Category: NHL

Sharks Fall 3-2 in a Shootout with the Stars

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The San Jose Sharks goaltender Magnus Chrona (30) gets a stick on the puck for a save as the Dallas Stars Ty Dellandrea looks on at American Airlines Arena in Dallas on Sat Mar 2, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 3-2 in a shootout to the Dallas Stars on Saturday. Stars goals came from Radek Faksa and Jason Robertson. Matt Duchene and Jamie Benn scored in the shootout. Jake Oettinger made 21 saves for the win.

Sharks goals came from William Eklund and Filip Zadina. Anthony Duclair scored in the shootout. Magnus Chrona made 36 saves in the loss. This is the Sharks’ sixth loss in a row, though they did get a point against the top team in the Central Division.

With Mackenzie Blackwood on IR, Chrona is bound to see a few more starts before the end of the season. His last start for the Sharks was on December 28, when he was pulled after giving up four goals in the first period. Saturday, his performance was better, giving up just two goals on 38 shots. After the game, Sharks forward Luke Kunin said, of the young goaltender:

“He was great tonight. Some huge saves for us, really kept us in that game. I thought we had a pretty good game for the most part but those stretches where we were giving up a lot, he was there to back us up. Great performance by him tonight.”

Of the Sharks game outside the net, Sharks Head Coach David Quinn said: “The faceoffs killed us. I think they won almost 70% of their faceoffs. You’re chasing the game a lot when you’re losing that many faceoffs. But I thought overall we played a good hockey game.” The Stars did win 67.2% of the faceoffs.

The Sharks scored first at 4:39 of the first period. William Eklund and Luke Kunin entered the zone two-on-one and Eklund took a shot that Oettinger kicked back out. Eklund was ready to catch the rebound and scored with a quick wrist shot. Assists went to Kunin and Jan Rutta.

The Stars tied it at 3:08 of the second period. Sam Steel deflected Craig Smith’s shot from the boards. The puck trickled through Chrona but still needed an extra push from Radek Faksa to cross the line.

The Sharks took the lead back with a goal at 17:08 of the second. Filip Zadina spun around in the faceoff circle and took his shot. The puck bounced up over Oettinger and hit the post before a Star swept it out of the net. An official review determined that the puck did cross the line. Luke Kunin got an assist.

Fabian Zetterlund blocked a shot with his ankle in the final minutes of the period. He had to be helped off the ice and back to the dressing room.

The Stars tied it again at 4:08 of the third period with a power play goal just 3 seconds into that power play. Jason Robertson took a shot from the top of the faceoff circle, putting the puck into the side of the net. Assists went to Miro Heiskanen and Jamie Benn.

Early in the third period, Nico Sturm returned to the bench with an injury, possibly an elbow or a stick to the neck.

At the end of regulation, the Stars had outshot the Sharks 36 to 20. Dallas took a penalty about half way through overtime but the Sharks could not take advantage of that. The Sharks had three shots in overtime and the Stars had two.

The shootout went to seven rounds. Matt Duchene and Jamie Benn scored for the Stars. Benn scored the winner while falling to the ice after tripping over Chrona’s stick.

Jake Oettinger stopped shots from Filip Zetterlund, William Eklund, Kyle Granlund, Filip Zadina, Mike Hoffman and Luke Kunin. Anthony Duclair scored for the Sharks. Magnus Chrona stopped shots from Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston, Logan Stankoven and Joe Pavelski.

The Sharks next play on Sunday at 4:00 PM PT in St. Paul, Minnesota, against the Wild.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks drop the puck with Stars in Dallas tonight

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San Jose Sharks left wing William Ecklund (72) goes for the congratulatory skating lap in front of the Sharks bench after scoring a second period goal against the Anaheim Ducks at SAP Center on Thu Feb 29, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Lisa:

#1 The San Jose Sharks are on a five game skid. They lost their last game to the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night 6-4 at SAP Center in San Jose.

#2 Without starting goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood Sharks back up goalie Kaapo Kahkonen was pelted with shots on goals all night long facing 29 and saving 24 in the 6-4 two goal loss to Anaheim.

#3 The Ducks Adam Hentrique had a goal and two assists and Frank Vatrano scored his 27th goal for a team both scored goals to help pace the Ducks.

#4 The Sharks Anthony DuClair scored twice for San Jose, Mike Hoffman and William Ecklund also contributed with a goal each for the Sharks.

#5 The Sharks are in Dallas to open a home at home series which starts Saturday night and picks up on Tuesday night in San Jose. The Stars are no joke one of the toughest teams in the NHL who are in first place in the NHL Central Division at 36-17-9. How much do the Sharks have their hands full starting tonight in Dallas?

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

Sharks Lose 6-4 to Ducks Despite Duclair’s 2 Goals; San Jose drops fifth straight game

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Anaheim Ducks right winger Jakob Silfverberg (33) puts a shot on net but the puck is deflected by the San Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen (36) at SAP Center in San Jose on Thu Feb 29, 2024 (AP News photo)

Thursday, February 29th, 2024

By Troy Ewers

San Jose, CA – Celebrating Black History Month, the San Jose Sharks host their rival the Anaheim Ducks to close out the month of February. Last game on Tuesday the Sharks lost to the New Jersey Devils 7-2. Nico Sturm (1g, 0a) opened the scoring for the Sharks with his fourth goal of the season. The Sharks dropped their fifth straight game losing to Anaheim 6-4 at SAP Center on Thursday night.

He led San Jose in faceoff percentage (64.3%; min. 2 FO). Justin Bailey (1g, 0a) netted his fifth marker on the campaign and now has four points (2g, 2a) in his past five games. Ryan Carpenter (0g, 1a) and Henry Thrun (0g, 1a) were each credited with an assist on Bailey’s goal in the third.

Alexander Barabanov (0g, 1a) was credited with his seventh assist of the year on Sturm’s marker in the first period, giving him double-digit points on the campaign with 10 (3g, 7a).

20 seconds into the first period of the game, Cam Fowler of the Ducks was hit with a puck and bled as he skated off the ice to get stitched up. When the game resumed, the Sharks found their energy early and it was a hot start as Anthony Duclair scored off a slapshot with assists from Fabian Zetterlund and Nikita Okhotiuk, 1-0 Sharks.

Duclair’s 12th goal and Zetterlund’s ninth assist. Zetterlund is having a career year on the offensive end with a career best 15 goals, tying Tomas Hertl for the team lead and Zetterlund now has a career high in points with 24 points after that assist.

Ducks even it up 20 seconds after the Duclair goal thanks to Leo Carlsson poking in the puck, 1-1. A minute after the game tying goal, Alex Killorn of Anaheim earned a tripping call, but that didn’t stop the Ducks from keeping their fire burning.

Short handed goal for Anaheim came from Brett Leason, his eighth of the season, 2-1 Anaheim. The remainder of the period was an exchange of hits and physical play between both teams and when the period ended, Anaheim held the lead 2-1. 

The second period was a collection of penalties and goals. First goal came from Anaheim after Killirn scored on a breakaway that went net to net, 3-1 Ducks. Mike Hoffman scored on what looked like Duclair’s second goal, but it was given to Hoffman for a power play goal after Frank Vatrano earned an interference penalty, 3-2.

The Ducks had another penalty thanks to Mason McTavish’s holding penalty and it resulted in another power play for San Jose and this goal tied it up 3-3. The Ducks responded quickly with a power play goal of their own courtesy of Vatrano, 4-3.

Anaheim got one more goal before the period came to a close and it was another power play goal after a Zetterlund high sticking call. Adam Henrique scored and by intermission it was a 5-3 game, Ducks in the lead. 

The third period was high intensity and very physical. What looked like it was going to be a fight with Eklund and Uhro Vaakananainen were giving penalties that led to a 4 on 4. During the 4 on 4 LaCombe got a tripping call making it 4 on 3 for San Jose and Duclair got his second goal of the game in front of the net assisted by Granlund and Hoffman to make it 5-4. Duclair and Granlund both with three points each. After a Ducks empty netter, the game was officially over 6-4. Anaheim wins.

This game was an impressive game as each goal for Anaheim was scored by a different player. Lundestrom, Henrique, Killorn, Vatrano, Leason, and Carlsson each with a goal in this rivalry game. Next game for the Sharks will hopefully be a different outcome for Coach Quinn as they make a trip to Dallas on March 2nd against the Dallas Stars.

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Preds GM Trotz says they want to hang onto Carrier; Rangers end 10 game win streak; plus more news

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The Nashville Predators defenseman Alexander Carrier (45) will most likely stay with the Predators. The Predators are trying to get him to sign a new contract before he becomes a free agent at the end of the season. (AP News photo)

On the NHL podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 Nashville Predators general manager Barry Trotz said that defenseman Alexander Carrier will stay and defenseman Tyson Barrie might be on the trade bubble. Goaltender Jusse Saros has a deal with the Predators through next season. Teams are seeking Carrier’s services but the Predators are trying to sign him as his contract runs out after this season. Trotz said Barrie is a player any team in the NHL would interested in.

#2 The Columbus Blue Jackets ended the New York Rangers hot ten game win streak Sunday at Nationwide Arena 4-2. The loss stops the Rangers from tying their all time win streak record at 11.

#3 Len, even though the Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid has not scored a goal in his last ten games he has scored at least a point in his last eight games. So there’s really no way to keep McDavid down.

#4 Len, have to ask you about the Winnipeg Jets their attendance is down a quarter and their not getting the expected 90% line expectation for NHL crowds. The Jets are one of the winningest teams in the NHL, they have a shot at the Stanley Cup, they have speed which buries their opponents, they have the league’s best goalie and they can score yet no one is coming

#5 Len the San Jose Sharks absolutely got clobbered on Wednesday night at SAP Center in San Jose 7-2 by the New Jersey Devils. The Sharks lost their goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood after playing some good hockey in the first 17 minutes to an injury. Backup Kappo Kahkonen came in late in the first period for Blackwood, he surrendered three in the second period and four in the third period.

Len Shapiro does the NHL podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Warriors win sixth straight against Wizards 123-113

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Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) drives on the Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma (33) in the first half at Capital One Center in Washington DC on Tue Feb 27, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with David Zizmor:

#1 David, is the team your seeing now the real Golden State Warriors (30-27) they have now won six straight games and are the cusp of moving into eight place after their win against the Washington Wizards (9-49) 123-113 on Tuesday night in Washington.

#2 That coming off the bench thing is working for Klay Thompson he once again led the Warriors in scoring with 25 points.

#3 Thursday night the Warriors are at Madison Square Garden to tip off with the New York Knicks. The Knicks have lost seven of their last ten games and are in fourth in the Eastern Conference. How do you see this match up on Thursday night a 4:30pm PT start.

Join David for the Warriors podcasts each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Disastrous third period for Sharks gives Devils the victory 7-2

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Sharks.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE- The Sharks continued their five game home stand against an Eastern Conference opponent the New Jersey Devils.

This game would be the second and final meeting between the two teams with the first game surprisingly enough going to the Sharks by a final of 6-3. That win over New Jersey was also the Sharks first road win of the season with Kahkonen doing most of the work making 44 saves.

Another surprising stat heading into this one is the fact that the Devils and the Sharks over their last ten share the same record of 4-5-1.

Mackenzie Blackwood faced off against his former team who heading into his one was sporting a 9-18-3 record with a 3.51 GAA and .898 SV%. On the other side of the ice it was Nico Daws in between the pipes who had a 7-8-0 record with a .895 SV % and 3.30 GAA.

Of course the biggest former player in this one was Timo Meier who was making his big return to SAP Center.

For the Sharks Filip Zadina was coming in as their hottest scorer with five points in four games.

Speaking of Zadina he almost scored just a couple minutes into this game as he wrapped one around the net that hit the far post and ricocheted out.

New Jersey ended up getting the first power play opportunity in this one as Henry Thrun blatantly interfered with Tyler Toffoli. While the power play did look threatening it looks like the media will continue to pester them about it as they did not score.

Late in the first a couple of interesting events happened. The first one being Blackwood exited the game during a break in the action as Kahkonen came in to replace him. Only a minute after that Alexander Barabonov found Nico Sturm wide open back door as he tapped home his fourth of the season. When the Sharks score first they are 11-8-3. The Devils on the other hand are 18-22-2 when their opponents score first.

It didn’t take long for the Devils to tie things up in the middle frame as less than four minutes in Jesper Bratt slid home his 22nd of the season. The goal came of an odd man rush between him and Timo Meier as they played a little bit of give-and-go before Bratt finished the play off.

Things continued to fall apart when Henry Thrun made a costly turnover that fead a Jack Hughes breakaway. Hughes did not miss as he snapped one in between the pads of Kahkonen making it 2-1 with the goal being his 19th of the season.

The Devils got their second power play of the night on a hold by Nikita Okhotiuk and would score as Timo Meier scored against his former team. At least it appeared that way until David Quinn challenged the goal for offside. He’d end up winning that challenge and the Sharks killed off the rest of the penalty.

That 2-1 score didn’t last long as Nico Hischier found a streaking Kevin Bahl who fired home a slap-shot from in close for his first goal of the season.

The Sharks would get a power play of their own later in the period but did not score keeping things at 3-1 heading into the final frame.

For San Jose they only have two wins when trailing after two periods so the odd were definitely not in the home teams favor.

The final period in this one felt like the Sharks from the beginning of the season who would casually give up ten goals a game came back to play. Before the ten minute mark had passed the Devils scored four goals with the third and fourth coming only a minute apart. Colin Miller and Bredan Smith got the first two while Dawson Mercer and Nico Hischier got the next two.

The last goal in this game would be scored by the Sharks as Justin Bailey whipped around and fired one that deflected off of a defender and in.

With the victory the Devils improve to 30-25-4 with 64 points. The loss makes the Sharks record 15-37-5 with 35 points.

The shots in this one favored the Devils at 45-31 while the Sharks went 0/1 on the power play and the Devils went 0/2.

Blackwood would not return to the game as Kahkonen would have to stay in.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Nico Hischier 2nd: Jack Hughes 3rd: Jesper Bratt

The last game of this home stand will be against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Titus Wilkinson: Sharks hope to take advantage of struggling New Jersey tonight at SAP

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The San Jose Sharks left winger Alex Barabanov (94) gets some of the Nashville Predators defenseman Jeremy Lauzon’s arm extension (right) at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Feb 24, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Titus:

#1 The San Jose Sharks just couldn’t figure out the Nashville Predators on Saturday night at SAP Center in San Jose losing in a two game contest 4-2.

#2 The Predators Kiefer Sherwood found the back end of the net twice, the Preds Filip Forsberg scored his 27th goal of the season against San Jose which proved big in the Nashville scoring tally.

#3 Nashville goaltender Juuse Saros stopped 23 shots and allowed two goals while the Predators Gustav Nyquist got an empty net goal against San Jose.

#4 The Sharks Filip Zadina and Mikael Granlund scored goals and the Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen stopped 31 Nashville shots but it was enough to match the Predators.

#5 The Sharks face the struggling New Jersey Devils tonight here at SAP Center in San Jose and the Sharks hope to take advantage of New Jersey’s downside and get back in the win column.

Titus Wilkinson is a San Jose Sharks beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks Lose Hard Fought Game Against Nashville Predators 4-2

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San Jose Sharks left winger Alex Barabanov (94) gets the puck past the Nashville Predator defenseman Jeremy Lauzon (right) in the first period at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Feb 24, 2024 (AP News photo)

Saturday, February 24th, 2024

By Troy Ewers

San Jose, CA – The San Jose Sharks host the Nashville Predators in the SAP Center and the boys in teal look to recover from last game. The Sharks penalty kill had its seven-game streak without allowing a power play goal snapped (Mason Morelli, first period).

Henry Thrun was activated from injured reserve prior to the game and logged one takeaway and one blocked shot in 20:43 time on ice. Mario Ferraro led the Sharks with four blocked shots in a team-high 23:47 time on ice and paces the team in blocked shots this season (148). Mackenzie Blackwood’s four game win streak and five-game point streak (4-0-1) were snapped with the loss.

Slow first period for the Sharks, a lot of time in the offensive zone, but no goals off eight shots. Nashville despite two penalties that they killed off, they scored a goal halfway through the period. After Roman Josi passed to Michael McCarron, McCarron dished a tape to tape assist to Keifer Sherwood, who scored his sixth goal of the season. 1-0 Predators. Sharks down one after one period, but still a lot of opportunities to captialize on. 

Nashville gained another goal in the second period off a power play goal. Henry Thrun got a tripping call 17 minutes into the second and this penalty led to an efficient goal for the Predators. Filip Forsberg hit a wrist shot from the point, assisted by Tommy Novak and Gustav Nyquist. 2-0 Nashville.

This goal was Forsberg’s 27th goal of the season and 56th point of the season. Sharks gained more opportunities, but Juuse Saros of the Predators was stopping everything.

Last period of the game started off hot for the Sharks. Mikael Granlund kept San Jose in it with a wrist shot past Saros, 2-1 and Sharks were back in the game. Granlund with 31 points over the past 35 games. Nashville didn’t let up off the gas though, Sherwood scored his second goal of the night on a breakaway silencing the crowd, 3-1 Nashville.

Sharks were still fighting early in the third as Filip Zadina scored off a rebound making it 3-2 and the crowd got a hit of adrenaline and momentum had shifted. Right after the Sharks goal, they almost had another line thanks to Anthony Duclair, but after review it was no goal and San Jose was down one goal with 10 minutes left in the game.

The game went down to the final minute, but after an empty net goal with 10 seconds left, fans made their way to the exits and the game was over 4-2 Nashville.

A hard fought game for the Sharks, but Nashville had the game from the beginning. Next game for the Sharks is Tuesday against the New Jersey Devils, who are having a hell of a season, so the hard season keeps getting harder for the boys in teal as the season winds down into the final two months.

Cardinal (TREE) Chewed by Large Toothed Visiting Beavers, 85-73; Spencer Jones, All-Time 3-Point Leader (306); First road win for OSU

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Oregon State Beavers guard Jordan Pope (0) drives on the Stanford Cardinal forward Brandon Angel (23) in second half action at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Sat Feb 24, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD, Calif. — Senior Spencer Jones is the team’s #1 three point shooter (306) in school history, as he and his Stanford Cardinal (13-14, 8-9 Pac-12) surprisingly fell to the industrious Oregon State Beavers (11-17, 3-14 Pac-12), 85-73, on a warm Saturday Afternoon on the Farm.

The visitors opened the scoring of the game with a Three on the Stanford bench’s side of the court. That 3-0 lead didn’t last too long, as the Cardinal went on a 9-0 run, to put them up by six. During that stint, Stanford hit three treys. Including two by Spencer Jones, which made him the All-Time leader beyond the Arc. Maxime Raynaud hit the third basket.

Jones passed former Cardinal great Chasson Randle with the 305th triple of his career. He added another (306) before recess, and had 11 points at the half. Raynaud added 19 to the Cardinal tally.

However, after the Stanford offensive run, the Beavers performed their own 13-0 run over a 7 1/2 minute timeframe to lead by seven (18-11). OSU led by as much as nine points, and made several more runs, when Stanford tried to tie the game and/or take the lead.

As the first half ended, the Beavers maintained a 6-point lead, 38-32. They were led in scoring by sophomore guard Jordan Pope (17). OSU also outrebounded the home team 22 to 9, and shot 52% from the field, compared to Stanford’s 41% floor shooting.

After intermission, Oregon State scored an immediate five in a row, taking a double-digit lead. They reached the height of 12 points multiple times, and had a 13-0 run in the second half. Despite those exhornant leads, Stanford continued to fight back.

The Cardinal committed a 14-point run on their behalf, not only tying the contest, but actually taking the lead on a Brandon Angel three, putting his squad up 50-47 (12:30) midway through the half. They would go back and forth over the next several minutes of play. At the tune of two lead changes and 3 ties. The first half was 2:2 for ties and lead changes.

With all the action going on inside Maples, the rebounding disparity (39/22) and missed free throws (8) eventually caught up with Stanford. The Beavers shot 53% overall for the game, while the Cardinal settled for 46%.

The Man of the Hour, Spencer Jones, had a troubling second half. He only added 2 points to his halftime total, and fouled out at the 4:25 mark of the game. He verbalized his disappointment of the loss, and will acknowledge the magnitude of his feat later on in the season.

At the final horn, the Beavers had caused major wood damage on the Palo Alto campus, upsetting the Cardinal by 12 points, 85-73.

Three players for Stanford reached the 10+ points plateau: Raynaud (29) & 8 rebounds, Brandon Angel (15) & 6 rebounds, and the aforementioned Spencer Jones (13).

OSU produced four ballers with double-digit scoring. Jordan Pope (30), Tyler Bilodeau (18), Michael Rataj (22) & 10 rebounds, and Dexter Akanno (11) & 7 rebounds.

The Cardinal will next be in action in Salt Lake City, as they take on the Utah Utes, Thursday, February 29 (Leap Day) at 5:30 PM MST on the Pac-12 Network. Oregon State returns to the Beaver State, but in Eugene to battle their fellow inhabitant Oregon Ducks, Wednesday, February 28 at 8 PM PDT.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks hope to get back in win column tonight against Nashville

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The San Jose Sharks goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood (left) looks to defend against the Vegas Golden Knights center Nicolas Roy in second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Feb 19, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 Mary Lisa, In the San Jose Sharks (15-35-5) last game against the Vegas Golden Knights (32-17-6) at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Feb 19th the Knights put a whooping on San Jose shutting them out 4-0.

#2 The Knights goaltender Logan Thompson got the shutout against the Sharks he stopped all 29 shots. For Thompson it was his fourth career shutout.

#3 The Knights Mason Morelli got a goal and an assist and the win was a season sweep over the Sharks.

#4 The Knights came right out of the gate with three goals in the first period and pretty much just took the Sharks out of their game.

#5 The Sharks host the Nashville Predators tonight at SAP Center in San Jose for a 7pm face off at SAP Center. The Predators are fifth in the Western Conference and have won three straight games and won five of their last ten games. How do you see this match up.

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