Category: NHL

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.

Coyotes edge Sharks on late goal by Doan

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By DANIEL DULLUM
Sports Radio Service
Thursday, March 17, 2016

AP photo: Coyotes Shane Doan (19) tries to outskate the Sharks Nick Spaling (16) with the puck, Doan ended up scoring the go ahead goal on Thursday night

GLENDALE, Arizona – If nothing else, it was a busy night for the video review judge Thursday at Gila River Arena.

Three times in the first two periods, a goal was challenged. The Arizona Coyotes won the first of those decisions, while the San Jose Sharks were 0-for-2.

In the end, it was Shane Doan, the Coyotes’ 39-year-old captain, who broke a 1-1 deadlock with another of his “ugly” goals. Doan’s go-ahead tally at 18:29 of the third period gave the Coyotes a 3-1 victory over a frustrated San Jose squad.

“I haven’t scored too many pretty ones this year,” Doan said of his 25th goal of the season and 393rd of his career. “It was one of those ones that just landed on (Jones’s) pad and fell in.

“(Teammate) Jordan Martinook is adamant that I’ve only scored 10 legit goals!” he added. “I don’t really care. Ask how many, not how.”

The win keeps the Coyotes’ slim playoff hopes alive, Arizona (31-32-7, 69 points) is fourth in the Pacific, seven points away from the second Wild Card.

San Jose (39-25-6, 84 points) hangs on to the No. 3 slot out of the NHL Pacific Division, one point over the Wild Card qualifiers. The Sharks had a two-game winning streak snapped following crucial victories over Washington and Boston.

On what appeared to be an attempted centering pass, Doan snuck a shot in from an extreme narrow angle, and the puck bounced and rolled past the glove side of Sharks goaltender Martin Jones at 18:29 of the third period.

Moments later, after the Sharks pulled Jones for a sixth attacker, the Coyotes’ Antione Vermette popped in an empty-net goal with :50 to play.

“Brownie (assistant coach Newell Brown) and I were talking at morning skate that I had to try slipping the puck to a battle in front with Brad (Richardson) and Max (Domi) and just create scrambles,” Doan said.

Coyotes goaltender Mike Smith, who recently returned from a 40-game absence to recover from a core muscle injury, stopped 27 of 28 shots, five days after making 44 saves in Arizona’s win over Edmonton.

It didn’t hurt Smith’s effort that two of San Jose’s goals were disallowed.

San Jose nearly had the first lead of the game with 7:25 left in the first period, when Dainius Zubrus took a pass in the slot, and sent a wrister past Smith on his stick side.
After a review, it was determined the play was offside and the goal was nullified.

Michael Stone gave the Coyotes a 1-0 lead at 13:23 when he teed up a pass from Tanguay at the right point and fired a slap shot through Martin Jones’s legs. In turn, San Jose challenged the play, claiming it was offside. Officials reviewed the play and ruled the goal was good.

The Sharks lost their second review of the game at 6:28 of the second period during a power play that followed a fight between Arizona’s Max Domi and San Jose’s Marcus-Edouard Vlasic which included an additional cross-checking minor to Domi.

Chris Tierney was cruising in as a trailer, sent a bouncing puck past Smith from just outside the crease. Arizona challenged the ruling, claiming the puck was kicked in, and won the review, nullifying the goal.

San Jose’s persistence paid off at 10:29 of the second period when the Sharks finally scored a goal that counted. Tomas Hertl, skating across the slot, knocked in the rebound off Paul Martin’s shot. Joe Thornton had the second assist on the Sharks’ equalizer.

“This is the NHL. Nobody should beat anybody,” Sharks Coach Peter DeBoer said. “These guys (Arizona) are still a quality team, they’re well coached and they’re going to win some games. They’re not going to lose every game down the stretch.

“They came out and played well enough to win some points tonight, and we didn’t. We’ll have to pick ourselves up and get ready for the next one.”

The Sharks return to San Jose for a six-game homestand, starting Saturday with the New York Rangers and a visit from the Coyotes on Sunday.

TAGS: San Jose Sharks,Arizona Coyotes,NHL,Sports Radio Service,Daniel Dullum

Sharks Fend Off Bruins in 3-2 Win

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: The Sharks Logan Couture (39) battles with the Bruins Ryan Spooner for the puck during a second period face off on Tuesday night

SAN JOSE– For the second time this season, the San Jose Sharks defeated the Boston Bruins. The score was 3-2, with Sharks goals from Joonas Donskoi, Melker Karlsson and Brent Burns. With his 26th goal, Brent Burns tied the Sharks record for goals scored by a defenseman in a season, set by Sandis Ozolinsh. With 11 goals and 31 points, Donskoi is the highest scoring Sharks rookie since Logan Couture.

James Reimer made 21 saves on 23 Boston shots for the win. David Krejci and Loui Eriksson scored for the Bruins, with Tuuka Rask making 24 saves for Boston on 27 San Jose shots.

Melker Karlsson opened the scoring for the Sharks at 8:44. After winning the puck along the boards, Karlsson dropped it to Logan Couture and went to the front of the net. Couture sent the puck behind the net to Donskoi, who passed it ahead for Karlsson to put away. Assists went to to Donskoi and Couture.

The Bruins answered back at 11:26. David Pastrnak got by the Sharks defense and took a shot into Reimer’s pads. Reimer kicked the puck back out but right in David Krejci’s wheelhouse. His quick shot went under Reimer to tie the game. Assists went to Pastrnak and Torey Krug.

The first penalty of the game came with just 2:54 left in the first period. It was a hooking call against Jimmy Hayes. The power play did not go very well for the Sharks, and 39 seconds in, Boston scored short handed. Loui Eriksson broke away,and it was the second Boston breakaway in that power play, to beat Reimer and give the Bruins the lead.

The Sharks had one second of five on three, and then the rest of the period five on four against Boston. At the end of the first penalty, David Krejci finished up another breakaway with a slash to James Reimer, after the whistle blew.

The period ended with the Bruins up 2-1 and the Sharks ahead in shots 12-10.

The Sharks finished the remainder of that power play to start the second period. They did not give up another short handed goal and they did add a couple of shots to their tally.

At 11:46, Brent Burns tied the game. Burns made a pass through the slot in the direction of Thornton, but instead the puck hit Ryan Spooner and bounced into the net.

The game winner did not come until the third period, during the dying seconds of another Sharks power play. Jimmy Hayes was in the box for an illegal check to the head of Sharks defenseman Justin Braun. The Sharks’ first power play unit had been unsuccesful, allowing another short-handed chance, this time to Brad Marchand. Marchand also made some little extra contact with Reimer after his shot was stopped. That drew some reaction from the Sharks. The second unit came on with 1:22 left in the power play, with Tomas Hertl taking a defensive zone draw. The Sharks controlled the puck but after their first dump-in the Bruins pushed the puck back out quickly.

Donskoi dumped the puck in on their next entry and the Sharks retrieved the puck along the end boards. A pass from Vlasic to Burns wound up on Burns’ skate. Burns moved the puck from skate to stick, and found Joel Ward on the far side of the slot. Ward waited a beat and picked his shot. Donskoi was in front of the net, with his stick on the ice in front of Rask. The deflected shot went just under the diving goaltender and in the net. Assists went to Ward and Burns.

The Sharks took their first and only penalty at 10:20 of the third period. Donskoi went to the box for holding the stick, but the Bruins power play did not change the score, and the Bruins did not get any shots despite a couple of good attacks.

Back at even strength, the Bruins made a push in the final minutes of the game but the Sharks held them off for the win.

The three stars of the game were Joonas Donskoi, Melker Karlsson and David Krejci.

Sharks forward Tommy Wingels was off IR Tuesday, but did not play.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Arizona, against the Coyotes at 7:00 PT.

San Jose Sharks podcsast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Sharks up for the challenge against Bruins; B’s playing eight of next nine on the road

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On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa the Sharks are falling into some of their old habits and beating the best teams in league like the Washington Capitals with two goals plus one being the empty netter. Before that game the Sharks were beaten by the New Jersey Devils last Thursday in a 3-0 shutout.

Once again the Sharks playing well against good teams like the Caps and not so well against the weaker teams but the Boston Bruins certainly should qualify as a good team and they had a great start this season. The B’s have been coming on lately and they’ve moved to the top of their conference. They certainly should qualify as a tough opponent and the Sharks seem to play up to the competition when they come into the building.

photo credit: zimbio.com–San Jose Sharks Brett Burns who scored the tying goal in the second period at 11:46 against the Bruins on Tuesday night

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

NHL Podcast and commentary with Joe Lami: Blackhawks in shock after being blanked 5-0 by Kings; The Flames Michael Frolik’s hat trick gives Calgary a boost; plus much more on the NHL

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photo credit: pinterest.com–NY Islanders Cal Clutterbuck who scored the game winning goal against Florida on Monday night

On the NHL podcast with Joe Lami, The New York Islanders scored three goals in the third period after being down 2-0 and took the game back from the Florida Panthers on Monday night 3-2. What’s happening to the Chicago Blackhawks who are slumping and lost a 5-0 shutout to the Los Angeles Kings on home ice.

The NHL plans to use extra cameras during all Stanley Cup Playoffs in the event of coaches challenges. The NHL doesn’t want to lose any games to any bad, close or borderline calls that would be left in question in the playoffs. The San Jose Sharks are hosting the Boston Bruins on Tuesday night at SAP Center. The Sharks got shutout last Thursday 3-0 by the New Jersey Devils. The Sharks got hopping mad about that and came out and beat one of hockey’s best teams the Washington Capitals 5-2. Sharks captain Joe Pavelski scored the go ahead goal when the score was tied 2-2 for the eventual 5-2 win.

Listen to Joe Lami’s entire NHL podcast below and every week right here at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Sharks Take Washington 5-2

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By Mary Walsh

AP photo: The San Jose Sharks goalie Martin Jones stops one of 23 shots against by the Washington Caps on Saturday night

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks defeated the visiting Washington Capitals by a score of 5-2 on Saturday. A wide variety of goals came from Joe Pavelski, Patrick Marleau, Brenden Dillon, Brent Burns and Joe Thornton. A power play goal, a short-handed goal, two even strength goals and an empty netter, combined with a strong defensive game showed the Sharks to advantage against the best team in the NHL. One more win will clinch a playoff berth for the Capitals, but they would not get it Saturday.

Goaltender Martin Jones made 23 saves for the Sharks, and some of those saves were more harrowing than others. He stopped a shot from a two-on-none breakaway in the second period. He stopped a penalty shot. He stopped a couple of shots that looked fairly unstoppable. He stopped almost everything the Caps threw at him. At the other end, Philipp Grubauer also made 23 saves, but the Sharks took more shots.

Tomas Hertl drew the first penalty of the game, a slashing penalty to Jason Chimera at 5:02. The Sharks power play was not systemically weak, but they seemed to have a lot of trouble handling the puck, as if it were bouncing or sticking unexpectedly. The Capitals did not have the same problem, so one could assume the problem was the opponent and not the ice. The Sharks had two shots on goal in the power play, but no goal.

The Sharks did score first, during some confusion at the Washington end of the ice. Joe Thornton was not confused, nor was Brenden Dillon, who sent the puck to the net and created a rebound for Thornton to pick up. Assists went to Dillon and Tomas Hertl.

The Capitals responded with several good chances of their own, but the Sharks minimized their time and space. On one play, a Shark lost his footing at the Caps blue line, allowing Ovechkin to escape through the neutral zone. Some good hustle from the Sharks defense got in his way before he could get a shot off.

Despite the pressure from the Caps, the Sharks maintained a small 11-9 lead on the shot clock as the first period wound to a close. With 14 seconds left in the period, Nick Spaling was called for a high stick against Jason Chimera.

The Sharks started the second period on the penalty kill and added a second penalty just 20 seconds in, a delay of game to Brent Burns. The three defenders for the Sharks were Joel Ward, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Justin Braun. They stopped a couple of shots but eventually the skilled Washington power play was too much and TJ Oshie tied the game. Assists to Niklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin.

The Sharks went back on the penalty kill at 3:39, a boarding call against Joe Thornton. Couture, Martin, Burns and Karlsson started the kill, cleared the puck, and made way for a second unit of Vlasic, Braun, Marleau and Ward. The latter two broke away in the final 30 seconds of the kill for a two on one and a short-handed goal. The goal was Marleau’s, due to a last-second pass from Ward. A second assist went to Vlasic. It was Marleau’s 476th goal, putting him in 51st place among NHL all-time goal scorers.

The Caps had another excellent breakaway chance, with two skaters crossing the Sharks blue line without an escort. Sharks defenders got back in time to give the puck carrier a little grief, but he got a pass away to Matt Niskanen, who had time to take a shot. Martin Jones handled the shot cleanly and held on to the puck.

The Caps tied the game again just past the midway point. After a series of fumbles by the Sharks, from overskating the puck to drop-passing it to no one, the Caps launched a brief attack that ended with the puck taking an odd bounce off a skater in front of the net, and over Martin Jones’ pads. The goal went to Justin Williams, with assists to Evgeni Kuznetsov and Andrei Burakovsky.

The Sharks finished up the period with a power play, a hooking penalty to Kuznestov, drawn by Joonas Donskoi. The Sharks power play was interrupted when Jay Beagle earned a penalty shot when Burns slashed him during a short-handed breakaway. Jones stopped the shot and the Sharks power play carried over to the third period.

Joe Pavelski was not having a particularly good game, but 49 seconds into the third period he scored a power play goal. A fairly straight-forward play started with a pass from Brent Burns to Joe Thornton. Pavelski caught the pass from Thornton and backhanded it past Grubauer for the Sharks’ third lead of the game.

Another player’s game improved dramatically early in the third: Brenden Dillon’s. Although he already had a point, he did not have a good second period. At 2:51 of the third, however, he picked up Tierney’s pass on the blue line and sent a hard shot at the Washington net. The puck laced its way through traffic and gave Dillon his second goal of the season. Assists went to Tierney and Roman Polak. That was Polak’s first point since joining the Sharks jst before the trade deadline.

Couture had a chance shortly after that, finding himself briefly one on one with Grubauer. Grubauer snatched the puck out of the air and kept the score 4-2 Sharks.

Just past the midway point of the period, Joonas Donskoi blocked a pass with his stick and the puck deflected onto the Sharks bench, hitting Paul Martin. He left the bench with a trainer but returned to the ice during the next commercial break.

With a little over three minutes left, the referees drew the crowd’s ire after Mike Weber spent some time shoving Melker Karlsson’s face into the ice while kneeling on his back. It looked very much out of order but no penalty was called.

An empty net goal from Brent Burns closed it out.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday against the visiting Boston Bruins.

Sharks Bedeviled on Home Ice

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

photo credit: nj.com/devils–New Jersey goaltender Keith Kinkaid who threw a shutout at the San Jose Sharks Thursday night stops one of 30 shots

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Despite nearly a 2-to-1 shooting advantage, the San Jose Sharks were blanked by the New Jersey Devils 3-0 at home Thursday night. Sharks goalie Martin Jones made 13 saves on 15 shots, but the Sharks (37-24-6) dropped their 15th game of the season at the SAP Center on a goal from Devante Smith-Pelly and two from Travis Zajac. Keith Kinkaid picked up his second career shutout starting in place of injured Devils netminder Corey Schneider.

“We had not one or two, but a bunch of guys off,” said Sharks coach Peter DeBoer. “That’s real. (The Devils) were a hungry team. They were rested, sitting here waiting. They were desperate, they were hungry. They played a hard, heavy game.”

The Sharks went on the power play three times, but failed to beat the suffocating New Jersey defensive system. San Jose threw the puck on the 26-year-old Kinkaid 30 times, including 7 chances on the power play but failed to beat the third-year goalie.

“We were just looking for that one goal on the power,” said Sharks captain Joe Pavelski. “Or 5-on-5 where it was going to crack them. But we could have been better. We could have had more jump and been harder in more areas.”

Despite a limited offensive output, the Devils (32-29-7) were able to beat Jones 3:14 into the 2nd after a Smith-Pelly shot from the wing found its way through a crowd into the back of the net. Stephen Gionta and Mike Sislo assisted on Smith-Pelly’s 9th of the season.

“A team like that, they get the first one it just makes it harder to play against them,” said defenseman Paul Martin on New Jersey’s defensive system. “They’re good at shutting down plays, not giving up too much. For us to have the start we had was not what we wanted.”

Zajac scored his first of the game on a pass attempt from behind the net that hit defenseman Paul Martin’s leg. During the ensuing scramble, Jones tried to pull the loose puck off the goal line before it crossed over for a score. After video review, the officials ruled the puck did cross the goal line for a 2-0 New Jersey lead 1:35 into the 3rd period.

“I didn’t even see it or watch it afterwards,” said Martin. “I know it hit me then crossed the line before Jones grabbed it. It’s one of those things where we need to be more clean in our own end. This was a sloppy game in general for us from the start.”

It was the first shot on goal in over 18 minutes for the Devils.

“It’s a stat you don’t recognize,” said Pavelski. “They’re not getting a whole lot out there. A couple looks they did find ways to get them in. That’s all that really mattered.”

Zajac would score his 2nd goal of the game (and 12th of the season) with Jones pulled and 53 seconds remaining in regulation.

The Sharks couldn’t continue the momentum they built from a two-game sweep of the two Alberta teams after beating the Calgary Flames Monday night and the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday.

“It’s always tough, the first game at home after a road trip,” said Martin. “No Matter how long it is. We’ve been successful on the road. It takes a lot out of us winning those games and finding ways to win on the road. I think we take it for granted. It’s expected that the same thing is going to happen at home without the same effort or intensity.”

While none of the players could answer definitely why the team has underperformed at home this year, most responses came down to the quality of the ice. The SAP Center now hosts the Sharks AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda, which has led to a degradation in the ice quality noted by visiting teams and now the tenants of SAP.

“The ice was not the way we’d like it to be,” said Martin. “But everyone is playing on the same ice. We just need to find a way.”

When asked if the team would adjust its pass-heavy, speed-based offense, coach had a different solution.

“Maybe fix the ice, how about that?” joked DeBoer.

The ice won’t be fixed, if ever, before the Sharks next home game Saturday. San Jose takes on the Eastern Conference leaders the Washington Capitals before facing the Atlantic Division-leading Boston Bruins Tuesday night at home. While there won’t be changes to the ice, the Sharks will hope for changes to their game.

“I’m sure there’s a few things we can fix up and be better at,” said Pavelski. “We’ve got a big game ahead of us Saturday.”

 

Sharks hand Oilers their first shutout since December 31st

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~ Photo credit: (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

~ After his fellow goalie nearly had a shutout, San Jose’s James Reimer decided he would go for it, blanking the Edmonton Oilers 3-0 Tuesday, in the Sharks’ final game at Rexall Place.

Reimer made a strong contribution with 31 saves, in just his second start for the team. It was his first win since February 13. He is now 5-0 against the Oilers.

It was the largest margin of victory between the teams so far in three games this season. The other two games were decided by a goal.

San Jose had a solid back-to-back game effort, with their second shutout in just under a month. They ended Edmonton goalie Cam Talbot’s four game win streak. It was the most goals he had given up since February 23. The Sharks also killed two power plays.

After two games without a point, Logan Couture scored two goals, each with a different pair of teammates.

Couture got the game winner early. It was the second straight goal the Sharks scored within the opening two minutes. This one came at 1:33. Couture shot at the net and alertly got his own rebound, as he was able to spot the loose puck before Talbot. Matt Nieto and Joonas Donskoi aided with the goal.

At 15:50, 10 seconds into the power play, Couture struck again, this time after moving into the left faceoff circle. Joe Pavelski started it from the left faceoff circle, passing back to Brent Burns at the point before Burns passed to Couture. Burns now has a five game point streak

San Jose also emerged from the first with a penalty free period.

Pavelski joined the party, with his second goal in as many games. He did so at 14:03 of the second. Thornton started the play from the boards and Pavelski tipped in Paul Martin’s shot.

Game notes: The Sharks are now 22-2-0 leading after one and 25-0-2 leading after two. They being a three game homestand Thursday, facing the New Jersey Devils at 7:30pm.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Sharks edge one out thanks to Martin; SJ to see old coach McClellan tonight in Edmonton

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AP photo: San Jose Sharks Brett Burns gets in a tussle during the Sharks 2-1 win over the Calgary Flames

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa the Sharks goaltender Martin Jones said he’s never been in a game quite like the one he played in on Monday night stopping 47 shots in a narrow margin decision that gave the Sharks a 2-1 decision in Calgary. It’s certainly good news for the Sharks that he was able to handle that but it’s really not great news that the Sharks let that happen. They were really not on top of their game in Calgary on Monday until overtime for those final 17 seconds.

The fact that they couldn’t stay out of the penalty box, the fact that they couldn’t get more shots and they couldn’t protect their goalie better made it harder to keep the play at the other end. It’s important to win they could use those points and it would be nice not to be third at the end of the regular season.

Mary Lisa has much more on the Sharks podcast listen below and every week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL podcast with Joe Lami: Caps snap Ducks 11 game win streak; Kings Jeff Carter nets his 300th career goal; Aves goalie Varlamov stops 37 shots by the Yotes

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AP photo: Washington Captials TJ Oshie finds the back of the net with a shootout goal beating the Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson Monday night

On the NHL podcast with Joe Lami the Washington Capitals win in a shootout on Monday night to end the Anaheim Ducks 11 game win streak. The Ducks had a Mighty steak going. Also the LA Kings Jeff Carter netted his 300th goal of his career after the Kings Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar scored two minutes apart in the second period as the Kings take down the Vancouver Canucks 5-1.

The Colorado Avalanche’s goaltender Seymon Varlamov stopped 37 shots from the Arizona Coyotes in a 3-1 win for Varlamov a great defensive outing in net. Also in a rivalry game the Chicago Blackhawks got a key victory over the Detroit Red Wings 4-1. The Hawks Patrick Kane scored his 38th goal of the season and the Hawks goaltender Corey Crawford had 33 saves. Lastly Joe takes a look at the San Jose Sharks Martin Jones in goal who had a hot night in his own right stopping 47 shots against the Calgary Flames at the Saddledome for a 2-1 Sharks overtime win.

Listen to Joe Lami for NHL headlines commentary on the podcast below right here at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

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