Category: NHL

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa: Sharks host Penguins tonight at SAP Center in second of back to back games

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Jose Sharks left wing Jeff Skinner stretches out to take a shot against the Utah Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Fri Oct 17, 2025 (AP News photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 The Utah Mammoth’s Nick Schmaltz scored a hat trick with three goals and an assist as the Mammoth defeated the visiting San Jose Sharks 6-3 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City Friday night.

#2 The Mammoth’s Clayton Keller scored a goal and got three assists and Liam O’Brien and Michael Carcone got goals for the Mammoth.

#3 Utah further stopped the Sharks offense as goaltender Karel Vejmelka saved 18 shots and the Mammoth picked up their third win in four games. The Sharks lose their fourth straight game and remain winless.

#4 The Sharks Tyler Toffoli, Jeff Skinner, and Macklin Celebrini all scored for San Jose but it wasn’t enough falling short in another loss.

#5 The Sharks get another bit at the apple again in the second of back to back games this time against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins (3-2) on Saturday night at SAP Center in San Jose. The Pens have played .500 hockey in their last four games winning two of their last four. The Penguins beat the LA Kings in their last game Thursday 4-2 in LA. Mary Lisa how do you see these two teams Saturday night?

Join Mary Lisa for the San Jose Sharks podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mammoth Win 6-3 As Schmaltz Slays Sharks With Hat Trick

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Utah Mammoth center Liam O’Brien (38) celebrates his goal with left wing Brandon Tenev (13) against the San Jose Sharks in the second period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Fri Oct 17, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Nick Schmaltz recorded 3 goals and an assist and Liam O’Brien scored his first career Utah goal in a 6-3 victory over San Jose.

The Utah Mammoth (2-2-0) welcomed the San Jose Sharks (0-1-2) to Delta Center on Friday night for their first encounter of the season. All three games between the two teams last season were decided by a single goal, with San Jose winning their first matchup in Salt Lake City, overcoming a 4-1 deficit in the 3rd period and stealing the win in overtime, and Utah prevailing in the other two.

The Sharks put themselves in an early hole as tripping penalties a minute apart by Nick Leddy and Dmitry Orlov gave the Mammoth a 5-3 advantage. A half minute into the dual penalties, Utah forward Nick Schmaltz ripped a snap shot past San Jose netminder Yaroslav Askarov for his first goal of the season, assisted by Logan Cooley and Clayton Keller. At 13:31 of the first, Schmaltz made it 2-0 with another wicked shot, assisted again by Keller, which marks the fastest two goals in franchise history at 3:52 apart. It would be nearly 12 minutes into the game before the Sharks would record their first shot on goal. Karel Vejmelka turned away all 7 San Jose shots in the period, while Askarov stopped 10 of 12.

San Jose came out swinging in the second period with a burst of energy. At 4:33 Jack McBain was called for interference against Jeff Skinner, and on the ensuing power play Tyler Toffoli cut the Sharks deficit in half with his second goal of the season, assisted by Dmitry Orlov and Will Smith. Less than two minutes later, Jeff Skinner netted his third goal of the season, assisted by Macklin Celebrini and Vincent Desharnais, to tie things up 2-2. With just under four minutes remaining in the period, however, Mammoth forward Liam O’Brien scooped up a puck in front of the net and wrapped it past Askarov to reclaim Utah’s lead 3-2, with new acquisition Brandon Tanev recording his first point on the assist. For O’Brien, a feisty fan-favorite who missed the first four games of this season due to injury, it was his first career Utah goal having been kept out of the opposition net in 28 games during the team’s inaugural season.

Less than a minute into the third frame, Mammoth forward Nick Schmaltz put the puck past Askarov again for his second career hat trick, and the first of the season for the Utah Mammoth, to increase the lead to 4-2. Schmaltz noted after the game that his grandfather has seen him play twice in the NHL, and he scored a hat trick both times. The only other hat trick in Utah franchise history came last season by Barrett Hayton against the Los Angeles Kings on February 22, 2025. At 3:25 of the third, Mammoth forward Michael Carcone took advantage of an Alexander Wennberg giveaway to record his first goal of the season, assisted by Lawson Crouse, to put the Mammoth up 5-2. Utah wasn’t done, however. Just past the halfway mark of the period, Schmaltz returned the earlier favors, feeding captain Clayton Keller for his first goal of the season, with an additional assist by Barrett Hayton, to give the Mammoth a commanding 6-2 lead. At 16:51 of the third, with Dylan Guenther in the sin bin for cross-checking against Collin Graf, Macklin Celebrini scored his first goal of the season, assisted by Skinner and Wennberg, to bring the Sharks within three but there would be no 3rd period comeback this time as Utah claimed its third win of the season while San Jose falls to 0-2-2. Vejmelka finished the night turning away 18 of 21 shots for the win.

After the game in the visitor locker room, San Jose Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky addressed the third period meltdown. “We give up that one, Asky was the one behind out there, and then we just sat in our heels there a little bit in the third and that’s what good teams will do to you. … I thought there was good energy in the bench heading into the period. In the guys’ dressing room, we were saying the right things, but we have to start doing the right things.”

Sharks Defenseman Mario Ferraro echoed Warsofsky’s remarks. “We were back on our heels too early. We’ve got to start with the opposite and put them back on their heels. Obviously it’s a road game, but we’ve got to be even tighter in situations like that. I think just playing simple and getting pucks in and getting pucks out are really important. They put a lot of pressure on us, especially in the neutral zone. They came through the neutral zone with a lot of speed, so if we’re as tight as we can be next time in these road buildings to be tight and gapped up and not give them that time and space, maybe they’ll help us out a little bit. But for sure, our start wasn’t good enough tonight.”

It was no surprise that Nick Schmaltz and Liam O’Brien were selected to speak with the media in the winning locker room after the game. Talking about his hat trick, Schmaltz said, “Yeah, it was good. I feel like I’ve had a lot of chances early on in the season here and trying to shoot the puck more, take it to the net, be around the net more. A couple guys made some great plays by me in open areas, and it was fun to see a couple go in there. … It was awesome, especially in front of our home fans and shoutout to my grandpa, he’s been here. He’s watched me play two times now, in Arizona and here, and he’s seen a hat trick both times, so it’s pretty cool and special to have him here. Shout out to him.”

O’Brien talked about his emotions after scoring his first goal at Delta Center. “There’s a little sense of relief. Took longer than I wanted, but felt good, and I’m just happy we got the win too. … That second period was a little ugly for us. We didn’t like it, and we had a chat in between periods, and we fixed it. We came out and you see our top guys, turn it on like that, and you see how good those guys are. So, I thought we responded really well in that third period.”

Utah Mammoth Head Coach André Tourigny addressed his team’s performance in his opening statement. “I liked the first and the third, obviously, wasn’t in love with the second, but extremely proud of the way the boys reacted in the third. There was a lot of maturity, a lot of focus, and we played it right away. We put the puck behind, and we got a reward early, great play by Kells’ line, putting the puck deep and going on the forecheck. So that’s good” Commenting on Nick Schmaltz’s performance, Tourigny commented, “Honestly since the start of the season he’s been playing really good. You know, he had a lot of opportunities. He reloaded really well on both sides of the puck. He’s a trap. He’s inside a lot. Has a lot of opportunities inside. So it was a matter of time. I had a chat with him yesterday, saying, yeah, just do the right thing when you have those numbers and scoring chances, it’s because you’re doing the right thing, and it will come. Today was the day.” He was particularly pleased with the offensive effort of his squad. “I like the way we have generated offense lately, or the last two games I should say, you know, I have a ton of trust in our team. I know if we do the right thing and we go inside goals will come. I think what’s important is the win, six goals is always great. But more importantly, the way we responded in the third period and we left no doubt, that’s the way.”

Utah (3-2-0) will go for its third straight home victory to open the season on Sunday as they face off against the Boston Bruins (3-2-0).

San Jose Sharks podcast Lincoln Juarez Fri Oct 17, 2025: Sharks in search for first win face Utah tonight at Delta Center

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

AP File–San Jose Sharks goaltender Yarslov Askarov (30) defends against a shot by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second period on Mon Jan 27, 2025 at SAP Center in San Jose. The Sharks face off against the Utah Mammoth in Utah Fri Oct 17, 2025 in the first of back to back games. They face the Pittsburgh Penguins in San Jose Sat Oct 18, 2025.

San Jose Sharks podcast Lincoln Juarez:

#1 The San Jose Sharks who are looking for that first win of the 25-26 season were dropped by the Carolina Hurricanes in their last game by a whopping 5-1.

#2 The Hurricanes damage against the Sharks came by William Carrier and Eric Robinson who who both scored withing four and half minutes of each other in the second period. How badly did the Sharks defense let down on those goals?

#3 The Sharks William Eklund scored the only goal for San Jose. The Sharks offense on Wednesday didn’t crash the net enough you covered the game what did you see of the break down on offense?

#4 Sharks goaltender Alex Nedelijkovic was overwhelmed in net. He faced 43 shots and saved 38 of them allowing five goals. Was this a matter of not enough protection from the skaters up front or was it a matter of Nedelijkovic having an off game?

#5 The Sharks are in Utah Friday (tonight) at the Delta Center. The Mammoth (2-2) come into this game at .500. Their most recent win Wednesday beating the Calgary Flames 3-1. The Mammoth started their first three games on the road and opened up against Calgary last Wednesday. The Sharks played their first two games on the road and one at home.

Lincoln Juarez does the San Jose Sharks podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Mammoth Extinguish Flames 3-1 In Home Opener

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Utah Mammoth center Barrett Hayton (27) scores against the Calgary Flames in the second period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Wed Oct 15, 2025 (AP News photo)

Mammoth Extinguish Flames 3-1 In Home Opener

JJ Peterka nets game-winner in Delta Center debut as Karel Vejmelka locks down the Utah net.

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–The Utah Mammoth returned to Salt Lake City Wednesday night for their home opener following a 1-2-0 road trip through Colorado, Nashville, and Chicago to begin the 2025-2026 NHL season. For the second straight year, Utah forward Dylan Guenther scored the team’s first goal of the season, this time in a 2-1 loss to the Avalanche on October 9.

Before the puck drop at Delta Center, Tusky the Mountain Blue mammoth made its mascot debut, officially ending the double duties of Jazz Bear from the city’s NBA squad.

At 7:21 of the first period, Mammoth defenseman Mikhail Sergachev went to the sin bin for high-sticking Blake Coleman. Just over a minute later, Calgary’s Rasmus Andersson cashed it in to give the Flames an early 1-0 lead, assisted by Morgan Frost and Nazem Kadri. Calgary netminder Devin Cooley, no relation to Utah’s Logan Cooley, turned away all ten shots he faced in the opening frame while Karel Vejmelka stopped four of the five shots he faced.

It didn’t take long in the second period for Utah to even the score. At 1:16 of the period, Mammoth forward Barrett Hayton found the back of the Calgary net for his first goal of the season, assisted by Nick Schmaltz and John Marino. Three minutes later, JJ Peterka took advantage of a giveaway by Brayden Pachal and flew the full length of the ice before beating Devin Cooley unassisted for his second goal of the season and a new entry into the Mammoth highlight reels to give Utah the 2-1 lead. The second period was all Mammoth as the home squad put 18 shots on goal to Calgary’s three.

The Flames fought back in the third period, outshooting Utah 12-4, but both netminders held the line until Devin Cooley got pulled to give Calgary a 6-5 offensive advantage. The Flames peppered Karel Vejmelka with shots in the closing minutes, but Utah forward Kevin Stenlund banked a rebound off the dasher boards and into the empty Calgary net for his first goal of the season to put the game away.

New acquired forward JJ Peterka faced the media in the locker room for the first time after the game. Describing his first home opener as a Mammoth, Peterka said, “The crowd throughout the whole game was unbelievable. Started with the anthem in the warmups, with how many kids and how many fans came out. Just throughout the whole game, when we needed energy, we for sure got it from the crowd.” As for the game itself, the winger added, “I think that was a tough game, but we stuck to our game plan throughout the whole 60 minutes. We knew they were going to make a push and throw everything in there, and I think Veggie was unbelievable throughout the whole game, but especially in the third, he made some huge stops to secure the win.” With regard to Calgary’s third period push, Peterka commented, “We kind of played a little bit more defensively, made sure we are in the shot lanes and in passing lanes, and outweighed them because we knew they come pretty hot out of the locker room.”

Winning goaltender Karel Vejmelka was asked about getting that first W at home. “Obviously, first home game of the season, so we wanted to play a good game and we did. We found a way to win. It wasn’t an easy game. But like I said, we found a way.” Having faced only 8 shots combined in the first two periods, Vejmelka was asked about staying focused while being largely uncontested for much of the game. He responded, “You know, it’s all about staying sharp and mentally focused. It wasn’t easy for us in the first period, but [there was] pressure in the third and we played a really good job defensively, but I needed to make a couple of good saves. It’s a big team win. As for the energy of the fans on opening night, the Utah netminder said, “Well, it’s always fun to play again in front of our fans. It’s so much fun and I enjoy every minute on the ice. It’s really special to be back home, and really appreciated all of that.”

Utah Mammoth Head Coach André Tourigny began the postgame interview with a statement. “It was a positive outing, and lots of opportunities. Unfortunately, we could not convert, but it was a positive outing. And then the third, they had a really good push, but I liked the way we managed it defensively. We turned the puck over a little bit too much when we were protecting the lead, a little bit too safe. But our game in general, when it comes to the physicality, balancing, the hits, and trying not to draw penalties.” Talking about giving up Calgary’s early goal, Tourigny commented, “I think we reacted well after the first. In the first, it was a war, maybe a little bit too into it. But after we reacted really well. I really like the mental strength of our team, and even when they had the push, we still played well. When you dominate the way we dominate for two periods, and you arrive in the third, and they have a push, I didn’t feel any panic. The guys were trying to do the right thing, not necessarily having success at it, but we’re doing the right thing, and we defended really hard. So that’s tough for them to get to our net front, but when they did, Veggie came up big.” Overall, Tourigny was satisfied with his team’s performance for the night. “Our forecheck was big, and I think that when we’re on top of our opponent and we skate the way we did in the first two periods, we are tough to play against, and we drew a lot of penalties. That’s a really good game for us. … Part of playing good defense is that you need to be able to break out the puck a little bit better than we did in the third. It was a strength of ours in the first two periods. In the third, it was a little bit tougher. And they obviously pressed a bit differently than they did in other situations. So it put us in a little bit of some adversity, which is something we will talk more about and improve, but the way we played without the puck was really good, and much more comfortable.”

The Mammoth return to action at the Delta Center on Friday against the San Jose Sharks, continuing with games next week against the Boston Bruins and Colorado Avalanche to conclude the season opening homestand.

San Jose Sharks podcast Len Shapiro: Sharks go down 0-3 get clobbered at home by Canes 5-1

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Carolina Hurricanes left winger William Carrier (28) scores a goal against the San Jose Sharks Alex Nedelijkovic (33) in the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Tue Oct 14, 2025 (AP News photo)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 How did Carolina Hurricanes rookie goaltender Brandon Bussi perform in his NHL debut, and how did his performance impact the game?

#2 Which players contributed offensively for the Hurricanes, and how balanced was their scoring?

#3 What role did the Sharks’ rookie Michael Misa play in the game, and how did he handle his NHL debut?

#4 How did injuries or lineup changes affect both teams’ rosters going into the game?

#5 It’s off to Salt Lake City and the Utah Mammoth for the Sharks. The Mammoth lost their last game against the Chicago Blackhawks in Chicago on Monday night 3-1. The Mammoth are 1-2-0. The Sharks are winless and pretty much left no doubt in their loss to the Hurricanes that it was a forgone conclusion in their 5-1 at SAP Center on Tuesday night.

Len Shapiro does the San Jose Sharks podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks get dominated 5-1 by Canes; SJ remains winless through 3 games

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Jose Sharks goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic deflects a shot in the second period against the Carolina Hurricanes at SAP Center in San Jose on Tue Oct 14, 2025 (AP News photo)

Sharks get dominated 5-1 by Caines; SJ remains winless through 3 games

By Lincoln Juarez

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Five different Hurricanes scored to blow through San Jose in a 5-1 win. Michael Misa was kept off the score sheet in his NHL debut and the Sharks ugly start to the season continues.

After two gut-wrenching, late-game losses to open up the season the San Jose Sharks aimed to weather the storm of the Carolina Hurricanes at SAP Center. The Sharks second overall pick from the 2025 draft, Michael Misa made his highly anticipated NHL debut Tuesday night. The 18 year old forward from Oakville, Ontario, who scored 134 points in his final OHL season last year with the Saginaw Spirit, finally took to NHL ice.

The Sharks had not trailed in regulation until Tuesday night when Carolina’s Sean Walker opened up the scoring with his first of the year. It was also the start of a rough night for Alex Nedeljkovic in the Sharks net.

Nedeljkovic, who made a costly error last Thursday night resulting in the Vegas Golden Knights overtime win, hoped to make a better second impression on Sharks fans at SAP Center. Instead, he allowed five goals on 43 shots with not much help from his defense in front of him.

Five different Hurricanes scored on Nedeljkovic as Carolina ran away with the game in the third period, not giving the Sharks any chance to make it close.

As for top prospect Michael Misa, he was held to 0 shots and a -2 in 15:06 of total ice time. The only Sharks offense came in the second period by William Eklund on a breakaway goal to tie the game at one at the time. It was Eklund’s first of the season and the lone San Jose goal.

One of the biggest concerns from Tuesday night was the Sharks powerplay. San Jose went 0-5 on the man advantage, generating just four shots on goal. Failure to capitalize on Carolina penalties put the Sharks deeper into the hole they’ve dug for themselves.

They have a chance on Friday night in Salt Lake City to get themselves out of it and tally that elusive first win of the season.

Puck drop on the front half of a back-to-back will be at 6:00pm on Friday night in Utah against the Mammoth.

Sharks Fall 7-6 to Ducks in OT

Published on by M WalshLeave a comment

The Anaheim Ducks Chris Kreider (20) scores on the San Jose Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) in the third period at SAP Arena on Sat Oct 11, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 7-6 in overtime to the Anaheim Ducks Saturday. Cutter Gauthier, Beckett Sennecke, Alex Killorn, Chris Kreider, and Leo Carlsson scored for Anaheim. Petr Mrazek made 17 saves for the win.

Tyler Toffoli, Ryan Reaves, Mario Ferraro, John Klingberg, Adam Gaudette and Jeff Skinner scored for San Jose. Yaroslav Askarov made 36 saves in the loss. San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini finished the game with three assists.

This was the second overtime loss in a row, the second game that the Sharks lost after holding a lead in the third period. After the game, the Sharks’ Celebrini talked about the team’s difficulty playing with the lead: “We want it so bad that maybe we’re over-thinking, maybe we just kind of panic sometimes. I don’t know, it’s frustrating when you’re that close.”

Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said: “We need some poise. We’re chucking pucks around in the defensive zone, on break-outs, out of d-zone structure, just chucking it around. They were all over us.”

The Sharks took the lead early and often. At 3:40, Tyler Toffoli scored the first goal of the game, skating into the zone during a delayed penalty to catch a pass from Will Smith on the blue line. Celebrini got the secondary assist.

Ryan Reaves made it 2-0 at 11:12. Reaves carried the puck into the zone and along the boards. He looked like he was going behind the net but instead he found a gap between the goalie and the post and he put the puck there. Assists went to Adam Gaudette and Nick Leddy.

Cutter Gauthier cut the lead in half less than a minute later. A pass that missed its mark carried on into the zone where Gauthier caught up with it and shot it around Klingberg and past Askarov. Assists went to Mason McTavish amd Radko Gudas.

Beckett Sennecke tied the game on the power play at 15:14. Sennecke caught the rebound off McTavish’s shot and put it in with a wrist shot. An assist also went to Olen Zellweger.

At the end of the first, the shots were 14-7 Anaheim. The Ducks had two power plays and the Sharks had none.

Mario Ferraro broke the tie at 5:41 of the second period. Mrazek kicked out a rebound after a Will Smith shot and Ferraro sent it back in with a wrist shot. Assists went to Smith and Celebrini.

Less than a minute later, Alex Killorn tied it back up with a goal on a breakaway. An assist went to Mikael Granlund.

At 10:34, Klingberg scored a power play goal to make it 4-3. Celebrini and Smith got the assists.

Gaudette scored another power play goal at 17:14 to give the Sharks a two-goal lead. Alexander Wennberg and Dmitri Orlov got the assists.

Chris Kreider scored on the power play to trim the Sharks lead at 19:29. He got his stick on the puck as it drifted in the blue paint behind Askarov. Assists went to Leo Carlsson and Troy Terry.

Jeff Skinner scored at 5:34 of the third period with a spin shot. Assists went to Ty Dellandrea and Orlov.

Gauthier scored his second of the game, tipping McTavish’s shot at 10:29.

Kreider tied the game again in the final minute of regulation. He knocked in a rebound that Askarov could not cover. Assists went to Leo Carlsson and Terry.

Carlsson scored the game winner 48 seconds into overtime. Celebrini lost the puck in Carlsson’s feet, giving Carlsson the opportunity to break away. Granlund got the assist.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday in San Jose at 7:00 PM PT against the visiting Carolina Hurricanes.

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa: Sharks face Ducks tonight looking for first win of season

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini (71) and the Sharks host the Anaheim Ducks at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Oct 11, 2025 (AP News photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa:

1. The San Jose Sharks opened up the new season in front of a sold-out crowd at SAP Center Thursday night with nine new players making their Sharks debuts. 

2. Jeff Skinner scored the first goal of the season for San Jose to put the Sharks ahead 1-0 early in the first. It was his 700th career NHL point. 

3. The San Jose power play combined for four shots on goal including an Alex Wennberg 5-on-3 goal in the second period, going 1-for-4 on the power play. 

4. Alex Nedeljkovic goaltender played a great game until the final two minutes of the third when things took a turn allowing Vegas to tie the game and eventually win the game in overtime. 

5. Friday at the morning skate , head coach Ryan Warsofsky announced that D Sam Dickinson will make his NHL debut Saturday night at the Shark Tank against the Anaheim Ducks. 

Mary Lisa does the SJ Sharks podcasts Saturdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast Lincoln Juarez: Sharks look to rebound from opening night loss; SJ hosts Anaheim Saturday

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Jose Sharks left wing Jeff Skinner (53) celebrates with center Tyler Dellandrea (10) after scoring a goal against the Vegas Golden Knights in the first period at SAP Center in San Jose on Thu Oct 9, 2025 (AP News photo)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Lincoln Juarez:

1. The San Jose Sharks opened up the new season in front of a sold-out crowd at SAP Center Thursday night with nine new players making their Sharks debuts. 

2. Jeff Skinner scored the first goal of the season for San Jose to put the Sharks ahead 1-0 early in the first. It was his 700th career NHL point. 

3. The San Jose power play combined for four shots on goal including an Alex Wennberg 5-on-3 goal in the second period, going 1-for-4 on the power play. 

4. Alex Nedeljkovic played a great game until the final two minutes of the third when things took a turn allowing Vegas to tie the game and eventually win the game in overtime. 

5. Friday afternoon, head coach Ryan Warsofsky announced that D Sam Dickinson will make his NHL debut Saturday night at the Shark Tank against the Anaheim Ducks. 

Lincoln Juarez does the SJ Sharks podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Fall to Golden Knights 4-3 in Season Opener

Published on by M WalshLeave a comment

Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden (21) collides with San Jose Sharks goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (33) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, in San Jose, Calif. Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost their season opener 4-3 to the Vegas Golden Knights Thursday. Brett Howden, Pavel Dorofeyev, Jack Eichel and Reilly Smith scored for the Golden Knights. Akira Schmid made 20 saves for the win. Jeff Skinner, Alexander Wennberg and Phillip Kurashev scored for the Sharks. Alex Nedeljkovic made 27 saves in the loss.

The Sharks scored first, a goal from Jeff Skinner at 5:31. Skinner batted the puck in off of a high rebound that he created with a shot off the goalie’s pad. Assists went to Ty Dellandrea and Shakir Mukhamadullin.

Vegas tied it at 8:09 with a wrist shot from Brett Howden. Howden picked up the puck near the blue line, off of a failed clear by the Sharks. Howden carried the puck in through traffic and across in front of the blue paint before taking his shot. Assists went to Keegan Kolesar and Ben Hutton.

Mukhamadullin took the only penalty of the first period, high-sticking against Jack Eichel. The Sharks killed that off. The shots were 10-9 Vegas after the first period.

Alexander Wennberg gave the Sharks a 2-1 during a five-on-three power play at 6:59 of the second period. Wennberg caught a rebound from William Eklund’s shot. An assist also went to John Klingberg.

Vegas responded with their own power play goal at 14:22. Pavel Dorofeyev caught a pass that came across the ice from Mark Stone. Jack Eichel got the secondary assist.

The second period shot count was 11-6 Vegas. The Golden Knights took three penalties in the period and the Sharks took two.

Phillip Kurashev scored for the Sharks to make it 3-2 at 2:59 of the third. Kurashev tipped a shot from Dmitry Orlov. Mukhamadullin picked up the secondary assist, his second of the night.

William Eklund missed two shots on an empty net. Moments later, Jack Eichel’s shot from the blue line slipped by Nedeljkovic’s right skate and tied the game with 94 seconds left in regulation.

The teams each took one penalty in the third period. The shots were also even at 8-8.

The game winner came off of Reilly Smith’s stick after Nedeljkovic came all the way out of the net to play the puck but did not do execute his plan well. It was particularly disappointing because the Sharks goaltender had just made a great stop on a two-on-none. An assist went to Shea Theodore.

The Sharks had no shots in overtime.

The Sharks next play on Saturday against the visiting Anaheim Ducks at 7:00 PM PT.