Kraken Sink Sharks 8-5 Despite Meier Hat Trick

Seattle Kraken center Matty Beniers (10) sends the puck past San Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen (36) for a goal at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Wed Nov 23, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks will be thankful Wednesday night’s game is behind them when they gather around their respective tables on Thanksgiving. The Sharks lost to the Seattle Kraken 8-5 at Climate Pledge Arena despite a Timo Meier hat trick. Logan Couture and Alexander Barabanov also scored for the Sharks and Erik Karlsson notched his 30th point of the year, but three-point nights from Matty Beniers and Andre Burakovsky and a pair of goals from Jaden Schwartz pushed Seattle ahead.

Former Shark Martin Jones made 21 saves for the win while Kaapo Kahkonen saved 19 of 26 shots he faced. James Reimer did not travel with the team, sitting out with a lower body injury.

San Jose entered the second period up 2-1 after Couture scored on a redirect of a Nick Cicek shot 4:11 into play, Burakovsky converted on a 5-on-3 9:44 into the first and Meier scored his first of the night on a 4-on-3 power play with 1:07 left in the opening frame.

Seattle scored three-straight in the second period with Vince Dunn, ex-Shark Ryan Donato and Jaime Oleksiak all scoring in the first ten minutes and change of the period. Meier cut Seattle’s lead to 4-3 after beating Jones with 6:21 left in the period.

Barabanov scored a minute into the third to tie the game 3-3, giving the Sharks hope but Oliver Bjorkstrand responded almost immediately, beating Kahkonen at the 2:48 mark. Schwartz scored his first of the game 59 seconds later. Meier responded with a tip-in at the 8:58 mark for the hat trick and his team-leading 12th goal of the year but a Beniers tally at the 15:16 mark and a Schwartz empty netter iced the game for the Kraken who sit second in the Pacific Division.

The Sharks return home for a Friday contest against the Los Angeles Kings. They’ll be wearing their California/Oakland Seals inspired Reverse Retro jerseys for the first time when they hit the ice the day after Thanksgiving.

Sharks play well dominate Senators 5-1

Ottawa Senators center Mark Kastelic (47) punches San Jose Sharks defenseman Nick Cicek during the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Nov 21, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

Monday night’s game between the San Jose Sharks (7-11-3) and the Ottawa Senators (6-11-1), was a matchup of two teams struggling to get something going this season. The Senators entered the game with a record of six wins, ten losses, and one tie, good for 12 points. They found themselves in last place in the Atlantic conference. The Sharks’ record before Monday’s game was six wins, 11 losses, and three ties. The Sharks’ 15 points landed them in seventh place in the Pacific conference.

Sharks’ coach Dan Quinn was not happy with his team’s performance last Saturday night when they lost 2-1 to the visiting New York Rangers. Quinn wanted his team to be more physical Monday night. Quinn was hoping the Sharks could find a way to win, as they had won just once at home in 11 games. They didn’t do well in the first period, but they dominated the next two periods to get the win. The Sharks made Quinn’s wish come true as they played one of their best games to beat the Senators 5-1.

The Senators dominated play in the first period. They had 13 shots on goal, and the Sharks had three—however, shots on goal don’t count. The Sharks’ Noah Gregor had a breakaway, but the shot hit the bar on the top of the goal and went into the corner.

The Sharks found a way to get the puck back to Gregor. Gregor’s wrist shot beat Ottawa’s veteran goalie, Cam Talbot, for the tally. Gregor’s shot went over Talbot’s left shoulder. The time of goal happened with 13:38 left in the period. It was Gregor’s first goal of the year. Luke Kunin and Matt Benning assisted. The Senators evened the score with 6:46 left. Tim Stutzle beat Kaapo Kahkonen for the tally. Brady Tkachuk recorded the assist. Stutzle recorded his seventh goal of the season.

The Sharks went on a power play late in the period. The Senators were able to kill the penalty. The referees called Kevin LaBanc for tripping with 1:52 left in the period. The Senators failed to score but have eight seconds left when the second period starts. The score is tied 1-1.

The Sharks thoroughly outskated the Senators in the second period. The Sharks scored three times to end the second stanza leading 4-1. San Jose had 19 shots on goal and held the Senators to eight. Timo Meier tallied with just 1:!8 played. Meier’s scored two seconds after Talbot blocked his last shot. Eric Karlsson found Meier to Talbot’s right. Meier had the smallest of cracks on the left side of the goal. His wrist shot found the opening to put the Sharks ahead 2-1.

San Jose scored their third of the night 3:35 later. Matt Nieto tipped Matt Bennings’ wrister from the point for the score. Nieto’s goal was his fourth of the season. Benning and Alexander Barabanov assisted. The Senators’ coach, D.J. Smith, replaced Cam Talbot in goal with Alex Forsberg.

Talbot allowed three goals on seven shots. With 5:59 left in the period, the Senators’ Travis Hamonic went to the penalty box for two minutes for tripping. The Sharks capitalized with just six seconds left on the power play. Tomas Hertl tipped in his fifth goal of the year to make it 4-1. Logan Couture and Eric Karlsson assisted on the goal. Sharks’ coach Dan Quinn saw his team play one of the best periods of play this season.

Ottawa knew they had to get some goals to get back in the game. The Sharks’ defense, along with Khakonen, had other thoughts. The Sharks held the Senators scoreless over the last 20 minutes of the game. With about three minutes left, the Senators pulled their goalie. They controlled the play, but the defense and the Sharks’ goalie did not fold. With 58 seconds left, Logan Couture sent the puck the length of the ice into the Senators’ goal to make it 5-1. The game was over.

Game Notes: The Sharks had Kaapo Kahkonen make his sixth start of the year. Kahkonen’s record was one win, four losses, and one tie before tonight’s win. Kahkonen was a force in goal as he made 37 saves. Eric Karlsson, the Sharks’ outstanding defenseman, assisted on two goals. Karlsson tallied 19 points this month and has 30 for the season. He trails the NHL scoring leader, Conor McDavid, by five points. 

Gregor, Timo Meier, Matt Nieto, Tomas Hertl, and Logan Couture scored for San Jose. Couture also had an assist.

Tim Stutzle scored Ottawa’s only goal. Brady Tkachuk assisted. Brady Tkachuk’s father is a former NHL great, Keith Tkachuk.

The Sharks scored one for three on the power play. The Sharks killed both of Ottawa’s power plays.

There was a fight in the second period between the Sharks’ Nick Cicek and Ottawa’s Mark Kastellic. Kastellic’s shoulder hit Cicek in the head. Tempers flared, and after a relatively short battle, both players were penalized five minutes for fighting.

The Sharks are on their way to Seattle to face the Kraken Wednesday night. San Jose returns home to play the Los Angeles Kings Friday night at the SAP center.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Chiranbir Mahal: After winning 3 straight and dropping their last two which is the real Sharks?

The New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93) is airborne as the puck goes past the side of the net to the relief of San Jose Sharks goaltender James Reimer (right) on Sat Nov 19, 2022 at SAP Center in San Jose (AP News photo)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Chiranbir Mahal:

#1 Chiranbir, Who are these guys in teal are they the team who have lost their last two games or the team that won three in a row before these last two loses?

#2 The San Jose Sharks (6-11-3) on offense have been getting plenty of good offensive help by Timo Meier, Thomas Hertl, and Erik Karlsson but no matter they’ve been a question mark in past game in the third period, overtime or even in the shootout?

#3 That last game on Saturday night they battled with the New York Rangers (9-6-4) in a game that went right down to the third period once again. The Sharks scored a goal that they would hope that would stand up but all for not as the Rangers answered right back with two goals for the 2-1 win.

#4 Chiranbir, talk about goaltender James Reimer the Sharks count on him so much and the last game against the Rangers was no exception he allowed only one goal the other Ranger goal was an empty netter. Reimer faced 42 shots and stopped 41. Try as hard as you can that was an extraordinary effort by Reimer on Saturday night.

Chiranbir Mahal is a correspondent for INDTV/USA and covers the Sharks home games and contributes on the Sharks podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Two late goals lift Rangers past Sharks 2-1

The New York Rangers defenseman Ryan Carpenter (22) puts a hold on the San Jose Sharks center Logan Couture (39) who looks for the puck, in front Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) at the SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Nov 19, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Saturday, November 19, 2022

A goal by Julien Gauthier late in the third period broke a scoreless tie, eventually helping the New York Rangers earn a 2-1 win over the San Jose Sharks Saturday at SAP Center.

It was the Rangers’ third win in their last five games, going 3-1-1 in that span.

Gauthier lit the lamp with 6:03 remaining in the third period, tipping a shot by Jacob Trouba from the point and steering it past Sharks goaltender James Reimer. It was Gauthier’s third goal of the season.

With Reimer pulled in favor of a sixth attacker, Adam Fox picked up an empty-net tally at 18:53, giving the Rangers a 2-0 lead.

Logan Couture scored for the Sharks at 19:43, breaking up Igor Shesterkin’s bid for a shutout. Couture was positioned at the right of the crease, where he took a pass from Tomas Hertl and beat Shesterkin with a wrist shot for his ninth goal.

Shesterkin stopped 21 of 22 San Jose shots, while Reimer made 42 saves.

San Jose forward Nico Sturm left the game late in the first period after being boarded by Rangers defenseman Ryan Carpenter, but returned in the second period. Carpenter received a 2-minute minor for the infraction.

Former San Jose forward Barclay Goodrow of the Rangers made his first appearance at SAP Center since the Sharks traded him to Tampa Bay in February of 2020. And Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro reached the personal milestone of 200 NHL games played.

The Sharks host the Ottawa Senators on Monday nigh for a 7:30 pm.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Maddie Dutra: Karlsson and Grier on same page not likely to make a trade

Erik Karlsson (56) skates against the Florida Panthers on Nov 3, 2022 at SAP Center in San Jose. Karlsson says that he and general manager Mike Grier are on the same page and Karlsson wants to stay in San Jose (AP file photo)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Maddie Dutra:

#1 San Jose Sharks (6-10-3) defenseman Erik Karlsson continues to find the back end of the net as he picked up a goal on four shots against the Detroit Red Wings (8-5-4) on Thursday night.

#2 The Sharks had a brief lead on the Red Wings 2-1 after the first period but caved in in the second period when the Red Wings added two unanswered goals making 3-2.

#3 The roof further caved in the third and final period after the Red Wings scored four goals and pretty ran away with a three goal 7-4 win at SAP Center on Thursday night.

#4 Sharks goaltender James Reimer faced 20 shots saving 14. Was this game for Reimer a game where the Red Wings picked up on his skill set and he ended up facing a barrage of goals that just couldn’t stop or he just simply didn’t get any help up front?

#5 The New York Rangers who had their own set of struggles comes on into SAP Center on Saturday night. The Rangers are 5-3-2 in their last ten. The Rangers know when they step out on the ice it’s not going easy to win games much like the Sharks who had their share of struggles.

Join Maddie for the San Jose Sharks podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks loss ends 3 game win streak; Red Wings score 4 times in third period

Detroit Red Wings left wing David Perron celebrates after against San Jose Sharks goaltender James Reimer (47) during the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Thu Nov 17. 2022 (AP News photo)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 San Jose Sharks (6-10-3) defenseman Erik Karlsson continues to find the back end of the net as he picked up a goal on four shots against the Detroit Red Wings (8-5-4) on Thursday night.

#2 The Sharks had a brief lead on the Red Wings 2-1 after the first period but caved in in the second period when the Red Wings added two unanswered goals making 3-2.

#3 The roof further caved in the third and final period after the Red Wings scored four goals and pretty ran away with a three goal 7-4 win at SAP Center on Thursday night.

#4 Sharks goaltender James Reimer faced 20 shots saving 14. Was this game for Reimer a game where the Red Wings picked up on his skill set and he ended up facing a barrage of goals that just couldn’t stop or he just simply didn’t get any help up front?

#5 The New York Rangers who had their own set of struggles comes on into SAP Center on Saturday night. The Rangers are 5-3-2 in their last ten. The Rangers know when they step out on the ice it’s not going easy to win games much like the Sharks who had their share of struggles.

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

Sharks drop game against Red Wings 7-4 on Hockey Fights Cancer night

Photo credit to San Jose Sharks Twitter. Matt Nieto gets warmed up before the game against the Detroit Red Wings on Hockey Fights Cancer night at SAP Center

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

SAN JOSE–At SAP Center the Sharks took on the Red Wings in a back-and-forth affair with Detroit coming out victorious by a score of 7-4.

Between the pipes for the Red Wings was Ville Husso and for the Sharks it was James Reimer.

The first big event of the opening period was Joe Veleno taking a board penalty to get the Sharks power play on the ice.

It ended up being a rather uneventful extra man opportunity as San Jose only was able to muster a couple of chances.

Not too long after the penalty kill the Sharks did get on the board with Kevin Labanc ripping home his third goal of the season on a drop pass from Erik Karlsson at the 13:04 mark. Timo Meier also got the assist on the goal as the teal-and-white found the back of the net first.

The response from Detroit did not take long as David Perron fead a beautiful pass across the slot to Filip Hronek for his second goal of the season.

After the goal the Sharks took a penalty for tripping at the 9:55 mark as Luke Kunin went to the box.

Despite the tied score the shots favored the San Jose heavily at 6-2 at the 9:55 mark.

The penalty kill unit looked great when called upon as Detroit couldn’t get much going and got no goals on the opportunity.

The power play being killed off seemed to give some juice to the Sharks as they got a couple chances after.

One of those chances was put home by Matt Nieto getting his third goal of the season as well. It was a solid play with Nieto dekeing past the defender and backhanding one past Husso’s blocker.

The assists on the goal went to Karlsson and Nick Cicek which was Cicek’s first point in the pro’s in just his second game.

In the dying moments of the period Alexander Barabonov would take an interference penalty.

Dylan Larkin on the PP would have a great look right in the slot but was denied by Reimer.

That ended up being really the only good look for Detroit as the Sharks killed the penalty and rode out the rest of the period still up by one.

The shots at the end of the period finished in favor of the Sharks by 8-5.

The second period started off quietly with not a lot of looks either way.

Again a penalty was the first big play of the game as Nick Bonino went to the box for hooking with the Sharks scrambling in their own end.

This power play for Detroit looked more threatening but was still not able to score as the PK remained perfect.

At the 8:33 mark of the second period Larkin fired one off the rush and the puck bounced off of Perron’s skate and past Reimer to tie the game up. Dominik Kubalik also got an assist on Perron’s sixth goal of the season.

Following up Perron Jake Walman stepped into one at the point and wired one past Reimer to give the Red Wings the lead at 3-2. The assists going to Michael Rasmussen and Adam Erne.

That goal pretty much closed at the second with the period ending at the same score. The Sharks still lead in shots by the end of the period at 17-13.

The momentum for the red-and-white continued into the third period with Reimer busy to kick things off.

Those chances lead to goal 4:58 into the period as Joe Veleno wrapped it in past a sprawled Reimer to give Detroit a 4-2 lead. The goal was also assisted by Pius Suter and Jonaten Berggren as Suter one timed a shot in the slot that dropped and perfectly set up the wrap around for Veleno.

With the Red Wings scoring three straight the energy seemed sucked out of SAP Center.

However not giving up yet Karlsson fired one towards the net and produced a rebound for Logan Couture to bat home past Husso making it 4-3. Jacob Megna also tallied an assist on the play.

Karlsson of course was not done yet as at the 8:29 mark of the period he made a nice move to the middle and fired one in off of a Red Wings player tying the game up. Labanc and Tomas Hertl got the assists on Karlsson’s 11th goal of the season.

The scoring frenzy in the third period continued however as Moritz Seider fired one past Reimer making it a 5-4 game. It’s a goal Reimer would want back with Perron and Ben Chairot getting the assists.

Labanc nearly responded right after but his shot rang off the post past Husso.

The true dagger in the coffin though happened when Andrew Copp flipped it out to a streaking Suter breaking into the Sharks zone. With the puck a little ahead of him Riemer tried to dive out to play the puck but Suter beat him to it putting the puck into a wide open cage.

With the score 6-4 and not much time left the Sharks pulled Riemer but Kubalik got his eighth of the season on the open net to put it away. Larkin got the lone assist on the goal.

“I thought we had a really good first period I thought they flipped the switch on us in the second. Going down 3-2 and they get on early in the third I thought we battled back after that,” head coach David Quinn said after the game.

The Sharks next game will also be at the Shark tank this time against the New York Rangers on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Reimer, Sharks Win 3rd In A Row, Trounce Vegas 5-2

Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore (27) defends against San Jose Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic (44) during second period action at T Mobile Center in Las Vegas on Tue Nov 15, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks embarked on a tough four-game road trip that realistically could have resulted in four losses given how the season started. Instead, San Jose is on a three-game winning streak, having beaten stout competition in Dallas, Minnesota and their latest triumph, a 5-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights

Luke Kunin picked up his 100th career NHL point, Timo Meier scored the game-winner on the power play and James Reimer made 24 saves to lead San Jose (6-9-3) past the Pacific Division Leaders after trailing 2-1 after two periods. Erik Karlsson had a pair of assists, Logan Couture had a goal and an assist and Matt Nieto scored his second goal of the year.

Jack Eichel scored his 10th goal of the season for Vegas and Jonathan Marchessault lit the lamp in the loss for Vegas (13-4-0). The Sharks went 1-for-2 on the power play and killed off all 3 Golden Knights power plays.

Nieto tied the game 2-2 1:03 into the third when four Vegas skaters all seemed to be deked out by Alexander Barabanov below the goal line. They expected Barabanov to rim the puck around, opening the slot for Nieto for an easy unmarked goal. Timo Meier gave the Sharks the late lead on the power play at the 17:12 mark, his 8th goal of the year.

The Sharks had just killed off a high-sticking minor at the 14:10 mark before Reilly Smith was sent off for tripping. Couture, who assisted on the Meier goal, also scored an empty netter. Mario Ferraro scored the second empty-netter for the blow out win.

Vegas got on the board first, with Jack Eichel continue his superstar turn in 2022. He was wide open for a cross-crease pass with just 4 seconds left in the first period to give the Golden Knights a 1-0 lead. The goal was a result of a turnover from Nick Cicek who was making his NHL debut with Radim Simek out with an upper body injury.

Kunin scored his milestone goal 8:05 into the 2nd period to tie the game 1-1 after picking up a Karlsson rebound and ripping a shot home. The play was kept alive by Nico Sturm’s forechecking effort to force a Vegas gaffe, good for a secondary assist.

Marchessault beat Reimer with 4:07 left in the period for a 2-1 lead, but he’d be stellar otherwise. After entering the season in a goalie share system, Reimer has emerged as the team’s starter, manning the pipes for all three wins.

The Sharks return home 6 points richer to welcome the emerging Detroit Red Wings Thursday night. After that, they’ll welcome the New York Rangers Saturday and the Ottawa Senators Monday in a three-game homestand.

Sharks Rally to Erase 2 Goal Deficit, Beat Wild 3-2 in Shootout for First Back-to-back Wins of Season

Minnesota Wild center Joel Eriksson Ek is stopped by San Jose Sharks goaltender James Reimer (47) with Sharks’ Jaycob Megna and Nico Sturm (7) looking on in the first period at the Excel Energy Arena in St Paul Minn on Sun Nov 13, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks scored two goals in the final seven minutes to erase a two-goal deficit and finished off the Minnesota Wild in a shootout for their first set of consecutive wins. Steven Lorentz scored his second goal of the year for San Jose (59-3), Nico Sturm scored his sixth and James Reimer made 28 saves for the win.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic had a pair of assists and Erik Karlsson added a helper for his team-leading 22nd point of the season. Connor Dewar and Frederick Gaudreau tallied the goals for Minnesota (7-6-2) while Filip Gustavsson made 35 saves.

Kirill Kaprizov had the lone goal of the shootout when Nick Bonino hit the ice for the Sharks third do-or-die shot. He beat Gustavsson then Reimer made a toe save on Joel Eriksson Ek to give San Jose a shot to win in the fourth round. Alexander Barabanov went five-hole on Gustavsson to seal the deal for the two points.

With the Sharks Trailing 2-0, Lorentz started the comeback after grazing the net front and picking up a rebound off Vlasic’s point shot. His first backhander wasn’t successful but he got a second opportunity and buried it at the 13:56 mark.

Sturm, a member of the Minnesota Wild from 2018 to a mid-season trade last year, created the tying goal out of nothing. He picked the puck off the Sharks end boards while Minnesota were transitioning back to defense. He fed it to Vlasic in the Sharks end and Vlasic dished it to Karlsson coming down the center lane.

Karlsson backhanded it to Sturm before crossing the defensive blue line and Sturm skated it all the way into the offensive zone, snapping a wrist shot before the faceoff circle that beat Gustavsson stick side for a 2-2 tie with 4:11 left.

Gaudreau’s goal 6:45 into the first period was a thing of beauty both for the goal and Kaprizov’s assist. Kaprizov was able to thread a puck through three Sharks defenders on the boards in an inexplicable angle. Gaudreau was turned with his back to the end wall, but he turned and waited out Reimer skating across the crease for the 1-0 lead.

The other Wild goal came on a Sharks gaffe with Karlsson manning the point on the power play. The defenseman was back skating butay have hit a divot and took a tumble, giving Mason Shaw a breakaway chance. Dewar joined Jim for a 2-on-0, Shaw did the unselfish thing and made the pass and Dewar buried the easy goal 3:37 into the third.

After winning back-to-back games where they weren’t their best, the Sharks will need their A-game for the win in their next game. They travel to Sin City to face the Western Conference leader Golden Knights Tuesday night.

Sharks Survive Dallas 5-4 to Snap Five-Game Skid, Meier Scores in Fifth-Straight

San Jose Sharks right wing Timo Meier celebrates after scoring against the Dallas Stars in the second period in Dallas on Fri Nov 11, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks avenged a loss to the last place St. Louis Blues the night before by holding on to defeat former Sharks coach Peter DeBoer and the Dallas Stars 5-4 Friday and snap a five-game losing streak. Timo Meier scored in his fifth-straight contest, Alexander Barabanov, Tomas Hertl and Logan Couture each had a goal and an assist and Evgeny Svechnikov scored his 3rd goal of the season for San Jose.

Dallas captain Jamie Benn scored a pair of goals and the top line for Dallas (8-5-1) of Joe Pavelski, Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson combined for 5 points in a losing effort. Stars netminder Jake Oettinger, a former tutee of Sharks coach David Quinn when Quinn coached Boston University, made 13 saves on 18 shots in his first game action after missing the previous four games. San Jose’s James Reimer earned the win over last year’s playoff phenom though, making 25 saves on 29 shots.

After finishing the first period tied 2-2 the Sharks (4-9-3) pulled away in a bizarre second period. Team Teal only put four shots on goal over the 20 minutes, but Timo Meier beat Oettinger clean on a wrist shot over the netminder’s right shoulder 29 seconds into the period.

Kevin Labanc got the assist on Meier’s 7th goal of the year after picking up a turnover created by Meier. 36 seconds later, the Sharks captain Couture scored after another Shark, Alexander Barabanov, picked off a turnover and fed for a one-timer. Couture now has goals in back-to-back games after scoring to put the Sharks period shooting percentage at 50% while giving the Sharks a 4-2 lead.

Tomas Hertl put the Sharks up by 3 after deking Oettinger in close on a backhand 29 seconds into the third period, taking a pass from Meier to slink in alone. Jaycob Megna also assited on the goal. Roope Hintz scored 6:18 into the period and Joe Pavelski netted his 7th goal of the campaign at the 12:06 mark but despite out shooting the Sharks 11-3 in the last frame they couldn’t find the equalizer to force overtime.

Jamie Benn opened the scoring 4:42 into play, but Alexander Barabanov scored at the 6:13 mark to tie the game. The Sharks took the first lead of the night at the 12:18 mark when Svechnikov beat Oettinger, but Benn scored his second with just 21 seconds left in the first to tie the game after 20 minutes.

San Jose continues its tour of Central Division foes with a trip to the State of Hockey Sunday afternoon. After the stop in Minnesota, they face Pacific Division rivals the Vegas Golden Knights on The Strip Tuesday to wrap up a four-game road trip.