Sharks Fall Short Again, Lose 5-3 to Senators for eighth loss in a row; Sens end 5 game skid

San Jose Sharks William Eklund (72) takes a shot on Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark (35) in the first period at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Sat Mar 1, 2025 (Canadian Press via AP)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 5-3 to the Ottawa Senators Saturday. Shane Pinto, Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stützle, David Perron and Michael Amadio scored for the Senators. Linus Ullmark made 34 saves for the win. Tyler Toffoli, Timothy Liljegren and Will Smith scored for the Sharks. Vitek Vanecek made 27 saves in the loss.

Once again, the Sharks gave up a lead to lose the game. “It sucks. It feels like we’ve been playing pretty good hockey. So, it’s just an unfortunate loss,” said Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro. The Sharks power play did well, scoring in three of four chances. It also did badly, giving up a short-handed goal on that fourth try, which was actually their first of the game. That was emblematic of the team’s frustrations lately. It is difficult to see the good in their game when they keep losing.

“I liked our start, we did some good things. Obviously a couple bounces. I didn’t like that line change that we had. We gave up an easy goal,” Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said, of the fourth Ottawa goal.

Shane Pinto started the scoring at 11:05 of the first period, short-handed. After pushing the puck out of the zone, Pinto started skating while Ridly Greig gathered up the puck and passed it ahead of Pinto. Pinto skated into the Sharks zone with no one between him and Vanecek.

Tyler Toffoli tied the game with a power play goal at 5:17 of the second period. Toffoli’s shot from the goal line went off of a Senator and into the net. Assists went to Will Smith and Macklin Celebrini.

Timothey Liljegren gave the Sharks the lead with a second power play goal at 9:47. Liljegren scored with a shot from the blue line through traffic. Assists went to Alexander Wennberg and Klim Kostin.

Brady Tkachuk tied the game again at 1:26 of the third period with a power play goal. Tim Stützle carried the puck in, then passed it across and back to Tkachuk for the shot. Assists went to Stützle and Jake Sanderson.

Tim Stützle gave the Senators a 3-2 lead at the three minute mark. Greig sent the puck in and off the end boards, where it bounced to the front of the net to meet Stützle.

David Perron made it 4-2 at 8:31. Thomas Chabot carried the puck in and took a shot that created a rebound for Perron to gather up and put in the net. Assists went to Chabot and Drake Batherson.

The Sharks pulled their goaltender for an extra skater with more than two minutes left. Soon enough, they drew a tripping penalty and got a power play. Will Smith made it 4-3 with a third power play goal. Assists went to William Eklund and Macklin Celebrini.

The Sharks kept their net empty and with one minute left, Michael Amadio scored into that empty net. An assist went to Artem Zub.

The Sharks next play on Monday at 4:30 PM PT in Toronto against the Maple Leafs.

San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa: Battle of the slides Sharks on 7 game skid vs. Senators 5 game slide Saturday nite in Ottawa

San Jose Sharks Nico Sturm (7) celebrates his goal with teammates Mario Ferraro (38) and Collin Graf (51) in the first period at the Bell Centre in Montreal on Thu Feb 27, 2025 (Canadian Press via AP News)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 The Montreal Canadians Cole Caufield got the game winner in overtime from Caufield at 3:21 to come away with a 4-3 win over the San Jose Sharks. The win was the Habs third straight since the 4 Nations Face Off break.

#2 Caulfield goal was skillful he shot the put between his legs and to get past the Sharks Macklin Celebrini and got it past goaltender Alexandar Geogiev shooting it over Geogiev’s right pad. Caulfield lead Montreal with 28 goals.

#3 Montreal’s Nick Suzuki scored two goals in the first period for Montreal and Alex Newhook scored his first goal since Feb 4th. Habs goaltender Samuel Montembeault stopped 22 out 25 shots for his third win in a row.

#4 Scorers for San Jose Fabian Zetterlund, Nico Sturm and Will Smith there effort was strong but once again San Jose fell short. The Sharks have now lost seven straight and have lost 13 of their last 14 games.

#5 Sharks hoping to snap their seven game loss streak at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa. The Ottawa Senators fifth in the Western Conference at 29-25-4 and 62 points. Like the Sharks the Sens are battling a long losing streak with five loses in row.

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

Canadiens Sink Sharks 4-3 in OT, Sharks Losing Streak at 7

Montreal Canadians Alex Newhook (15) scores on the San Jose Sharks goaltender Alexander Geogiev in the third period at the Belle Centre in Montreal on Thu Feb 27, 2025 (Canadian Press via AP)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 4-3 in OT to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday. Nick Suzuki, Alex Newhook and Cole Caulfield scored for Montreal. Sam Montembeault made 23 saves for the win. Fabian Zetterlund, Nico Sturm and Will Smith scored for San Jose. Alexandar Georgiev made 29 saves in the loss.

After the game, Sharks forward Will Smith said: “We gotta learn how to win. It’s been I don’t even know how many times this year so, it adds up and we’ve just gotta be better.”

Nico Sturm explained what was missing from the Sharks’ game at this point: “I think the one thing we haven’t done all year is score another goal. Either when we’re up or the game is tied, just score another goal and put a two goal lead or three goal lead. That’s what we haven’t done.”

The game got off to a flying start with four goals scored in the first period. At 3:56, Fabian Zetterlund scored to give San Jose the lead. Will Smith won the race for the puck and carried it behind the net. He passed it up to Zetterlund for a snap shot just outside the goal post. Assists went to Smith and Alexander Wennberg.

Nick Suzuki tied the game at 6:49 with a snap shot from high in the slot. Assists went to Cole Caulfield and Juraj Slafkovsky.

Nico Sturm made it 2-1 Sharks at 12:39. Sturm and Klim Kostin skated into the zone. Kostin carried the puck below the goal line before sending it back up to Sturm for the shot. Assists went to Kostin and Collin Graf.

Nick Suzuki tied it again in the final minute of the period. Suzuki won the offensive zone face-off, then caught Lane Hutson‘s pass from the blue line and took the shot from just above the hash marks. Assists went to Hutson and Jayden Struble.

Will Smith gave the Sharks their third lead of the game at 17:21 of the second period. Alexander Wennberg won a faceoff in the defensive zone and got the puck to Shakir Mukhamadullin. Mukhamadullin passed it to Smith, who carried it through the neutral zone, into the Canadiens’ zone, and scored with a shot from the hash marks.

Alex Newhook tied it 3-3 at 2:22 of the third period. Newhook, Patrik Laine and Owen Beck swarmed the crease and the puck ping-ponged around among them. Laine and Beck got the assists.

Cole Caulfield scored the game winner at 3:21 of OT. He caught Suzuki’s pass on the Canadiens’ blue line and carried the puck all the way down the ice for a snap shot from in close. Assists went to Suzuki and Montembeault.

The Sharks next play on Saturday at 4:00 PM PT in Ottawa against the Senators.

Sharks Fall 2-1 in OT to Jets, Winnipeg Win Streak at 10; San Jose loss steak reaches six

Winnipeg Jets Mark Scheifele (55) scored the game winning goal in overtime on San Jose Sharks goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg on Mon Feb 24, 2025 (Canadian press via AP)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 2-1 in overtime to the Winnipeg Jets, despite holding a lead for more than 40 minutes. The win was the tenth in a row for the Jets. For the Sharks, it was the sixth loss in a row. Josh Morrissey and Mark Sheifele scored for Winnipeg. Connor Hellebuyck made 17 saves for the win. William Eklund scored for the Sharks and Vitek Vanacek made 33 saves in the loss.

Vitek Vanacek was a big part of the reason that the Sharks hung in there for as long as they did. After the game, William Eklund said, of the goaltender: “Yeah, he was outstanding tonight.” Of his teammates, Vanacek said that “I think the guys played really well.” The Sharks came away from the loss disappointed but not ashamed of their effort.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said that the team:

“Worked extremely hard, each and every period, with things we talked about this morning. To fall short is a kick in the gut. Disappointed we don’t get the result but I’m really extremely proud of our group. Back to back, get in late last night, to have that type of effort against arguably the best team in the League.”

William Eklund started the scoring with a power play goal at 15:07 of the first period. Macklin Celebrini made a cross-ice pass to Eklund for a slap shot from the face-off dot. Celebrini and Will Smith got the assists.

Winnipeg outshot San Jose 10-6 in the first period. The teams took matching roughing minors near the middle of the period. The Sharks had the only power play of the period. The Jets outshot the Sharks 10-8 in the second period and 13-3 in the third. The Sharks had two power plays in the second period and killed one penalty. The Sharks had the only penalty in the third period and killed that.

Eklund’s goal gave the Sharks a lead that lasted until the final minute of the third period, when Josh Morrissey tied the game with the Jets’ net empty. Morrissey caught a bounce off of the side board and put the puck in the net on the short side from the top of the faceoff circle.

1:33 into overtime, the Jets extended their win streak when Mark Sheifele picked up a rebound right in front of Vanacek and poked it over the line. Assists went to Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Montreal against the Canadiens at 4:00 PM PT.

Sharks Fall 3-2 to Flames, Losing Streak at five

San Jose Sharks Henry Thrun (3) tries to stop the Calgary Flames Jonathan Huberdeau (left) from attacking Sharks goaltender Alexander Georgiev (40) and the net in the second period at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary on Sun Feb 23, 2025 (News photo by Canadian Press via AP)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 3-2 to the Calgary Flames Sunday. Nazem Kadri, Kevin Rooney and Joel Hanley scored for the Flames. Dustin Wolf made 27 saves for the win. Macklin Celebrini and Tyler Toffoli scored for the Sharks. Alexandar Georgiev made 33 saves in the loss.

After the game, Toffoli said: “It just sucks. I thought we had a pretty good game, better than the one we played going into the break.” Asked if this five-game losing streak is frustrating, he said “If anyone says they’re having a good time losing games, I don’t want them on my team, to be honest.”

The Sharks scored first, at 3:41 of the first period. Toffoli centered the puck from below the goal line, just as Celebrini closed on the crease. Celebrini scored his 18th of the season with a wrist shot. Assists went to Toffoli and Jake Walman.

The Flames tied it on a power play at 7:27. Nazem Kadri scored with a wrist shot from just above the left face-off circle. Assists went to Morgan Frost and MacKenzie Weegar.

Calgary outshot the Sharks 14-8 in the first period. The Sharks took two penalties and the Flames took on in the first.

Kevin Rooney gave Calgary the 2-1 lead at 3:35 of the second period. Rooney caught a rebound from a shot by Ryan Lomberg. Assists went to Lomberg and Martin Pospisil.

The teams were tied with 13 shots apiece in the second period. They also had one penalty apiece.

Toffoli tied it back up at 1:54 of the third period. Wolf stopped Toffoli’s first shot but left a rebound. Toffoli caught that and scored his 21st of the season. Assists went to William Eklund and Shakir Mukhamadullin.

Joel Hanley gave Calgary the 3-2 lead at 13:28 of the third. Hanley shot the puck to the net from the blue line, then skated in. Jonathan Huberdeau caught the puck just outside the blue paint and passed it back up to Hanley for the shot. Assists went to Huberdeau and Kadri.

The officials were very busy in the third period. The Sharks were given two minor penalties, one matched penalty and a double minor. Calgary had one minor penalty and the matched penalty. The teams were very close again in shots, 9-8 Calgary.

The Sharks next play on Monday in Winnipeg against the Jets at 4:30 PM PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks try to rebound after rough first half against Flames Sunday

San Jose Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) makes a save against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Jan 27, 2025. Askarov is out for three weeks due to a lower body injury (AP News photo)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 Maybe the Four Nation Face Off came at a right time for the San Jose Sharks the Sharks were in the middle of a four game funk that saw them in their last game get absolutely hammered in San Jose on Sat Feb 8 to the Dallas Stars 8-3.

#2 One of the things the Sharks have had problems with is allowing their opponents to get the early lead and the game against the Stars was not an exception allowing three goals in the first period.

#3 Their third periods have been troublesome too in that same game against the Stars the Sharks allowed three goals against and were whipped by the Stars in a five goal advantage.

#4 Goaltending is a concern for San Jose as top goalie prospect Yaroslav Askarov is out three weeks with a lower body injury while playing for the San Jose Barracuda on Wednesday. He faced 14 shots in the first period of the game but had to come out and did not return. How critical is Askarov’s loss going to be with two months left of the season?

#5 The Sharks return to action opening up a seven game road trip starting this Sunday in Calgary at the Scotiabank Saddledome against a Flames team that is fifth in the Pacific Division having lost five of their last ten games and lost three in a row. The Sharks need to snap their four game skid and will have a real test starting this seven game road trip.

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

Sharks fall 8-3 in Granlund and Ceci’s return

San Jose Sharks vs Dallas Stars on Saturday February 8th 2024 at SAP Center. (via sanjosesharks/instagram)

By Madison Montez

SAN JOSE- In Mikael Granlund and Cody Ceci’s return to San Jose, the Sharks fell 5-2. Granlund registering two assists.

San Jose opened up the scoring at 1:25 when William Eklund scored his 11th of the season. Celebrini picked up a puck from Toffoli behind the net and no-look passed to Eklund. After good puck movement by Andrew Poturalski and Will Smith, Fabian Zetterlund scored his 11th of the season to extend the Sharks’s lead.

Dallas cut into their lead at 3:02 when their leading point scorer Matt Duchene scored his 21st goal of the season. Mikael Granlund registering the lone assist.

Dallas then tied the game at 2-2, just seven minutes later. Picking up a rebound shot by Matt Dumba, Jason Robertson scored his 20th goal of the season. Lian Bichsel registering the secondary assist. Dallas took their first lead of the game three minutes later at 13:24. Mason Marchment was left alone in the crease when he scored his 14th of the season. Matt Duchene and Mikael Granlund registering the assists.

The 23rd rank powerplay got to work when Will Smith took a delay of game penalty. A little over 30 seconds into the powerplay, Matt Duchene scored his second of the night and his sixth PPG of the season. Thomas Harley and Wyatt Johnston registering the assists.

Dallas extended their lead to 5-2 when Mavrik Bourque scored his eighth of the season on a drop pass by Jamie Benn. Benn and Evgenii Dadonov registering the assists.

Although being up 5-2, Dallas didn’t take their foot off the gas, scoring 3 times in the span of three minutes. Wyatt Johnston scored at 11:20, Back and Blackwell registering the assists. Thomas Harley scored a minute and 20 seconds later, Lindell and Hintz registering the assists.

The Sharks cut into the lead 33 seconds later, Walker Duehr scoring his 1st as a Shark. Carl Grundstom and Ty Dellandrea registering the assists.

Jamie Benn sealed the deal 37 seconds later scoring his 14th of the season, Bichsel registering the lone assist.

THREE STARS OF THE GAME:

  1. Matt Duchene, 2G, 1A
  2. Thomas Harley, 1G,1A
  3. Jamie Benn, 1G, 1A

The Sharks will be back in action after the Four Nations face-off on February 23rd against the Calgary Wranglers.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks take on Stars tonight in effort to end three game skid

San Jose Sharks goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) puts a stop on the Vancouver Canucks left wing Drew O’Connor (left) in the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Thu Feb 6, 2025 (AP News photo)

San Jose podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 The Vancouver Canucks Drew O’Connor scored on a penalty shot 33 seconds into the overtime stanza as the Canucks got by the San Jose Sharks 2-1 on Thursday night. O’Connor got to make the penalty shot after the Sharks Macklin Celebrini got called for a hooking penalty.

#2 The Canucks Dakota Joshua scored at 8:04 on a power play to get the Canucks on the scoreboard with the lead 1-0.

#3 The Sharks were behind 1-0 in the third period when Tyler Toffoli tied up the game at 1-1 with his 20th goal of the season at 18:32.

#4 Vancouver goaltender Thatcher Demko was looking for his second shutout in a row but will settle for the win and 33 saves. The Sharks Vitek Vanecek stopped 22 Vancouver shots.

#5 Dallas Stars are second in the central division this is a team that is on a roll with a 38-18-1 with 69 points only behind the mighty Winnipeg Jets. They’re in San Jose tonight how do you see the Sharks chances?

Join Mary Lisa for Sharks podcasts each Saturdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Fell Short Again in OT Loss Against the Canucks

Drew O’Connor shot on goal on Vitek Vanecek during overtime at SAP Center in San Jose on Feb 6 (Vancouver Canucks Archive.)

After a painful loss against the Habs, the Sharks have to find a way to get back on track… It did not come Thursday night against the Vancouver Canucks.

By: Fernando Abarca

SAN JOSE –– Thursday night action at the tank and once again the Sharks hosted a Canadian neighbor, the Vancouver Canucks the Sharks wound up losing by another one goal game this time 2-1. Last time at the Tank, the Sharks lost against the Montreal Canadiens with a 4-3 score, with the Habs scoring the goal that gave them the victory in the final minutes of the third, leaving no time for the Sharks to recover last Tuesday night.

The Canucks won their last game against the Avalanche going through a long stretch of winless games since Jan 18, when the Canucks played the Edmonton Oilers. The Sharks added another loss and have gone winless since Jan 14, when the Teal played Detroit.

During the first two periods of the game, the game remained scoreless. Worth mentioning that the first 40 minutes of the game were full of penalties

Both teams were very balanced and even throughout the match. It is worth noting that San Jose was more aggressive during the second period, showing heart and attitude.
Vancouver was under pressure, but Vitek Vanecek had a great performance after being absent from the team since Dec 14.

The action began to be seen in the third period with a goal at 14:40 with a goal by the visitors at 14:40 when Dakota Joshua, with a tip-in shot on a PowerPlay, took the lead 1-0 assisted by Pius Suter and Tyler Myers.

The game looked like it wasn’t going to end 1-0, and just as it looked, it ended up being that way, with Tyler Toffoli scoring with 1.28 left in regulation to give San Jose some life and a chance.

The chance for the long-awaited victory fell short, and this time, the star, Macklin Celebrini, was marked with a penalty for hooking against Drew O’Connor. O’Connor scored an unassisted scored his second goal for Vancouver, and the game winner to call it a night.

With this loss, San Jose is on the verge of going a full month with no victories. The Sharks will host a final game at home against Dallas, with the possible homecoming of former Sharks of Cody Ceci and Mikael Grandlund before the 4 Nations break.

Sharks Let Another One Go Against the Habs 4-3

Sharks players celebrate the tying goal over Montreal on Tuesday Feb 4 at SAP Center in San Jose (AP Photo)

As the rain pours heavily in the Bay, so does it for the Sharks in another Tuesday night action

A new month at the tank, and the San Jose Sharks could not get it done losing by a goal to the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 at SAP Center in San Jose on Tuesday night. The Sharks hosted the Montreal Canadiens, trying to start off the new month with a victory after a rather grey week for the team in teal following the horrible defeat in Seattle last week. The Sharks have been having recent activity with the departure of Grandlund and Ceci for Dallas, and now trying to find a win.

The Sharks started the game with a goal by Macklin Celebrini on a powerplay assisted by Tyler Toffoli, who would later also have his moment of glory, and William Eklund.

During the first 20 minutes it seemed that the path to a good night would be on the Sharks’ side.

In the second period, Montreal regained strength and its key character, Nick Suzuki, on a powerplay scored the first goal for the Habs who are also coming off a season full of setbacks in the Atlantic division.

That still wasn’t enough, Montreal made it 2-1 with a goal scored by Alex Newhook assisted by Dach and Carrier.

With that 2-1, the Sharks looked to recover before going to the second intermission, and that’s how they managed to tie it with a goal by Colin Graf to give some breath and life with a tie approaching the last 20 minutes of hockey.

For the third period, Montreal, like in the second period, was a different team and had a different dynamic and took the lead with a 3-2 goal scored by Brendan Gallagher.

Desperately, the Sharks team looked for ways to solve the problem. Tyler Toffoli solved it by tying the match again ten minutes before the end of the match.
Everything seemed to indicate that the match would go to overtime but things decided to take a different turn.

Joel Armia put the Canadiens ahead 4-3 on a powerplay and the night would end with that score, giving the Sharks another loss and again in a one-goal tie.

This Thursday, the Sharks will be hosting the Vancouver Canucks who are coming off a 3-0 win against Colorado.