Category: NHL

NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: Sharks Karlsson open to trade to a contender; Canucks coach Boudreau could be gone at anytime; plus more NHL news

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San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson (65) works for the puck against Dallas Stars center Tyler Seguin (91) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023 at SAP Center in San Jose (AP News photo)

On the NHL podcast with Matt Harrington:

#1 The San Jose Sharks defenceman Erik Karlsson says while he likes playing in San Jose he would consider a trade to a team that is going to go deep in the post season. Karlsson came to San Jose from Ottawa back on Sep 13, 2018 and hasn’t played more than 56 games since he was acquired. That said this season Karlsson leads NHL defencemen with 15 goals, 47 assists and 62 points.

#2 Things have not gone so well for the Vancouver Canucks (18-23-3) the Canucks have lost four of their last ten games are sixth place in the Pacific Division. Canucks head coach Bruce Boudreau knows all too well that the Canucks have had a rough season and that his time at head coach could be ending soon as saying he doesn’t know what is going on and also saying how great the game is.

#3 Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov who said he could not wear the Pride themed sweater designed for the pre game skate on Tuesday night. Provorov said that he couldn’t wear it for religious reason being a Russian Orthodox. Provorov’s number 9 sweater became the hot seller after the story went viral. Critics of Provorov’s decision not to wear pride sweater said he had no problem wearing a military sweater he wore 2021.

#4 The Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry made his return as netminder on Friday night after missing seven games and stopping 46 shots in the Penguins win over the Ottawa Senators 4-1. Jarry suffered a lower body injury. The Pens have been struggling a bit lately especially after losing defensemen Jeff Petry and Kris Letang who are on the injured list as well.

#5 Max Pacioretty of the Carolina Hurricanes who tore his Achilles tendon last Thursday night had to helped off the ice when he was skating near Minnesota Wild’s end of the ice almost behind the net when he tore the tendon for the second time since he had surgery for it back on Aug 9th. Pacioretty will have a second surgery for it. Pacioretty teammate Brady Skjei said “It definitely put a damper on the win a little bit,”

Join Matt for the NHL podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks remarkable comeback to defeat Stars; Sharks open 8 game road trip Saturday

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A look at the San Jose Sharks bench during their game against the Dallas Stars at SAP Arena in San Jose on Wed Jan 18, 2023 (NHL/TNT photo grab)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Len:

#1 No one would have thought it after the San Jose Sharks (14-23-9) who were struggling to pick up a win could come back to win on their home ice and for that matter to come back on the Dallas Stars (26-13-7) for a two goal 5-3 win at SAP Center on Wednesday night.

#2 The Sharks who really needed some offense got some from their defenceman Erik Karlsson who scored a goal and had three assists in the two goal win for San Jose.

#3 Len talk about the second period where the Sharks got three goals from Steven Lorentz, Nick Bonino, and Timo Meier it was a crucial period for the Sharks if they were to prove something to themselves and their confidence.

#4 James Reimer the Sharks goaltender who stopped 32 shots and picked up his 200th career win said he had forgotten all about that and really wanted to get a win after the team had been struggling.

#5 The Columbus Blue Jackets (13-29-2) who are struggling have lost five of their last eight games will host the Sharks who open the first of eight road games on Saturday. How do you see the Sharks faring in Columbus and talk about the length of this long road trip.

Join Len Shapiro for Sharks podcasts Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks come back from three goal deficit to beat Dallas 5-3

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Sharks Twitter. Timo Meier and Erik Karlsson celebrate a goal on January 18th against the Dallas Stars.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE – Off of a incredible second period come back the Sharks rode that into a victory over the Dallas Stars by a final of 5-3.

Heading into this game the season series between these two teams was at a draw as both teams had beaten each other once.

This game also involved two of the best penalty killing teams in the league with Dallas ranked fifth and San Jose ranked third in the league.

The Sharks got off to a slow start in this one as they only had one shot in the first six minutes of the period.

On the other hand Dallas moved the puck efficiently and had the Sharks chasing the play.

With the momentum on their side Dallas pushed for a goal and Ty Dellandrea delivered at the 13:17 mark of the period.

Streaking down the right wing boards Dellandrea fired a shot towards the net that beat Reimer on the glove side scoring his fifth goal on the year.

Mario Ferraro took a penalty a little bit later for holding but the PK unit for the Sharks killed it off.

After the kill San Jose gained some momentum and Mikey Eyssimont came close to tying the game as he rang one off the crossbar.

The end of the first definitely ended a lot better for the Sharks than the beginning but they were unable to tie the game heading into the intermission down one.

The shots at the end of the period favored Dallas 10-6.

San Jose did have to start off the second on the PK but Jason Robertson towards the end of the power play took a penalty making it a four-on-four.

Once San Jose did get on the power play they weren’t able to muster any good looks as the Dallas’s PK unit killed off the opportunity.

With the Sharks hemmed in their own end Colin Miller circled the net and fed a pass out front to Jason Robertson who fired it past Reimer to score his 30th goal of the season.

Dallas did not stop the onslaught at the beginning of the second and less than five minutes after Robertson’s goal Radek Faska cashed in as well.

It was a sort of broken play on the Faska’s fourth goal of the season as he tried to feed his teammate but, the the shot instead went in off of a Shark.

The energy was definitely sucked out of the building after the Star’s quick start to the period.

San Jose did not give up though as Noah Gregor after keeping the puck in the Stars end got the puck to Steven Lorentz in the slot who scored.

With the score now 3-1 the Sharks smelt blood in the water and pushed for more.

As the Dallas defense backed up Alexander Barabonov rushed into the zone and wrapped a pass around the net to a waiting Nick Bonino who scored his seventh goal of the campaign.

The crowd was now into it and San Jose drew a penalty putting themselves in the perfect spot to tie the game.

Timo Meier did just that on the opportunity as similar to Faska’s goal he tried to feed it to a teammate but instead got a lucky bounce.

The goal sent the now already fired up crowd into a frenzy and the Sharks responded in kind by keeping the chances up.

That did end up being all the scoring in the period though with the shots still favoring Dallas at 20-18.

The third did get off to a tough start for San Jose as they had to kill off a tripping penalty taken late in the second by them.

The Shark’s PK once again showed why their a top five unit in the league though as they killed off another PP.

After the PK both teams exchanged chances back and forth as both goalies made big saves.

At the 9:19 mark of the third Nick Bonino found Erik Karlsson creeping in backdoor and fead the defenseman. Karlsson then proceeded to make a difficult shot look effortless as he scored his 15th goal of the season.

The lead now 4-3 the Sharks looked to hold on to their lead as they trapped it up.

Dallas pulled their goalie to try to tie it but Logan Couture got the puck and fired it into the empty cage to end the game at 5-3.

The shots at the end of the game favored the Stars at 36-28.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Erik Karlsson 2nd: Nick Bonino 3rd: Miro Heiskanen

With the victory over Dallas Reimer got the 200th win of his NHL career.

“I think we can be really proud of this win tonight and it was a solid effort,” Meier said after the game.

The Sharks next game will on Saturday and also kicks off a long road stand for the team were they will do battle with Columbus.

Devils take 4-3 OT decision from Sharks

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The New Jersey Devils tied the San Jose Sharks with ten seconds left and later defeated the Sharks in a shootout at the SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Jan 16, 2023 (@NJDevils photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Monday, January 16, 2023

Jack Hughes scored the game-tying goal with 10 seconds remaining in the third period, and New Jersey prevailed in the shootout to earn a 4-3 win over the San Jose Sharks Monday at SAP Center.

Following a scoreless overtime period, Tomas Tatar scored the only goal in the shootout, as the Devils (29-12-3, 61 points) won their fifth straight game and seventh straight on the road,

Devils captain Nico Hischler had a goal and two assists, and Ondrej Palat had a pair of assists for New Jersey. Goaltender Vitek Vanecek made 29 saves.

Timo Meier and Erik Karlsson each had a goal and an assist, and Michael Eyssimont had two assists for San Jose (13-29-9, 35 points), which has a 2-6-2 record over its last 10 games.

James Reimer stopped 38 of New Jersey’s 41 shots on goal.

Hughes tallied the equalizer when his shot from the left face-off circle redirected off Karlsson’s stick for his 29th goal of the season.

New Jersey took a 1-0 lead just 29 seconds into the first period on a Ryan Graves wrister, coming on a 2-on-1 break during New Jersey’s first shift.

The game was held up with 3:59 left in the first period when the kickplate on a door behind the Sharks’ net needed repair. The teams left the ice, took an early intermission, completed the first period, then switched ends to begin the second period.

Meier tied the game at 1-1 with a one-timer at the side of the net at 16:44, and Karlsson gave the Sharks a 2-1 lead with a power play goal at 19:56 with a shot from the point through traffic. Karlsson’s assist on Meier’s goal was his 44th this season.

Hischier scored at 11 seconds of the third period with a one-timer from between the circles, tying the game at 2-2.

Nick Bonino put the Sharks back ahead at 3-2 at 5:56 of the third period, four seconds after a San Jose power play expired. Bonino’s spinning shot came on a rebound from Eyssimont’s original shot.

San Jose forward Kevin Labanc was a healthy scratch.

The Sharks host Dallas on Wednesday.

San Jose Sharks with Charanbir Mahal: Sharks hope to turn it around against New Jersey in rare day game

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The San Jose Sharks are hoping to forget all about last Fri Jan 13, 2023 game against the Edmonton Oilers and hope to turn it around today against the New Jersey Devils at SAP Center in San Jose (photo from nhl.com)

On the Sharks podcast Charanbir Mahal:

#1 Last game last Friday night at SAP Center in San Jose a touch conclusion for the San Jose Sharks (12-23-8) who got blasted 7-1 by the Edmonton Oilers 28-12-3.

#2 The Oilers Connor McDavid who turned 26 on Friday scored two goals as the Oilers can always rely on McDavid.

#3 McDavid was unstoppable against the Shark. McDavid extended his point streak against San Jose to 12 games.

#4 Tough game for the Sharks goaltender Kappo Kahkonen who allowed all seven shots and saved 34.

#5 Sharks hosting the New Jersey Devils who are a force in the NHL on defense and offense. The Sharks have lost seven of their last ten games. Charanbir talks about what are their chances for today’s game at SAP Center.

Charanbir Mahal is a reporter for INDTVUSA covering for the San Jos Sharks and also guests for the San Jose Sharks podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Vegas’ Stone to sit out for tonight’s game; Leafs Matthews possible for tonight’s game; plus more NHL News

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The Vegas Golden Knights Mark Stone is out with a upper body injury and will sit out for tonight’s game against the Edmonton Oilers (photo from NHL.com)

Check out Len on the NHL podcasts weekly:

#1 The Vegas Golden Knights Mark Stone is listed as week to week with an upper body injury. Stone left at 10:42 in the first period against the Florida Panthers on Thursday as the Knights won it 4-2. Stone didn’t practice on Friday and will sit out tonight against the Edmonton Oilers.

#2 Len, the anticipated return of Austin Matthews has finally arrived, Matthews whose been out of the Toronto Maple Leafs line up has missed the last two games. Matthews has been out of the line up since last Sunday and is a maybe for Saturday’s game against the Boston Bruins.

#3 Nick Leddy of the St Louis Blues is set to return on Saturday against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Leddy a defenseman has 11 assists in 39 games. Leddy has missed the last four games with an upper body injury. Leddy did not play since last Thursday.

#4 Nathan Bastian of the New Jersey Devils could return Saturday night against the Los Angeles Kings. Bastian a forward was injured against the Washington Capitals on Nov 26th. Bastian has eight points, three goals and five assists.

#5 The Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Dallas Stars Jason Robertson, Tage Thompson Buffalo Sabers, and Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals are up for being MVP the season isn’t over yet but these are some top candidates.

Len Shapiro filled in for Matt Harrington for the NHL podcast heard Saturdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oilers McDavid 2 goals helps bury Sharks 7-1 in San Jose

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The San Jose Sharks Oscar Lindblom scored the only goal of the night for the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center in San Jose against the Edmonton Oilers on Fri Jan 13, 2023 (San Jose Sharks photo)

By Len Shapiro

SAN JOSE–The Edmonton Oilers (28-18-3) Connor McDavid gifted himself on his 26th birthday scoring two goals to lead the Oilers to a 7-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks (13-23-8) at SAP Center in San Jose on Friday night. McDavid picked up an assist in the contest and now has 25 points with ten goals and five assists for this road trip it’s his longest scoring total for the road.

McDavid now has scored in six straight road games with 37 goals and 45 assists for a total of 82 points McDavid has accomplished it in 44 games. McDavid is scoring Hall of Fame numbers and accomplishments his 80 plus in 44 games since some of the best players in hockey have done it in 44 or less games, Mario Lemieux (31), Jaromir Jagr (37), and Ron Francis (44) all doing it with the 1995-96 Pittsburgh Penguins.

McDavid gave credit to teammate Leon Draisaitl who passed the puck to him that helped him get the scores, “Two pretty good passes from him (Draisaitl) there, so that helps,” McDavid said “I feel pretty good, but it’s about our group in here. We’re continuing to try to lay good games down one after another and take it one day at a time, kind of like our second half last year.”

The Sharks got their only goal of the night from Oscar Lindblom who scored in the third period. The Sharks hardly made any noise against the Oilers offensively and Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen looked like one of the goalies from the movie the Mighty Ducks getting pelted all night facing 41 shots and saving 37. Kahkonen stayed in the whole game and Sharks head coach David Quinn didn’t pull him out saying he was the only player on the ice doing his best.

Quinn said the team stunk the whole game not being to execute the shots in the Oilers end of the ice, not taking advantage of the power play, and not giving Kahkonen enough protection up front that saw a volley of goals to light the lamp before you could even turn around. “We just stunk. We stunk on the powerplay. We stopped on the penalty kill. We stunk 5-on-5. Our forward’s stunk, (and) our defensemen stunk,” Quinn said. “The only guy that didn’t stink was our goalie. And that hasn’t happened all year, and over 82 games, something like this is going to happen. You can move past it pretty quickly.”

The Sharks after Friday’s loss are sinking further in the Pacific Division to seventh place losing four of their last five games. The Sharks with the loss to the Oilers opened a three game homestand and have struggled at home this season and can’t seem to get it together on home ice. They host the New Jersey Devils (27-12-3) who are hot bringing in a three game win streak to San Jose on Monday for Martin Luther King Jr day a 1:00pm face off at SAP Center.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Kings Vilardi and Doughty score third period goals 53 seconds apart to down Sharks 4-3 at Crypto.com Arena

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Los Angeles Kings center Quinton Byfield, left, scores on San Jose Sharks goaltender James Reimer, right, as defenseman Matt Benning, second from left, defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic, center, and center Anze Kopitar watch during the first period at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Wed Jan 11, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the Sharks podcast with Len:

#1 The San Jose Sharks (13-22-8) couldn’t hold their own on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles going into the third period with a 2-1 lead Timo Meier tied it 2-2. The Los Angeles Kings (24-14-6) got scoring help in the third period with goals by Gabriel Vilardi and Drew Doughty scoring 53 seconds apart for a 4-3 Kings win in the last meeting with the Sharks.

#2 The Kings Quinton Bayfield scored a goal and got an assist for the Kings who have now won three straight games.

#3 The Kings Phoenix Copely stopped 26 shots and is one of the winningest goaltenders in the NHL with a 12-2 record.

#4 The Sharks Timo Meier scored his first power play goal of the season and an assist. They were playing the second of back to back games after playing in Arizona on Tuesday night.

#5 The Sharks host the Edmonton Oilers (22-18-3). The Oilers having a pretty good run right now having won five of their last ten games and winning their last game convincingly 6-2 over the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday. Tell us how you see this match up between the Sharks and Oilers Friday.

Join Len for the Sharks podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Lose 4-3, Suffer Season Sweep to Kings

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Jonathan Quick (32) Los Angeles Kings goaltender congratulates teammate and starting goaltender Phoenix Copley (29) after defeating the visiting San Jose Sharks at Crypto.com Arena on Wed Jan 11, 2023 (Los Angeles Kings photo)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks scored their first power play goal of 2023 but it wasn’t enough to stave off a season sweep at the hands of the Los Angeles Kings Wednesday night in LA. Nick Bonino scored an un assisted goal and Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl lit the lamp but a pair of third period goals boosted the Kings to a 4-3 victory.

Adrian Kempe started the scoring for the Kings, beating James Reimer 5:59 into the game for a 1-0 lead. Kempe shoveled a puck fed from Quentin Byfield below the goalline past Reimer’s opposite side pad for his 18th goal of the year.

The Kings would fire 22 shots on Reimer but he stood tall apart from the one blemish, giving Bonino a chance to tie the game 1:20 into the 2nd period. LA goalie Pheonix Copley flubbed a shot from Erik Karlsson that went in and out of his glove. He tried to play the puck away from danger but heeled it, giving Bonino the gimme backhander for his 5th of the year.

Kings prospect Byfield scored his 1st goal of the year in 15 games, handing LA the 2-1 lead 6:58 into the 2nd on a netfront tip that beat Reimer five-hole. Timo Meier responded though, snapping am 0-for-16 power play drought when his wrister beat Copley at the 10:11 mark of the third period. Logan Couture and Erik Karlsson assisted on the goal.

The tie would last only 2:29 when Gabe Vilardi would beat Reimer with another slot tip for his 17th of the year. Drew Doughty then cashed in as a wide open trailer in what would become a 3-on-2 at the 13:33 mark for a 4-2 lead.

Tomas Hertl scored as the Sharks were attempting to pull Reimer with 2:06 left in regulation. Alexander Barabanov took the shot that presumably knicked Hertl on the way in with Meier also getting an assist for his 2nd point of the night.

The Sharks return home for a three-game homestand before hitting the road for 8 games with the All-star break in between the away set.

Sharks enjoy playing in college arena, knock off Coyotes 4-2

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Arizona Coyotes center Nick Schmaltz (8) shoots the puck past San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro (38) during the second period at Mullet Arena in Tempe on Tue Jan 10, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Tuesday, January 10, 2023

TEMPE, Ariz. – For the most part, the San Jose Sharks (13-21-8) enjoyed their first visit to the intimate ambiance of Mullett Arena. Picking up two badly needed points in the NHL Pacific standings didn’t hurt either.

Matt Nieto’s tie-breaking goal less than 10 seconds into the third period put the Sharks ahead to stay in a 4-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes (13-22-5) Tuesday at the new 4,800-seat home for Arizona State hockey and the temporary residence of the Coyotes.

“It was fun,” Nieto said of the Mullett Arena experience. “It felt just like juniors and it’s even better that we got the two points.”

Sharks center Logan Couture said, “Different is a good word for it. It’s a unique experience. I enjoyed it. It brings me back to my days when I was playing in the OHL in a bunch of arenas about this size – Windsor, Kingston, London. It had that familiar feel. The ice was great.”

Sharks right wing Kevin Labanc said, “It felt like I was playing in juniors again. It was a fun barn and I look forward to playing in it the next time.”

Nieto broke a 2-2 tie nine seconds into the third period with his eighth goal of the season, beating Coyotes’ netminder Karel Vejmelka from just outside the crease, knocking in a rebound off the initial shot by Couture.

“It was just a great forecheck,” Nieto said. “Barbie (Alexander Barabanov) worked hard to go get it, gave it to Cooch (Logan Couture) who gave it to me. It wound up in the net and it was such a momentum builder for us.”

Defenseman Jaycob Megna, who also assisted on the Nieto goal, added an insurance tally for San Jose (13-21-8, 34 points) with his first goal of the season at 14:10 of the third period. Megna scored on a one-timer from just inside the blue line, beating Vejmelka, who was screened on the play.

“I liked how we started the third period, getting the goal early,” Sharks coach David Quinn said. “I thought we did a pretty good job after that, not giving them much. The PK had some big kills that we needed, and Kaapo (Kahkonen) was good in the net. So it’s a good way to start the second half.”

Nico Sturm scored the equalizer for San Jose at 5:59 of the second period when he converted a rebound off the initial shot by Nick Bonino, placing it in the top shelf over the shoulder of Coyotes’ netminder Karel Vejmelka.

San Jose opened the scoring at 4:39 of the first period when Kevin Labanc picked up a loose puck in traffic and shot it past Vejmelka on the glove side. Tomas Hertl and Timo Meier had the assists as the Sharks took a 1-0 lead.

Less than two minutes later, Barrett Hayton scored the equalizer for Arizona (13-22-5, 31 points). Hayton, on assists from Shane Gostisbehere and Jakob Chychrun, cruised across the slot area and flipped a backhand shot past Kaapo Kahkonen glove side.

The Coyotes took a 2-1 lead at 16:21 of the opening period when Christian Fischer fired a wrist shot from the edge of the left circle, beating Kahkonen on the glove side into a wide open net.

“I was a little disappointed when we came out strong in the first period. Then I thought we got a little sloppy,” Quinn said. “But I thought we responded well after being down 2-1 with a pretty good second period.”

Arizona’s Josh Brown and the Sharks’ Michael Eyssimont dropped the gloves at 19:21 of the first period. Each player received a 5-minute major for fighting.

Kahkonen stopped 27 of Arizona’s 29 shots on goal. Vejmelka faced 33 San Jose shots, making 29 saves.

The Coyotes were 0-for-4 on the power play, while San Jose was 0-for-2.

“The PK was pretty good,” Nieto said. “We were blocking shots, doing the little things, clearing the puck out, doing the hard work that you need to do. It’s no surprise that (our penalty kill) is in the top five in the NHL.”

The Sharks’ road trip continues when they visit the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday. San Jose returns to SAP Center to host Edmonton on Friday.