Category: NHL

Sharks Lose 4-1 to Flyers, Graf Scores Lone Sharks Goal

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Philadelphia Flayers Travis Konecny scored his 500th career goal against the San Jose Sharks on Tue Dec 9, 2025 at Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 4-1 to the Philadelphia Flyers Tuesday. Christian Dvorak, Carl Grundstrom, Noah Cates and Travis Konecny scored for the Flyers. Dan Vladar made saves for the win. Collin Graf scored the only Sharks goal and Alex Nedeljkovic made 26 saves in the loss.

After scoring first, the Sharks gave up four goals to the Flyers. After the game, Sharks forward Ryan Reaves said: “You can’t win in this league not playing in your structure. And we show it every other game right now. That’s why we’re just kind of middle of the pack right now and I think we know we should be a little bit higher.”

Alexander Wennberg said:

“I don’t think we came out the way we wanted. We talked about playing fast, playing hard, tough puck plays and get the puck to the net. I mean obviously it’s not to the standard we want. So… disappointing result and there were some good parts to the game but I mean we gotta come in and give them a better fight.”

Collin Graf opened the scoring at 11:33 with a snap shot. Will Smith made a cross-ice pass to John Klingberg, who sent it right back across to Graf for the shot.

Christian Dvorak tied the game at 18:39. Dvorak and Trevor Zegras broke away and went into the Sharks zone two-on-one against Sam Dickinson. Dvorak got around Dickinson and beat Nedeljkovic on the glove side with a backhand. Assists went to Zegras and Travis Konecny.

The Sharks were outshot 16-3 in the first period. The Sharks also took two penalties and the Flyers took none.

Carl Grundstrom scored the second Flyers goal at 3:20 of the second period. Grundstrom tipped a shot by Nick Seeler. A secondary assist went to Travis Sanheim.

Noah Cates scored the third Flyers goal at 19:48 of the second period. Bobby Brink made a pass to Cates as they rushed to the net. Cates beat Nedeljkovic with a wrist shot on the blocker side. Assists went to Brink and Jamie Drysdale.

The shots were closer in the second, 10-8 Flyers. The Flyers also took the only penalty in the period.

Travis Konecny scored the final goal from the Sharks’ blue line into an empty at 18:17. Dvorak got an assist on that one. The Sharks led in shots in the third, 7-4. The Flyers again took the only penalty in the period.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Toronto against the Maple Leafs at 4:00 PM PT.

Kings Double Up Mammoth 4-2 To Open Homestand

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Utah Mammoth Daniil (19) battles with the Los Angeles Kings Cody Ceci (5) at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Mon Dec 8, 2025 (Utah Mammoth photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Los Angeles struck twice in the first period and never looked back while defeating deflated Utah.

The Utah Mammoth (14-13-3) returned to Delta Center on Monday night to face the Los Angeles Kings (13-8-7)  following a six game road trip in which the team went 2-4-0. The road trip began on a tragic note when the father of Mammoth captain Clayton Keller passed away unexpectedly Thanksgiving night. Keller played the following day in a tough 4-3 loss at Dallas, and then again the following night in his hometown of St. Louis where the Mammoth fell 1-0 to the Blues.

Utah would go on to lose their fourth consecutive game in San Jose, 6-3, before breaking out with a 7-0 shellacking of the Pacific Division leading Anaheim Ducks.  Following a 4-1 victory against the Canucks in Vancouver, the road trip concluded in Calgary where the Flames shut out the Mammoth 2-0. 

Adding injury to insult, Utah forward Logan Cooley, who leads the Mammoth with 14 goals and is 3rd in points with 23, sustained a lower-body injury in Vancouver which will keep him out of the lineup indefinitely.

When the puck dropped in the first period, Utah radio play-by-play announcer Matt McConnell officially registered his 2000th NHL game behind the microphone.  His 29-season broadcasting career began in 1993 with the expansion Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and then continued with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Atlanta Thrashers, Minnesota Wild, and in 2011 he landed with the Phoenix Coyotes which were renamed the Arizona Coyotes before the 2014-2015 season.

When the assets of the Coyotes were sold and the team relocated to Salt Lake City, McConnell remained behind the mic for the new franchise.

Kings forward Adrian Kempe gave Los Angeles the first lead of the game with a backhand shot at 7:50 of the first period for his 10th goal of the season, assisted by Kevin Fiala.  Just over two minutes later, Fiala assisted on a breakaway goal by Joel Armia, his 6th on the year, to put the Kings up 2-0. 

At 11:05 of the frame, Mammoth forward Brandon Tanev had a breakaway of his own which he put into the back of the net, however the replay showed he was unquestioningly offside and L.A. held onto its two-goal lead heading into the locker room. Kings netminder Darcy Kuemper turned away all 7 Utah shots in the period, and Mammoth goalie Karel Vejmelka stopped 10 of 12.

Utah began the 2nd period on the power play, courtesy of an interference penalty by Andrei Kuzmenko against Dylan Guenther which carried over from the first period.  Just 34 seconds into the period, as fans were still settling into their seats, Clayton Keller fed Guenther a perfect pass which he one-timed into the Kings net for his 11th goal of the season to bring the Mammoth to within one, with defenseman Mikhail Sergachev picking up the second assist.

The goal is the fastest to begin a period so far this season for Utah.  Guenther’s 3rd power play goal of the season ties him for the team lead with Nick Schmaltz and Logan Cooley.  His 7th one-timer goal of the season also ranks third-most in the NHL.  The period would end with Kuemper stopping 5 of 6 shots, and Vejmelka turning away all 7 attempts by L.A.

In the 3rd, Kings captain Anze Kopitar put a backhand shot past Vejmelka for his 6th goal of the season at 3:27, assisted by Kempe and Joel Edmundson, to restore L.A.’s two-goal advantage.  At 12:15 of the third, Clayton Keller brought Utah back to within a goal with a beautiful backhand top shelf shot which Kuemper had absolutely no chance to save.

Keller’s 10th of the season was assisted by Nick Schmaltz and JJ Peterka who joined the top line in place of the injured Cooley. With Vejmelka pulled for the extra attacker, Kings forward Joel Armia scored his second goal of the game into an empty net, unassisted, to put the game away 4-2.

Utah Mammoth forward Brandon Tanev addressed the media after the game.  “Disappointed we didn’t get the two points. That’s a team that likes to play stingy through the neutral zone, and to generate offense, you’ve got to be simple with the puck. Get pucks to the net and ultimately create traffic. I think we did a little bit of that, but we didn’t do enough at the end of the day.” Talking about what the team needs to do moving forward, Tanev said, “I think we understood that wasn’t our best tonight, even though we fought and clawed at the end there. That’s a good hockey team. At the end of the day, we need to understand what makes us successful. Work on that in practice, and then we’ve got to get back here for the next one.”

Captain Clayton Keller commented, “Not a great first from us. They’re an experienced team. They’re structured. They defend really hard, and they made it tough on us in the first. We were able to kind of bounce back in the second. That’s one of our best second periods of the year in terms of everything. Game management and trying to outchange them and use our speed. It sucks to have that little push there and not be able to get it done.” Weighing in on what needs to be better, Keller stated bluntly, “Starting on time is obviously a big one. We’re a tough team to play against, and I think that’s the main thing from us. We know what we have to do each night. The coaches do a great job telling us how we have to play and how we can break them down and have success. Our execution was a little sloppy tonight, but as the game went on, it got a little bit better.” Talking about the third period he added, “There’s never any quit in this room. Guys play for one another. It sucks to not get the win. We did kind of push there. There are moments where we have a chance to score on the six-on-five, and we have to find a way to do it. Teams have done it to us, and that’s something over the last two years that we haven’t been able to do. That’s something that we can take away from it. Really dial that in. Practice it. Watch video. Our coaches do a great job, and it’s on us to execute and go out there and do it.”

Head Coach André Tourigny began his post-game remarks by saying, “We obviously didn’t have the start we were hoping for, and we needed to. Against that kind of team, it is tough to create offense. I like the way we played in the second and third. I thought we competed really hard, and our effort was there; the focus was there. Unfortunately, when you have that kind of a start, I often repeat in front of you, it’s a one-goal game all the time, so you cannot give any free opportunities to your opponent. I didn’t like our start, and, like I said, a really good second and third.”  Bear continued, “I think what LA does really well is counterattack. If you mismanage the puck or if you force play, they counterattack. In the first period, we definitely gave them too much space. We let them take the middle on the rush, so they had too many entries. I think after the guys adjusted well and did a really good job at it. But they’re number one in the league at certain things, for a reason, and I think by giving them the lead, it made them play in their strength even more so that was the unfortunate part of the night, because I think the effort, as I said, was good in the second and the third.”  During morning practice one of the players commented that the team was playing too much on the perimeter. Tourigny agreed.  “I think tonight we did. But I think tonight you could see in the third and the second we went in there, in the dirty area, and we got a few tips and a few rebounds. And I think the effort from the guys was definitely there.”

When a reporter for KSL.com noted that fans at Monday night’s game gathered to write letters to Keller after the unexpected passing of his father, Tourigny responded, “The community has a heart in the right place, there is no doubt about it.  We saw it last year when Ingram was going through a tough time, and again now they rally [for] Kells. I think when we often talk about home, how important are our fans, and how much we care and how much they care for us. I think I often talk about a relationship, I think always in tough moments you see who you can rely on.”  

The Mammoth (14-14-3) return to the ice Wednesday for the second game of three on this homestand against the Florida Panthers (14-12-2), followed by the Seattle Kraken on Friday.

Sharks Beat Hurricanes 4-1, Celebrini Earns 3 Points

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San Jose Sharks Jeff Skinner (53) controls the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes Logan Stankoven (22) in the first period at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh on Sun Dec 7, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 on Sunday. Collin Graf, John Klingberg, Alexander Wennberg and Macklin Celebrini scored for the Sharks. Alex Nedeljkovic made 28 saves for the win. Jordan Staal scored for the Hurricanes and Pyotr Kochetkov made 18 saves in the loss.

The win was a noteworthy bounce-back from the two losses that preceded it, and the end of a five-game road losing streak. Goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic said: “I thought we did a good job of just hunkering down, staying with it in our own end in the third and keeping it simple.”

Macklin Celebrini found Collin Graf going to the net for the first goal of the game, just 33 seconds in. Will Smith got the secondary assist, having kept the puck in the zone before passing it to Celebrini.

The line was a new one for the season. “It was fun, it was a great start, great plays from Smitty and Mack, just going to the net, my stick on the ice,” said Graf. “I honestly didn’t really like see it at first, I just thought I was going to the net and he hit me right on the tape. So, pretty impressive,” he said, of Celebrini’s pass.

The Hurricanes tied the game with a power play goal at 13:38. Jordan Staal deflected a shot from Shayne Gostisbehere. An assist also went to Andrei Svechnikov.

Carolina out-shot the Sharks 8-6 in the first. The Sharks took two penalties in the first and killed one. The Hurricanes had just one penalty to kill.

The Sharks took back the lead with a goal at 7:54 of the second. John Klingberg scored the goal, carrying the puck in and passing it to Celebrini behind the goal line. Klingberg got the puck back when he was in a better shooting position and snapped it in. An assist also went to Philipp Kurashev.

Alexander Wennberg scored on the power play at 15:14. Wennberg snapped home the rebound from William Eklund’s shot. An assist also went to Klingberg.

The Sharks outshot the Hurricanes 9-6 in the second. The only penalty called was to Carolina.

Te only goal scored in the third period was an empty-netter scored by Macklin Celebrini at 18:40. Alexander Wennberg got an assist.

The Sharks took two penalties in the third period, both to Jeff Skinner and both stick infractions. The Hurricanes also had one stick penalty. Carolina outshot San Jose 15-7 in the third.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday in Philadelphia against the Flyers at 4:00 PM PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa: Sharks face off with hot Hurricanes Sunday in Raleigh

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San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa Sat Dec 6, 2025:

The Dallas Stars Sam Steel (18) takes a shot against the San Jose Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) in the third period at American Airlines Center on Fri Dec 5, 2025 (AP News photo)

#1 Given that Collin Graf scored the lone San Jose Sharks goal in the 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars Friday night, what could he — or the coaching staff — have done differently to generate more momentum or follow-up chances after tying the game 1-1 in the second period?

#2 With Yaroslav Askarov stopping 20 of 23 shots but still giving up three third-period goals, was fatigue or defensive breakdown in front of him more to blame — and what does this say about the Sharks’ defensive effort in that final frame?

#3 Considering veteran forward Jeff Skinner returned from injury for this game, did his presence (or performance) make any noticeable difference — and should the Sharks lean more on him offensively going forward?

#4 The Sharks went 0-for-4 on the power play — what could players like Macklin Celebrini or Graf have done better on the man advantage to avoid giving up control to Dallas in transition?

#5 After conceding three unanswered goals in the third period, what lessons should the Sharks draw for their road game strategy — and which players Askarov, defensemen, forwards need to step up to avoid a repeat collapse?

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

Sharks Fall 4-1 to Stars, Stars Score 3 in third

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Dallas Stars right wing Mikko Rantanen (96) celebrates his goal with Vladislav Kolyachonok (44) and Sam Steel (18) as San Jose Sharks goalie Yaroslav Askarov (30) sits in front of the net in third period at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Fri Dec 5, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 4-1 to the Dallas Stars Friday. Jason Robertson, Sam Steel, Mikko Rantanen and Miro Heiskanen scored for Dallas. Jake Oettinger made 16 saves for the win. Collin Graf scored for San Jose and Yaroslave Askarov made 20 saves in the loss.

The game was tied 1-1 at the half way point of the third, when the Stars jumped ahead and left the Sharks in the metaphorical dust. The Sharks also took a beating in their last game, a 7-1 loss Wednesday to the Washington Capitals. Asked whether Friday’s game was an improvement over that one, Collin Graf said:

“The last game, we just flushed it as a team. We don’t really want to talk about that one. I think today there were some good things. I think I’ve been playing well, I’ve been creating chances. I just got a lucky bounce. Good job from Delly and Ledz and Kursh.”

Asked a similar question, Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said: “Anything better than a 7-1 loss is better.”

The first goal of the game came from the Stars’ Jason Robertson on the power play at 14:20. A rebound from Wyatt Johnston’s shot landed in front of Robertson and he used a backhand to put it away. An assist also went to Mikko Rantanen.

The Stars outshot the Sharks 9-3 in the first. The Sharks took two penalties to the Stars’ one.

Collin Graf tied the game at 8:23 of the second period. Philipp Kurashev threw shot the puck into traffic in front of the net. It came back out and Graf tucked it back in. Assists went to Nick Leddy and Kurashev.

The Sharks outshot the Stars 6-4 in the second period. The penalty count was also reversed, with the Sharks taking one and the Stars two. Only one of those created a power play, as Jeff Skinner and Mikko Rantanen had matching slashing minors.

Sam Steel broke the tie at 10:56 of the third. Steel took a shot from in close and the rebound came back to him. Askarov could not find the puck as it slipped by him near the post. Assists went to Alexander Petrovic and Rantanen.

Rantanen added an insurance goal at 16:39. Rantanen gathered the puck beh8nd the net and carried it out, shooting across off the far post. Assists went to Wyatt Johnston and Vladislav Kolyachonok.

At 17:40, Macklin Celebrini put the puck in the net but, as revealed after a coach’s challenge, Kurashev was off side on the play.

Miro Heiskanen made it 4-1 with a shot into an empty net from the Stars zone. An assist went to Roope Hintz.

Dallas outshot San Jose 11-8 in the third. The Stars took two penalties in the third and the Sharks took none.

The Sharks next play in Carolina against the Hurricanes on Sunday at 2:00 PM PT.

Sharks Brutal 7-1 Loss Against Capitals on Home Ice Ovechkin gets his sixth win in a row.

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Macklin Celebrini and Dylan Strome battle for the puck during a faceoff at SAP Center on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025 (San Jose Sharks photo)

By Fernando Abarca

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Sharks have undeniably improved this season, but facing the Washington Capitals proved a harsh reminder of the gap that still remains. San Jose suffered one of its toughest defeats of the year, falling 7–1 to Alex Ovechkin and the surging Capitals on Wednesday night.

The Sharks entered the matchup on a positive note after opening December with a 6–3 win over Utah (12-12-3). But Washington presented a far greater challenge. The Capitals arrived sitting second in the Metropolitan Division and riding momentum with five road victories already on the season.

Washington seized control early, scoring four times in the first period. Ryan Leonard delivered a standout performance with two goals and two assists, helping the Capitals extend their winning streak to six games.

Ovechkin added two goals of his own, boosting his career total to 911. Matt Roy recorded three assists, Brandon Duhaime scored and added an assist, Dylan Strome chipped in a goal, and goaltender Charlie Lindgren made 23 saves in a composed effort.

Pavol Regenda scored the lone goal for San Jose late in the third period. The Sharks have alternated wins and losses over their last seven games and struggled to find stability in net throughout the night. Yaroslav Askarov surrendered four goals before being replaced by Alex Nedeljkovic, who provided steadier play but little relief against Washington’s relentless attack.

The Capitals struck first at 8:25 of the opening period when Ovechkin jammed in a rebound at the left post. Sonny Milano doubled the lead less than two minutes later with a one-timer from the left circle.

Leonard opened the scoring in the third period just 1:03 in, bursting down the left wing, slipping past defenseman Timothy Liljegren, and lifting a backhander behind Nedeljkovic to make it 7–0.

San Jose broke through at 12:58 when Dmitry Orlov’s point shot deflected off Regenda’s skate and into the net. Washington challenged for goaltender interference, but the call on the ice stood.

Despite that late blemish, the Capitals left San Jose with one of their most complete wins of the season, powered by Ovechkin’s scoring touch and Leonard’s breakout performance.

The Sharks now embark on a five-game road trip (Dallas, Carolina, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia) before returning home to host Calgary on Dec. 16.

San Jose Sharks podcast Len Shapiro: Sharks playing .500 hockey getting solid offense from Toffoli

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Left to right the San Jose Sharks John Klingberg (3), Will Smith (2), Macklin Celebrini (71) and Tyler Toffoli (73) celebrate a goal against the visiting Utah Mammoth at SAP Center on Mon Dec 2, 2025 (San Jose Sharks photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast Len Shapiro:

#1 On Macklin Celebrini and what he’s done and what the latest report on performance.

#2 What impact did Tyler Toffoli have on the outcome of the game against the Mammoth on Monday night, given his two goals and two assists?

#3 How did Will Smith’s performance — scoring two goals and adding an assist — reflect his recent hot streak and affect the Sharks’ momentum?

#4 What role did Macklin Celebrini play in setting up scoring chances, and how significant were his three primary assists for this win?

#5 How did Yaroslav Askarov’s (8-2-0), goaltending (31 saves) 2.96 GAP, save percentage 910, contribute to the Sharks’ ability to secure a 6–3 win over the Mammoth?

#6 With the Sharks scoring three goals in the second period (including one by Adam Gaudette), how did that burst affect the flow of the game and what did it say about San Jose’s ability to capitalize on momentum?

Join Len Shapiro for the San Jose Sharks podcasts each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Toffoli, Smith lead Sharks to statement victory over Utah 6-3

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San Jose Sharks forward Tyler Toffoli (73) celebrates his goal with teammate Macklin Celebrini (71) during the first period of their game against the Utah Mammoth on Monday, Dec.1, 2025, in San Jose, Calif. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group)

By Lincoln Juarez and Ryan Hannagan

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Tyler Toffoli and Will Smith both net two goals en route to a dominant Sharks 6-3 win over the Utah Mammoth Monday night. The sleepover line of Smith, Toffoli, and Celebrini combined for 4 goals and 10 points in front of Yaroslav Askarov who turned away 31 of the 34 shots he faced.

The Sharks are coming into December after having their best month of November since 2019. The Sharks and Mammoth came into Monday night’s contest with identical records of 12-11-3. Yaroslav Askarov got the nod for the Sharks between the pipes.

After a rough start to the season he has been completely dominant and turned his numbers around. In November alone, he finished with a 6-1-0 record with a .944 SV% and 1.87 GAA. Coming off a loss in their recent game to Vegas, in a game where they nearly had a comeback, the Sharks looked to get back into the win column.

The Sharks got off to a quick start with tough pressure creating a snipe goal from Tyler Toffoli not even five minutes into regulation. Shortly after, San Jose scored a power play goal by Pavol Regenda in his season debut, his first as a Shark.

Regenda scored seven points in 19 games with the San Jose Barracuda (AHL) before being recalled to the Sharks with defensemen Vincent Desharnais being placed on Injured Reserve with a lower-body injury. Two goals in the first eight minutes for the Sharks was an ideal start to the month of December as the ice was tilted one side early.

A quick response from Utah with Lawson Crouse finding the back of the net made it 2-1 just under the halfway point of period one. The ice got tilted the other way after Crouse’s goal in a first period that saw momentum shift easily. Yaroslav Askarov refused to let Utah tie the game with a few high danger, great saves before the halfway mark of the period.

Despite Utah’s push, Toffoli found the back of the net right off an offensive zone faceoff to push the Sharks lead back to two goals. When asked about what went right in his first four-point night since 2023 Toffoli simply replied, “Couple good bounces early on, (and) Smitty dancing I think”. After allowing three goals on ten shots in thirteen minutes, Karel Vejmelka was pulled and Vitek Vanachek got thrown into the fire that was the Sharks offense.

JJ Petereka got the Mammoth back within one with 16:00 left in the first off a picture-perfect top shelf snipe.

After nonstop, fast-paced action in the first, it was a 3-2 Sharks lead.

Will Smith opened up the scoring in the second with a highlight-reel goal just under seven minutes in to give the Sharks their two goal lead back. Adam Gaudette backhanded a shot past Vanacek off a nice feed from Eklund, extending the lead to three with 8:25 gone in the period. Smith got his second goal of the game and period in his second game in a row with two goals.

The Sharks led 6-2 after a second period in which they dominated Utah. “We’ve talked about it since really day one of second periods in the National Hockey League is a really good opportunity to drive transition, and we’re starting to figure that out there a little bit”, said coach Ryan Warsofsky. He spoke highly of the three goal on 13 shot performance he saw in the second.

In the third period Dmitry Orlov was shaken up by an interference from Michael Carcone sending the Sharks to the powerplay against the 15th ranked Mammoth penalty kill. Team teal was held scoreless while allowing Lawson Crouse’s second goal of the night, short-handed at 7:30. San Jose finished 1-for-4 on the power play but didn’t need the man advantage to bring home a win.

At the end of the night, the Sharks went home with a good feeling in their guts, a difference compared to the sour taste in the mouth the Mammoth had on their plane ride out of the Golden State. The Sharks record now moves to 13-11-3 and they hold the first wild card in the West.

Sharks Rally But Fall 4-3 to Golden Knights

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San Jose Sharks center Will Smith (2) scores a goal on Las Vegas goaltender Carl Lindbom (30) in the first period at T Mobile Center in Las Vegas on Sat Nov 29, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 4-3 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. Tomas Hertl, Colton Sissons and Mitch Marner scored for the Golden Knights. Carl Lindbom made 18 saves for the win. Will Smith and William Eklund scored for the Sharks. Alex Nedeljkovic made 20 saves in the loss.

The Sharks made it back to a one-goal game, after falling behind 4-1 in the second period. After the game, Sharks defenseman John Klingberg said: “That’s a good team over there. They’ve been good for a lot of years. I think we played with them. There was a few scenarios in the second where we got beat and that’s how we probably lost the game.”

Alex Nedeljkovic described the beginning of the game: “They were on top of us in all three zones. They really didn’t give us much time and space. They didn’t give us a chance to breathe.” In comparison, at the end of the second, he said “Finally, we played fast, we were moving away from the puck and creating our own space.”

Will Smith scored the first goal of the game at 7:04 of the first. He caught a neutral zone pass from Tyler Toffoli then skated into the zone and snapped the puck past Lindbom on the glove side.

Tomas Hertl tied the game at 16:13 with a wrist shot from the slot. Assists went to Pavel Dorofeyev and Ben Hutton.

At the end of the first, the shots were 9-7 Vegas. There were no penalties called in the first.

Vegas jumped out to the lead at 5:36. Colton Sissons poked the puck past Nedeljkovic. Assists went to
Keegan Kolesar and Cole Reinhardt.

Mitch Marner made it 3-1 less than two minutes later. Marner used a wrap-around on Nedeljkovic’s stick side. Assists went to Brett Howden and Mark Stone.

Tomas Hertl added another at 12:38 on the power play, deflecting a shot by Mitch Marner. An assist also went to Jack Eichel.

Will Smith scored his second of the game on thew power play at 14:40. With a neat little move along the boards, Macklin Celebrini knocked the puck free and Smith met it in front of the net.

With 25 seconds left in the period, William Eklund carried the puck in and scored with a backhand. Assists went to Adam Gaudette and Mario Ferraro.

In the second period, the shots were 10-9 Vegas. The Sharks took two penalties in the second and they had one power play.

A scoreless third period saw just five shots per team. A single penalty was called, at 19:25 to Brayden McNabb for cross-checking Macklin Celebrini while the Sharks played with an extra skater. A close finish but no cigar for the Sharks.

The Sharks next play on Monday back in San Jose against the Utah Mammoth at 7:00 PM PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa: Sharks battle Knights at T Mobile in Vegas Saturday night

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San Jose Sharks defenseman John Klingberg (3) hits the ice as the Vancouver Canucks left wing Kiefer Sherwood (44) chases the puck in the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Fri Nov 28, 2025 (AP News photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 Can Macklin Celebrini continue to set up scoring opportunities and drive the Sharks’ offense against the Vegas Golden Knights defense Saturday night?

#2 Will William Eklund and Will Smith connect on the power-play and generate enough chances to break through a tight Knights penalty kill?

#3 Can Adam Gaudette deliver a clutch goal or game-changing play to give the Sharks an edge — especially if the game stays close late?

#4 Can goalie Yaroslav Askarov continue to go well with a strong goaltending performance to keep the Knights’ top scorers under control?

#5 On the blue line — how will veterans like Dmitry Orlov or John Klingberg handle the Knights’ speed and puck-movement? Can they limit high-danger chances and protect the net effectively?

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