Category: NHL

~ Photo credit: Jae C. Hong AP Photo

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

~ ANAHEIM– While not as late of a goal, San Jose lost their second game in a row in similar fashion as the Ducks won 3-2 Friday.

The Sharks created another 2-0 hole in the first and before the game winner, it was another 2-2 game. In fact, it could have been another 4-2 ending on an empty netter, if Brent Burns did not more glaringly stop the second shot from Andrew Cogliano.

The winning play started with Anaheim’s Nick Ritchie, playing against Brenden Dillon, as Ritchie turned and paused briefly before passing to Hampus Lindholm at the top of the circle. Lindholm used Ward as a screen as the puck went between Ward’s legs and Martin Jones’ arm and pad, leaving Jones shaking his head. It was Lindholm’s first goal of the season at 14:22.   

Sharks’ coach Peter DeBoer said, “We’re finding ways to lose instead of win, and we got to get on the other end of that.”  

Still with the extra attacker, San Jose’s Kevin Labanc and Joel Ward had shot opportunities until Dylan Demelo committed a tripping penalty with 21.3 seconds left. After that, the Ducks had three shots until the game ended.  

In the tight Pacific division, Anaheim now sits at first place while the Sharks fall to fourth. The postgame notes revealed the Ducks have now earned standings points in six of its last seven games.

Anaheim’s Rickard Rakell made an immediate contribution in his return to the ice.  Marc-Edouard Vlasic’s clear went to Shea Theodore. Rakell then took Theodore’s rebound and went around Jones’ left pad to score at 4:44.

For the Ducks’ second goal, Antoine Vermette passed to Theodore who passed back to Vermette. Vermette’s soft shot went past Jones diagonally at 15:06.

However, Rakell committed cross checking with just over two minutes left in the first. San Jose took advantage of the momentum less than two seconds after the power play was over. From the boards, Joe Pavelski passed to Patrick Marleau and from the edge of one faceoff circle to the other, Marleau found Burns. His quick shot came from a lunge position and went top shelf with just 5.7 seconds remaining. It was Burns’ third goal in as many games and fourth in five.  

Jakob Silfverberg was the only player for Anaheim with multiple shots in the period, with four

In the second period, two shots found goalie Jonathan Bernier instead of the net, as he was in position left and out of the net. At 8:40 though, Bernier was against the net and turning as Labanc scored from the left to even the score. The way the puck reached Labanc was similar to first goal with Ward and Couture replacing Pavelski and Marleau. It was Pavelski’s third assist in as many game and fourth point in three games.

The Ducks had two power play opportunities during the period.

It was over a period’s worth of time until the deadlock was broken.

On how the guys felt going into the third period, Labanc replied, “We felt confident, a little too confident, I’d say. We stopped skating, we stopped dumping the puck in and working hard in the corners…It’s a good learning experience…We just got to play the full 60.

Game notes: The Sharks’ David Schlemko continued to remain out. San Jose goes back home to finish a back-to-back against Carolina at 7:30pm Saturday.

AP photo: Ottawa Senators Chris Kelly (22) goes stick side on San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones (31) for a top shelf go ahead goal in the third period in the Sens 4-2 win at SAP Center on Wednesday night

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Over the course of an 82-game season, NHL teams will lose a game they should have won and win a game they should not have. For the San Jose Sharks Wednesday night it was the team with a lessor performance walking away with the victory. Despite San Jose out-shooting Ottawa 37-17, the Sharks fell to the Senators 4-2.

“We did everything but find a way to win,” said Sharks coach Peter DeBoer. “At the end of the day moral victories don’t count in the standings.”

Chris Kelly scored the game-winner for the Senators on a bad break for defenseman Justin Braun and Jean Gabriel Pageau scored an empty-netter for the Sens. The Sharks erased a 2-0 first period deficit with Logan Couture and Brent Burns scoring for the home team.

With 1:06 left in regulation and the score tied at 2-2 Braun prepared to handle a routine clear. Instead, the puck bounced over his stick, allowing a fore-checking Kelly to score his 2^nd goal of the season.

“It was bouncing in the neutral zone,” said Braun. “I had a guy coming on me and I’m trying to whack it over to [Joe Thornton]. I missed with my feet, it keeps going. [Marc-Edouard Vlasic] didn’t have time to get back. It’s a play that I have to knock out of the air and get moving forward.”

“It was a bounce of the puck,” added DeBoer. “That happens over 82 games. You’re going to get those once in a while.”

The Sharks appeared destined for overtime thanks to work from two of their top players. Logan Couture, in the lineup after surgery to remove a screw in his repaired ankle, struck on the power play 8:19 into the second period. Joe Pavelski slipped a perfect drop pass to his left side that Couture picked up in the slot for his 9^th goal of the season to put San Jose on the board at 2-1.

“I felt fine,” said Couture. “Just the start of periods it felt a little sore. Once the game got going I felt fine.”

Burns netted his 11^th goal of the season in the 3^rd period after freezing Mike Condon on a shot from just outside the right faceoff dot over the netminder’s glove hand. Paul Martin picked up the lone assist for his 300^th career point.

The goal came with both teams skating four-aside after the Sharks took a penalty while on the man-advantage. They were 1 for 6 on the power play. Ottawa was 1 for 4 with a Shark in the sin bin with Mark Stone scoring 3:42 into the game.

“I thought our power play could have won us the game,” said DeBoer. “It was ok.”

Erik Karlsson, OIttawa’s mobile defenseman and perennial Norris trophy threat, assisted on Stone’s goal. He picked up his 26^th point of the year 7:19 into the 1^st after scoring his 7^th goal of the season. Karlsson leads defensemen in scoring, holding a 3-point advantage over Burns (11g, 12a).

The Sharks will take the ice Friday for a rivalry tilt in Anaheim before facing the Carolina Hurricanes at home Saturday night. It will be the Sharks’ third game in four nights after a small break. San Jose didn’t have a game since last Friday when they topped the visiting Canadiens.

AP file photo: San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones (31) makes a glove save as the Montreal Canadiens Phillip Danault (5) is at the door step last Friday night’s game at SAP Center in San Jose

It’s like we talked about in the previous podcast that the Sharks last game last Friday night at SAP Center with the Montreal Canadiens was going to be a battle of the titans and it wound up being one of the best games of the regular season in a couple years not counting the Stanley Cup Finals with the Pittsburgh Penguins from last season. The Canadiens and the Sharks really put a great show together.

The two goaltenders Carey Price for the Habs battled Martin Jones from San Jose it went right down to the wire with a 2-1 victory for the Sharks. It’s been a very successful week for the Sharks. Jones with a 1.10 goals against and an amazing 962 saves percentage. Jones was also the winner of the NHL Player of the Month Award last week.

Len Shapiro was the former director of media relations for the former California Golden Seals the first NHL team in the Bay Area and does the Sharks podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

AP photo: San Jose Sharks Brent Burns is congratulated by his teammates after scoring the game winner past Arizona Coyote goalie Mike Smith in overtime Tuesday night at SAP Center

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Sharks needed every one of their 42 shots to beat the visiting Arizona Coyotes 2-1 in overtime. Brent Burns scored his team-leading 9^th goal 19 seconds into the extra period to give San Jose its first win against the Desert Dogs this season. Chris Tierney also scored his second goal of the year and Martin Jones made 18 saves in net for the Sharks (13-9-1).

While Jones was strong in net, Mike Smith once again proved strong against a barrage of Sharks shots. For the second time in as many games against team Teal, Smith made 40-plus saves. Tuesday night Smith turned away 40 to earn the Coyotes (8-10-3) a loser point. On November 19^th, Smith made 43 saves at Gila River Arena to give Arizona a 3-2 win and 2-0 record this year against San Jose.

The story would be all Smith if not for a penalty by Martin Hanzal in the final second of the third period. The Coyotes best face-off man and penalty killer got the gate for hi-sticking, giving the Sharks a 4-on-3 advantage in the overtime period.

With a unit of Logan Couture, Brent Burns, Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton on the ice it was a question of if, not when the Sharks would score. Just a third of a minute into overtime Joe Pavelski fed Burns a one-timer to the faceoff dot to Mike Smith’s right. Burns, always one to capitalize on grade-A chances, buried his 9^th goal of the season. The goal, along with 88’s 20 points, are both the best marks in the league by a defenseman.

Despite a barrage of shots, the Sharks were up against an early deficit following a 2^nd period goal for second-year wonder Max Domi. Domi took the Coyotes fifth shot and put it in the back of the net 7:19 into the middle frame.

The Sharks own young center Chris Tierney evened the score though, jamming a puck on the goal line past Smith in a scrum with 4:31 left in the 2^nd. Neither team would score in the third despite San Jose opening the period with a 5-shot power play.

The Sharks wrap up a two-in-two stretch by traveling down to Los Angeles to face another division rival, the Los Angeles Kings. Following the Battle of California, San Jose returns home Friday night to face the Montreal Canadiens.

AP photo: Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price stops a shot against the Detroit Red Wings on Sat Nov 26th at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit

On the podcast with Len: The SJ Sharks will face the Montreal Canadiens looking ahead to that game on Friday at SAP Center in San Jose the Canadiens have a healthy goaltender in Carey Price. Last season after he was lost to an injury the team just melted and found themselves out of the post season. This season being different Price is healthy and has been the key for the Canadiens success thus far.

Price has a 1.6 goals against average with a 941 save percentage those numbers are monumental as they say in the trade it was the same last year he got injured and the Canadiens took a nose dive after that. This year if Price can stay healthy the Canadiens have to be the odds on favorites right now to at least make the Stanley Cup Finals.

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

AP photo: San Jose Sharks Logan Couture (39) reaches for the puck in front of goaltender Marty Jones (31) in defending the net as Anaheim Ducks center Richard Rakell tries to battle for the puck on Saturday night at SAP Center