they finally scored. The Sharks had a two man advantage at 6:33 of the third period, after Boyd Gordon was called for hi-sticking and Oliver Ekman-Larsson was called for unsportsmanlike conduct simultaneously. A little under a minute into the power play, Joe Pavelski scored his 38th of the season. Assists went to Joe Thornton and Brent Burns.

The NHL Playoffs start on Wednesday and a more specific schedule is expected late Sunday.

The Sharks presented their end of season awards during and after the game. Joe Thornton received the Sharks Foundation Player of the Year Award, as voted on by members of the media. Joe Pavelski won the Xactly Inspired Performance Three Stars of the Year Award, for the number of times he was named as one of the stars of the game. Joonas Donskoi took home the Rookie of the Year Award presented by SAP, also voted on by members of the media. Brent Burns won the Fan Favorite Award presented by Enterprise Exotic Car Collection. This was tabulated by fan votes on social media.

Saturday’s game was the 300th NHL game for Tommy Wingels and 200th for Tomas Hertl.

Sharks Come Back in Third to Beat Predators

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: San Jose Sharks Tomas Hertl celebrates his third period goal against the Nashville Predators on Saturday night

Thanks to two goals from Tomas Hertl and a shootout winner from Logan Couture, the San Jose Sharks came back in the third period to defeat the Nashville Predators 3-2. The win puts the Sharks just three points out of first in the Pacific, but with only three games remaining, the chances are slim that they will catch Los Angeles or Anaheim.

After the game, Sharks goaltender James Reimer talked about how the win bodes well for the playoffs:

It’s good to see. Obviously, sometimes things aren’t going to go your way in the playoffs and so …I’m sure they’ve been doing it all year, but to have the confidence that you can come back from being down two goals in the last twenty, it’s nice to see and another good building block leading up to the playoffs.

With their 27th road win this season, the Sharks tied a franchise record. The last time the Sharks won 27 road games in a season was 2007-08. The Sharks have just one more chance to break the record, on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild.

The third period comeback featured a 13-4 shot disparity in favor of the Sharks. San Jose also made an impressive showing in the faceoff circle, winning 71% of the draws in the game.

The first goal came 8:07 into the first period, after a neutral zone turnover from Chris Tierney that ended up on Roman Josi’s stick. His pass found Mike Ribeiro near the far boards. He waited for Weber to cross the blue line and set him up for one of his phenomenal slap shots.

Before the first period ended, Ryan Johansen seemed to score a power play goal for the Predators, but officials determined that time had run out before the puck crossed the line. The difference was razor thin.

The second Nashville goal came early in the second period. Johansen took the puck into the zone and held onto it long enough to find James Neal in the slot. Neal took a shot that bounced off of Jarnkrok’s skate and into the net. Brenden Dillon had Jarnkrok tied up but he could not control the puck’s trajectory as it went through their skates.

Just over two minutes into the third period, Joe Thornton gained control of the puck just below the Nashville blue line and made a quick pass to Joe Pavelski as he bore down on the net. Pavelski’s shot came back out in a rebound but Hertl was there to pick it up and put it back in for his 20th of the season.

Just past the ten minute mark of the third, Hertl tipped a slap shot from the blue line courtesy of Brent Burns. The play before that was fairly dazzling, as Thornton and Paul Martin moved the puck up and down the boards before Thornton found Burns with a quick pass.

The Sharks could not end it in overtime despite a power play 50 seconds in. A broken stick for Pavelski certainly had something to do with that. The Sharks managed five shots in overtime, while only allowing one to the Predators.

In the shootout, Logan Couture shot first for San Jose and scored with a quick release that went under Hutton’s pad. Joonas Donskoi shot second for the Sharks but missed. James Reimer stopped shots from Filip Forsberg, Ryan Johansen and Craig Smith to win it.

Penalty kills were perfect for both teams, as the Sharks power play went 0-3 and the Predators power play went 0-2.

The Sharks next play in Minneapolis against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday at 5:00 PT.

Barracuda Finish Weekend With Loss to Gulls

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By Mary Walsh

photo credit: San Jose Barracuda–San Jose goaltender Aaron Dell was in the headlights as the San Diego Gulls made work on net in their 3-1 victory at SAP on Sunday

SAN JOSE– The San Diego Gulls beat the San Jose Barracuda by a score of 3-1 Sunday. The teams split the weekend meeting with a win each. Two goals were scored by Antoine Laganiere, and one by Matt Bailey for San Diego. Goaltender Anton Khudobin made 34 saves on 35 shots for the win. The Barracuda goal was scored by Ryan Carpenter, while Aaron Dell made 17 saves on 19 shots.

The Gulls took six penalties in all, the Barracuda took none. The Barracuda did have two goals discounted, which did not happen to the Gulls. Anton Khudobin was in net for the San Diego Gulls on Sunday. His backup ws Matt Hackett. Khudobin has played 99 NHL games with Boston, Carolina, Minnesota and Anaheim. Hackett has played in 26 NHL game with Buffalo and Minnesota. It would appear that the Anaheim Ducks are not taking any chances with goaltending this season.

Nevertheless, the less experienced Aaron Dell only let two pucks get by him, while Khudobin let three in. Two did not count but they did get by him.

San Diego scored less than four minutes into the game, when Barracuda goaltender Aaron Dell collected the puck behind the net and passed it forward, where a Gull was lurking. He made the initial save on the quick shot that followed, but in doing so he slid too far from the net. Matt Bailey caught the rebound and put it behind Dell for his third goal of the season. An assist went to Antoine Laganiere.

The fifteen minute mark approached and San Jose was still trying to get their second shot on goal, while San Diego had nine. They got it, in the course of a power play. Harry Zolnierczyk was in the box for slashing. The Barracuda got credit for three shots on that power play, but the score remained unchanged.

The Barracuda had one more shot in the period. The first ended with the score 1-0 and the shots 11-5 San Diego. The Barracuda made up some lost ground in the first few minutes of the second period, creeping closer on the shot clock and even almost scoring a goal off a peculiar bounce that coincided with some confusion in the Gulls’ zone. The goal did not count but the shots were 12-9 at that point. San Jose was on the hunt and San Diego was caught a little bit off guard.

The Barracuda completed the shot clock comeback with a power play at 6:27, a too many men penalty to San Diego. That power play went by with the score still 1-0 visitors. The shot clock read 14-13 Barracuda 102 seconds later, when the Gulls scored again, this time through a chaotic coverage breakdown by the Barracuda. The goal was Laganiere’s 12th of the season. Assists went to Corey Tropp and Matt Bailey. It was the second shot of the period for the Gulls.

The Barracuda had a third consecutive power play at 11:40 of the second. This time it was Stu Bickel in the box for tripping. Still no goal fro San Jose. At 14:02, San Jose had a fourth power play and San Diego still had none.

That fourth power play made all the difference. Karl Stollery carried the puck off the wall into the slot, where he sent it in the direction of Ryan Carpenter, who was at the side of the net with his stick ready for a deflection. Trevor Parkes was battling with a Gull in front of Khudobin so the goaltender never saw the shot coming. It was Carpenter’s 4th of the season. Assists went to Stollery and Barclay Goodrow.

The shot count for the second period was 19-4 Barracuda.

San Jose had their fifth power play at 3:12 of the third, thanks to a tripping penalty on Corey Tropp.

After a frustrating sequence in and out of the Gulls’ zone, the Barracuda finally connected on a pass or two and Nikolay Goldbin took a shot from near the goal line at 9:04 of the third. The puck went in, but the presence of a teal skater on the other side of the blue paint qualified as interference. He did not really seem to be in the way but that is how the officials called it. For the second time in the game, a Barracuda goal was waived off.

The sixth Barracuda power play came with a little more than eight minutes remaining in the third period. Joseph Cramarossa was the culprit, confined for high-sticking.

Dell came out of his net with just under two minutes left, but the additional skater did not make the difference. The final shot count was 35-19 Barracuda.

While no Barracuda player had more than three shots, eight different players finished the game with three. It was a solid effort.

The Barracuda next play on Wednesday, in San Jose at 7:30 PT, against the Ontario Reign.

Stars Hand Sharks Third Straight Loss

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: The Dallas Stars Mattias (13) Janmark was on the mark finding the back of the net twice Saturday against the San Jose Sharks here he goes for a victory lap with teammates after his second period goal

SAN JOSE- The Dallas Stars beat the San Jose Sharks by a score of 4-2 on Saturday afternoon. It was the Sharks’ third straight loss, all on home ice. It also leaves them still waiting to clinch a spot in the playoffs. It was a disappointing follow up to Thursday’s defeat at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers, but Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer saw some positives in Saturday’s game:

I think we played a pretty good game tonight. Obviously we didn’t win. It was one of those nights where every mistake we made ended up in our net and we couldn’t buy one at the other end for a couple periods. You gotta be careful and make sure you keep the proper perspective. Obviously we want to be winning every game his time of year but we’ve won a lot of games over the season where we played like that. So we just gotta build on the positive.

Sharks goals came from Joel Ward and Tomas Hertl. Sharks goaltender Martin Jones made 13 saves on 16 shots. Two Dallas goals came from Mattias Janmark, and one each from Patrick Sharp and Jamie Benn. Antti Niemi made 34 saves on 36 Sharks shots. The shot discrepancy is not unfamiliar to the Sharks. After the game, Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon said: “The last couple games I think we’ve been doing a pretty good job. That’s one of the top scoring teams in the league and we limited them to 17 shots against so obviously we can’t be satisfied when we still lose the game and get no points.”

The Stars’ Antoine Roussel was a conspicuous participant in the first six penalties of the game, including a fight with Tommy Wingels. His antics did slow the game down. After the game, Wingels said:

I don’t get it. It’s embarrassing, I don’t think that stuff belongs in the game. Every shift after that you’re going to try to fight again. The rest don’t want that, the players don’t want their teammates… the fans don’t want to see after every whistle you have to be broken up.

Those Roussel penalties were not the only ones in the game. In all, the Sharks had six chances on the man advantage, but did not score. Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said, of their power play:

You give our PP unit that much time, we’ve got to get one, you know. We’ve got to really find a way to produce, not just chances but goals. And we didn’t do a good enough job there. There were a few looks we had, we still need to be a little cleaner I think but this time of the year PKs are hard, they’re aggressive. You got to make those entries count, you got to make the faceoffs count, I didn’t win enough of those draws. They’re all parts where they really add to that momentum throughout the PP. Could do a better job, sure.

Missing from the Sharks lineup was Joonas Donskoi. He did skate in the warmups, which may indicate that his absence will not be a long one. Matt Nieto and Marc-Edouard Vlasic both missed their fifth games since injury on March 17. Dainius Zubrus moved up to the Couture line, and Micheal Haley played on the the fourth.

The Dallas Stars have sustained several significant injuries this season. They are presently without perpetual scoring threat Tyler Seguin and regular blue-liner Jason Demers. John Klingberg, talented young defenseman, recently returned from injury, giving his team a needed boost.

The first period was going by scoreless, with a penalty per team and a couple of scuffles. Brenden Dillon took a roughing minor against Antoine Roussel. Roussel then took a slashing minor against Micheal Haley. Roussel and Tommy Wingels finished with fighting majors around the 14 minute mark. At 15:28, the shot count was 12 to 3 Sharks. On the Stars’ fourth shot, the puck went over Martin Jones’ pad for Mattias Janmark’s 14th goal of the season. His shot from the blue line got a little help from passing traffic. Assists went to Jordie Benn and Ales Hemsky.

The Stars added to their lead 4:22 into the second. A miscalculation from Jones left him too far from the crease and the net open for Janmark. Tomas Hertl made an attempt to stop the goal, but he lacks experience as a goaltender. Assists went to Jason Spezza and Stephen Johns.

The first penalty of the game that did not involve Antoine Roussel came 6:40 into the second. The Sharks did not score. Joe Pavelski went to the box at 13:41 for boarding against Johnny Oduya. During the ensuing power play, Jason Spezza made a pass from below the faceoff circle across the ice and back. Patrick Sharp took the shot quickly and cleanly. Assists went to Spezza and Klingberg.

The Sharks had a late power play, at 15:35. Stephen Johns went to the box for elbowing Roman Polak. With four seconds left in the period, Klingberg was called for roughing, and Thornton received the same.

Seventeen seconds into the third, Stars captain Jamie Benn was called for hooking Joe Pavelski. As a result, the teams payed four on three for 1:40. The Stars went right to the man advantage when Dylan DeMelo was called for slashing, just as the Sharks power play expired.

Before the DeMelo penalty expired, Joel Ward put the Sharks on the board with a short-handed goal. Antti Niemi handled the puck behind the net and he made a pass up the wall. After the pass, Joel Ward skated in behind him and seemed to nudge him from behind. Niemi went down and was thus unable to get back to his crease before Ward could put the puck in an open net.

The Sharks closed the gap further at 5:48 with a goal from Tomas Hertl. Taking advantage of busy traffic in the slot, Brent Burns made a pass to Pavelski, who carried it a bit and tried a backhand shot. Hertl skated in behind him and caught the rebound for his 19th goal of the season. Assists went to Pavelski and Burns.

Alex Goligoski was caught hooking at 10:09, putting the Sharks back on their thus-far ineffective power play. It was not effective.

The Stars took another penalty at 13:24, this time to Mattias Lanmark for tripping DeMelo. Still no power play goal.

The Sharks took their time out with 1:35 left in the game, and set up for an offensive zone faceoff with their net empty. Dallas wont the faceoff and iced the puck. The Sharks made better use of the next faceoff and moved the puck around in the Dallas zone, but with 1:08 left in the game, the Stars’ Patrick Sharp took control of the puck, passed it to Jamie Benn and Benn put it in the empty net.

The Sharks next play on Monday against the visiting Los Angeles Kings at 7:00 PT.

Sharks Shut Out Coyotes 3-0

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: The San Jose Sharks Tomas Hertl scores a second period goal and goes to the Sharks bench for a brief victory lap Sunday

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks defeated the Arizona Coyotes by a score of 3-0 Sunday. James Reimer made 25 saves for the shutout. It was his second shutout in four starts for the Sharks. Sharks goals came from Joel Ward, Tomas Hertl and Joe Pavelski. Brent Burns picked up an assist on Pavelski’s goal, setting a new record for most points by a Sharks defenseman in a season with 65.

The Sharks owed the Coyotes a good performance after their unimpressive loss last Thursday. The Sharks also needed a win against a non-playoff team, if for no other reason than to get one. Their recent record is littered with losses to the wrong teams, and wins against top tier opponents. This is not a problem that is likely to come up during the playoffs, but selective competing is not something the Sharks want to fall back into. For this reason, beating the Coyotes was a very good thing for the team.

Near the 14 minute mark of the first, Logan Couture blocked a shot and ended his shift a little early, but he did not leave the game. Justin Braun took the first penalty of the game, an interference penalty at 14:07. The Sharks were able to clear the puck twice in the first minute of the Coyotes power play, and allowed just one shot in that minute.

1:21 into the penalty, Patrick Marleau was called for high sticking and the Coyotes had a five on three for 39 seconds. The Sharks killed off the five on three, but had their hands full. The Coyotes added another shot before Braun came out of the box, but no more after that.

At 18:20, the Sharks took the lead with a goal from Joel Ward. He deflected Brenden Dillon’s shot from the point, a one-timer on a pass from Joonas Donskoi. Donskoi made the pass from below the blue line, for his 22nd assist of the season. It was Ward’s 20th goal of the season and Dillon’s seventh assist.

At the end of the first, the shots were 13-7 Sharks.

2:26 into the second, Brent Burn went to the box for tripping. The Sharks killed it off and finished the kill with a short-handed chance.

The Sharks had their first power play at 5:48, a holding penalty to Klas Dahlbeck. The Sharks power play had some difficulty establishing themselves in the Arizona zone. Eventually they did get set up, but the power play did not generate a goal.

They had another chance at 11:05, when Boyd Gordon went to the box for holding Melker Karlsson. the Sharks’ first unit again looked somewhat disorganized and the second jumped in for a faceoff and went right to work. In the space ofa few passes, they had the puck in the net. This time they got a little lucky as Hertl’s attempted pass to Ward hit Arizona’s Murphy and bounced back under Mike Smith. The goal went to Hertl, with assists to Donskoi and Paul Martin.

The Sharks went right back on the power play at 13:50, when Kevin Connauton was called for delay of game after sending the puck over the glass, but did not score. The Sharks finished the period on a penalty kill, as Nick Spaling was called for interference. The shots at the end of the second were 22-18 Sharks.

The Sharks completed the penalty kill to start the third period, and 13:10 in they had another power play. The Coyotes took yet another penalty at 17:55, a hooking penalty to Michael Stone.

The Coyotes pulled their goaltender with just over a minute left and briefly threatened in the Sharks zone. It was quite brief, and then Brent Burns took control of the puck in the neutral zone and passed it to Joe Pavelski for the empty net shot. It was Pavelski’s 34th goal of the season. Assists went to Burns and Joe Thornton.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday at 7:30, hosting the visiting St. Louis Blues.

Matt Nieto and Marc-Edouard Vlasic missed their second game after being injured last Thursday.

Sharks Sink Rangers 4-1

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: San Jose Sharks Joe Pavelski is congratulated by Joe Thornton and Tomas Hertl after scoring third period goal vs. the NY Rangers on Saturday afternoon

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks overwhelmed the New York Rangers in a 4-1 win Saturday. It has been a while since the Sharks passed the 50 shot mark in a game, but they did so Saturday. They pummeled Henrik Lundqvist with 47 before he left the game, and Antti Ranta faced five more, for a total of 52 shots. At the other end, Martin Jones faced 25 shots and stopped 24. Two San Jose goals were scored by Joel Ward, one by Joe Thornton and another by Joe Pavelski. Tomas Hertl picked up three assists in the game, while Patrick Marleau picked up an assist in his 1400th career NHL game. The lone Rangers goal was scored by Dan Boyle.

Three of the Sharks goals came in the third period, after a hard-fought two periods. After the game, Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer said: “I liked our game through 40 minutes. I thought that if we stuck with it, kept pushing and kept pushing, eventually we would find a crack and I think that’s what happened.”

Missing from the Sharks lineup were Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Matt Nieto, both injured in Thursday’s game against Arizona. Neither injury is expected to be long-term and the team anticipates they will both be back in time for playoffs. Dylan DeMelo was in for Vlasic, while Tommy Wingels returned from injury to fill out the forward lines. He was slotted in on the fourth line, while Chris Tierney moved up to play with Marleau and Ward. That was where Tierney had finished Thursday’s game as well.

After the game, Tommy Wingels talked about how the team should be able to handle the absence of key players:

Guys earn each other’s confidence. When you can show your linemates that you can contribute, you can show your teammates that you can be relied on, the depth shines. To go far in this league you need guys, you need a full team of guys who can do that. I think in this last stretch here, these past 25 games, we’ve really shown each other that any guy can stand up at any moment and that’s what you need.

3:16 into the first period, the Sharks were on the penalty kill. Just back from injury, Tommy Wingels was called for closing his hand on the puck. The Sharks killed the penalty off and followed up with a fairly amazing shift in the Rangers’ zone, complete with last-ditch keep-ins, falling pass interceptions and a couple of good shots. The team looked ready to play.

The Rangers responded with some strong shifts in the Sharks’ zone and the first period went back and forth that way without a goal. At the first intermission, the Sharks held slight leads in faceoffs and shots, and had half as many giveaways as the Rangers. The Rangers had blocked nine shots to the Sharks’ three.

Wingels went to the box to start the second period as well, taking Tanner Glass with him at 2:14. Wingels went for tripping Mats Zuccarello, Glass for roughing Wingels. No harm was done, but no benefit gained either as the four on four elapsed with the game still scoreless. The Sharks had their first power play at 6:01 of the second, for too many men on the ice. J.T. Miller did the time for the Rangers.

The Sharks power play was a bit unsteady at first, but found traction with the second unit. With 11 seconds left, Joonas Donskoi controlled the puck as it came around behind the Rangers net, and sent a quick reverse pass to Joel Ward in the slot. He wasted no time taking the shot for his 19th of the season. Assists went to Donskoi and Hertl.

Dan Boyle tied the game with 2:28 left in the second. Derrick Brassard and Dan Boyle surprised the Sharks with a two on one. Brenden Dillon went down to block Brassard’s pass to Boyle, but the puck got around him. It looked like Jones would stay with Boyle and stop the shot but Boyle waited him out and put the puck in with a nifty backhand. Assists went to Brassard and Marc Staal.

At the end of the second, the Sharks held a 37-18 shot lead.

Five seconds into the third, Marc Staal went to the box for delay of game. The Sharks power play started more quickly this time around but did not score. The Sharks had a series of good chances almost five minutes in, with as many as three tries in fewer seconds but Lundqvist stopped all of them.

Just past the five minute mark, though, the Sharks took the lead back. Tomas Hertl carried the puck over the line and fought his way around the Rangers defense. He carried the puck through a tight turn and to the front of the blue paint. Lundqvist stopped his shot but as Hertl was being taken down to the side of the net, Joe Thornton arrived in front to pick up the rebound and put it away. Assists went to Hertl and Joe Pavelski.

1:49 later, Marleau, Ward and Tierney skated in three on two. Instead of passing, Ward scored his 20th with a shot from the left circle. Assists went to Marleau and Paul Martin. The floodgates were open. Joe Pavelski scored his 33rd of the season in a two on none breakaway at 9:05. Tomas Hertl picked his third assist of the game, and Antti Ranta came in to relieve Lundqvist in goal. At that time, the Sharks held a shot lead of 47-21.

The Sharks took another penalty at 10:32, but not to Wingels. This time it was Dainius Zubrus, for tripping Ryan McDonagh. The Sharks killed the penalty handily, throwing in a couple of short-handed chances to boot. The Rangers looked deflated after that. They managed few shots, and took one more penalty with 1:07 left in the game. The penalty was to Dominic Moore, for boarding Dylan DeMelo. The Sharks made a modest effort to do something with the power play, but Paul Martin ended by holding the puck behind the Sharks net for the last several seconds of the game. It was a reasonable choice.

The Sharks next play on at 7:00 PT Sunday at SAP against the Arizona Coyotes.