Category: San Jose Sharks

Kings Shutout by Sharks 3-0; Jones stops all 30 shots

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Los Angeles Kings center Jaret Anderson-Dolan, left, takes a shot for not on San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones (31) at the SAP Center in San Jose on Fri Apr 2, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks went to Los Angeles and beat the Kings 3-0 Friday. Tomas Hertl, Timo Meier and Rudolfs Balcers scored for the Sharks and Martin Jones made 30 saves for the shutout win. Calvin Petersen made 33 saves for the Kings in the loss. The win is the third in a row for the Sharks. Three was a good number for the Sharks Friday.

Hertl, Meier and Balcers were skating on the same line. Meier had eight shots in the game and scored his first goal after a nine game dry spell. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said: “From what we see tonight, if he’s playing that way, and he’s that confident, he can be dangerous. It was good to see. I think that whole line, Tommy Hertl, Rudy’s playing great hockey. Those guys were a force tonight.”

Of Martin Jones, Boughner said:

“He looks calm in there, you know, he’s making the right saves at the right time. He’s allowing us to get that second goal and keep it 1-0 instead of 1-1 and the game completely changes. And, you know, he’s been one of our better players now for the past three weeks.”

The Sharks took an early lead when Tomas Hertl tipped Nikolai Knyzhov’s shot from the point. Assists went to Knyzhov and Rudolfs Balcers. The time of the goal was 2:57.

There was just one penalty in the first period, to Anze Kopitar for tripping. The Sharks power play got credit for two shots on goal. The Sharks outshot the Kings 9-7 in the first.

Timo Meier made it 2-0 for the Sharks nine minutes into the second period. Tomas Hertl’s pass from behind the net landed just right on Meier’s stick for a one-timer. Assists went to Hertl and Balcers.

The Kings challenged the goal for goaltender interference. Balcers pushed Kings defenseman Drew Doughty into the crease and Doughty fell on Calvin Petersen. A second or two passed after that contact and the play moved around the net before the goal was scored. The challenge was unsuccessful.

While the teams were waiting for that to be resolved, referee Pierre Lambert was escorted from the ice, looking unsteady. He had been hit by a puck.

The second period saw two penalties to each team. The Sharks penalty kill gave up two shots and their power play took three. The shot count was 14-13 Kings.

At 7:59, Dylan Gambrell put the puck in the net with a nice shot down the middle. It was called back, however, when the Kings successfully challenged for offside.

The Kings pulled their goaltender with more than two minutes left. The Sharks took several shots at that empty net but it was Balcers with the fourth good look who hit it at 19:33. An assist went to Brent Burns, who was using Balcers’ stick. After Burns’ stick broke, Balcers gave him his and had just gone to get another when the puck came to him for the shot.

The third period was penalty-free and the sharks outshot the Kings 14-9. The Kings won the face-off battle in the game, winning 55% of the draws.

The Sharks next play on Saturday at 7:00 PM PT, again in Los Angeles against the Kings.

Sharks Tame Wild 4-2

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The Minnesota Wild forward Nico Sturm (7) tries to reach for the puck as the San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau (12) and defenseman Erik Karlsson (65) defend during Wed Mar 31, 2021 at SAP Center in San Jose (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks beat the Minnesota Wild 4-2 in San Jose Wednesday. Rudolfs Balcers, Ryan Donato, Nikolai Knyzhov and Evander Kane Scored for the Sharks, while Martin Jones made 26 saves for the win. The Sharks defense generated five points in the game. Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello scored for the Wild, and Kaapo Kahkonen made 29 saves in the loss.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner talked about the Sharks defensive game:

“I liked how aggressive we were in the d-zone, jump in and check. We didn’t give much, you know, we blocked shots. I thought we were really physical tonight, you know, and yeah, we played a lot in the o-zone. That is the blueprint for how we want to play on most nights and every night.”

Sharks Captain Logan Couture talked about what they need to do to carry this success forward:

“We’ve just got to keep playing the way we are. I thought we defended pretty hard and we created a lot of offense. We could have had more than the three we scored, or the fourth with the empty-netter, but a lot of good looks, I think our game’s in a good spot right now.”

In a scoreless first period, the teams each got credit for 10 shots. Evander Kane took three of those shots for the Sharks. Each team had one power play. The Wild had one shot on their power play and the Sharks had two on theirs. The Wild won 60% of the first period face-offs.

The Sharks got the scoring started in the second period, at 4:41. Rudolfs Balcers caught a pass from Tomas Hertl just as he arrived in front of the blue paint. He did not slow down as he stopped the puck on his backhand, then swept it around Kahkonen’s skate. Assists went to Hertl and Brent Burns.

The Sharks made it 2-0 at 9:22 with a power play goal. Brent Burns shot the puck right up the middle. Kahkonen stopped it but left a rebound. Ryan Donato was there to gather it up and tuck it under the goaltender. Assists went to Burns and Mario Ferraro.

That was the only power play for the second period. The Sharks outshot the Wild 14-9. The Sharks improved in the face-of circle, winning 55% of them.
Kirill Kaprizov cut the Sharks lead to 2-1 at 8:23. He carried the puck at speed from below the goal line, past one point to the other before taking the shot, which went past Jones on the far side. Carson Soucy got the assist.

The Sharks’ third goal started when Rudolfs Balcers carried the puck onto the zone. It was knocked off of his stick but Tomas Hertl was right there to get it back and pass it to Erik Karlsson. Karlsson found Nikolai Knyzhov just coming across the blue line, Knyzhov let the traffic settle into place in front of the net before shooting it past Kahkonen’s glove. Assists on Knyzhov’s first NHL goal went to Karlsson and Hertl.

Kaprizov knocked Logan Couture off the puck at 12:18. While Evander Kane was giving Kaprizov a piece of his mind about the hit, Ryan Hartman went after Kane. All the skaters on the ice converged after that but the result was just two minor penalties: cross-checking to Hartman and roughing to Kane.

The Wild made it 3-2 with their net empty and 12.1 seconds left in the game. Kevin Fiala took a shot from the point with three skaters blocking Jones’ view. The puck went off of Mats Zuccarello and in. Assists went to Fiala and Jared Spurgeon.

Evander Kane scored from just outside the Sharks’ blue line, into an empty net with one second left in the game. It was his sixth shot of the night.

The Sharks won the third period face-off battle 9-6. Each team had a power play in the period, with the Sharks taking three shots and the Wild taking two. In overall third period shots, the teams were tied at 9 each.

The Sharks next play on Friday against the Kings in Los Angeles at 7:00 PM PT.

Karlsson Stars in Sharks 4-3 Shootout Win Over Wild

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Photo credit: @GettySport

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks beat the visiting Minnesota Wild 4-3 in a shootout after Erik Karlsson beat Cam Talbot ion a slapshot in the eighth round of the skills competition to cap a big night for the former Norris Trophy winner. Patrick Marleau appeared in his 1,757th career game, passing Mark Messier for second all-time and trailing Gordie Howe by just 10. Erik Karlsson scored a pair, fellow d-man Radim Simek potted one as well and the youthful couplet of Ryan Donato, John Leonard and Dylan Gambrell combined for four assists. Kevin Fiala scored a pair for the Wild and Nick Bonino struck for a mark as well. The Sharks (14-16-4) dominated on the shot counter, flinging 39 pucks on netminder Cam Talbot, while Martin Jones saw 25 shots in the San Jose net.

The Wild (21-10-2) scored first after Ryan Hartman screened Jones in a broken play that had the Sharks scrambling in their own end. Marcus Johansson had easy pickings with the screen, beating Jones for his fourth goal of the year 12:41 into play.

The Sharks answered back with a screen of their own when Radim Simek’s point shot appeared to kick off Dylan Gambrell or Jonas Brodin with 3:56 left in the period. Ex-Wild Ryan Donato and John Leonard assisted on the goal, leaving Gambrell, who also led the rush down the ice, pointless on the play.

Nick Bonino gave the Wild the lead just a minute before the first intermission after Joel Eriksson Ek first put Nikolai Knyzhov on a poster He toe dragged around the defense after Knyzhov went for an agressive poke check, giving Eriksson Ek the clear path to a 2-on-1 with Bonino. Bonino buried the tic-tac-goal on the cross-crease pass.

Karlsson scored his first of the game with 4:15 left in the second period after burying a 2-on-1 pass from Evander Kane. Kane blocked a shot in the Sharks end to start the rush and Karlsson saw the play developing and went full speed ahead to the Wild zone to finish the play.

4:11 into the third, Karlsson fired a rocket that hit the inside of the post, then the camera imbedded in the net on a point shot to give the Sharks the then 3-2. Donato and Gambrell assisted on the goal, Karlsson’s 4th of the year. Karlsson hadn’t had a two-goal regular season game since December 19th, 2017, his last season with the Ottawa Senators. Gambrell again was screening Talbot and this time nabbed an assist.

Fiala tied the game 9:48 into the third when Matt Dumba fed him with a puck that found a seam through the slot. Fiala was waiting a stride outside the crease to bury the tying goal and push his season total to double-digits with 10 goals.

The two teams meet again Wednesday night at the SAP Center. Presumably rookie phenom Kappo Kähkönen will be in net for former Shark Dean Evason, while former Wild tender Devan Dubnyk may get his turn in the Sharks net.

Notes: Jeffrey Viel made his NHL debut, playing 7:28 and registering two hits. He got on the scoresheet, dropping the gloves with Minnesota’s Luke Johnson 2:57 into the game. It was also Johnson’s first career fight. Viel came out the clear winner….Jared Spurgeon appeared to score in overtime, but his touch came above the crossbar for a quick no-goal call on the ice…Evander Kane’s assist broke a tie for the team lead with Timo Meier. Both players had 15 entering play…Marleau centered the fourth line with Viel and Marcus Sorensen on his flanks….The Sharks didn’t commit a minor penalty in regulation and only went on the power play once…The Wild hadn’t gone to the shootout entering play Monday night…Prior to the game, the Sharks moved Matt Nieto to the IR. He hasn’t appeared in a game since March 19th.

Sharks Shut Out 4-0 by Coyotes

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Arizona Coyotes right winger Phil Kessel scored a hat trick in the third period and goes for the victory skate in front of the Arizona bench on Sat Mar 27, 2021 at Gila River Arena in Glendale (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The Arizona Coyotes beat the San Jose Sharks 4-0 Saturday, thanks to a hat trick from Phil Kessel, a goal from Clayton Keller and a 34 save shut-out from Adin Hill. Devan Dubnyk made 23 saves for San Jose. The game was Patrick Marleau’s 1,756th, tying him with Mark Messier for second all-time in NHL games played.

Curtis Gabriel took a five minute major at 7:02 of the third period, with an open ice hit that was called for interference. He was also given a game misconduct. That was his third penalty of the game, and the Sharks’ second penalty of the period. In addition to those, the Sharks started the period killing most of a late second-period penalty . They killed off all of those and two more penalties in the third.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said that the game really hinged on those third period penalties:

“We held them to 13 shots after two periods, albeit we were down 2-0. I think that, you know, defensively we had a couple breakdowns and they had a bunch as well. We couldn’t capitalize on ours. But then, you spend the whole third period killing, it’s very tough obviously to catch up.”

The first period was scoreless. The Sharks had one power play and managed 6 shots with the man advantage. Overall, the Sharks outshot the Coyotes 17-9.

The Sharks out-shot the Coyotes in the second period as well, 9-5, but gave up two goals. The first came at 5:49 after Clayton Keller jumped on a neutral zone turnover. He skated to the other end and had a clear lane to shoot at Dubnyk.

Phil Kessell scored his first of the game on the power play at 14:16. He caught Oliver Ekman-Larssen’s pass at the point and then skated in, taking a shot from just above the face-off circle. Christian Fischer was right in front of Dubnyk creating an excellent screen. Assists went to Ekman-Larssen and Keller.

The Coyotes had two power plays in the second period, but got credit for just one shot in those power plays.

Phil Kessel’s second goal of the game came just as the third Sharks penalty expired. Kessel caught a rebound and then pushed it past Dubnyk’s leg. Assists went to Christian Dvorak and Alex Goligoski.

The Sharks used a coach’s challenge on the goal, arguing that Kessel pushed Dubnyk’s leg out of the way with his stick before pushing the puck in. The NHL did not see it that way and allowed the goal. That unsuccessful challenge triggered the Sharks’ fourth penalty of the period.

After the game, Dubnyk talked about that call:

“I was told that that was Phil Kessel’s follow-through, continued motion of a follow through. Which, you guys watched the play, I watched the play a bunch on the jumbotron. If you’re going to sit here and honestly tell me that’s the guy’s follow-through, that’s tough. And if he would have shoved my pad into the net with the puck underneath it, would it have counted? If the answer is no then the answer is that shouldn’t have counted either.”

Kessell’s third goal came at 17:28 into an empty net. He got that puck after a failed neutral zone pass from Erik Karlsson. Assists went to Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz.

The Coyotes out-shot the Sharks in the third, 13-8. The Sharks won 53% of the face-offs in the game, and took a total of 29 penalty minutes to the Coyotes’ 6.

The Sharks next play Monday against the Minnesota Wild in San Jose at 7:30 PM PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Matt Harrington: Sharks need to improve from last meeting with Yotes

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The Arizona Coyotes Christian Dvorak center (18) puts one on net against the San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones . Dvorak scored twice in Fri Mar 26, 2021 game at Gila River Arena in Glendale (AP News photo)

#1 The San Jose Sharks (13-4-4) after getting out of their last four game losing streak have now lost two of their last four games and head coach Bob Boughner says that the team is just simply not competing.

#2 The Arizona Coyotes (14-14-5) and Sharks in a 2-2 tie in the third period but once again like some the most recent games the Sharks defense opened the flood gates and the Coyotes ended up scoring three goals in the third period.

#3 . Patrick Marleau scored his 564th goal, tying him for 23rd all-time in NHL goal scoring. Friday’s game was also Phil Kessel’s 1100th NHL appearance.

#4 The Sharks made a poor showing in the first period, registering just four shots on goal. Their second period showed some hope, starting with an early short-handed goal from Tomas Hertl, but then came unraveled in the third.

#5 Sharks will try it all over again as they face the Coyotes in game 2 of this two series at Gila River Arena in Glendale tonight at 7:00pm can the Sharks make it a closer game than Friday night’s game?

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

Sharks Lose 5-2 to Coyotes

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 5-2 to the Coyotes in Arizona Friday. Coyotes goals came from Nick Schmaltz, Christian Dvorak (2), Dryden Hunt and Phil Kessel. Their goaltender, Aiden Hill, made 20 saves for the win. Tomas Hertl and Patrick Marleau scored for San Jose and Martin Jones made 23 saves in the loss. Patrick Marleau scored his 564th goal, tying him for 23rd all-time in NHL goal scoring. Friday’s game was also Phil Kessel’s 1100th NHL appearance.

The Sharks made a poor showing in the first period, registering just four shots on goal. Their second period showed some hope, starting with an early short-handed goal from Tomas Hertl, but then came unraveled in the third. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said:

“I didn’t like our compete in the offensive zone, I didn’t like our compete all over the ice to be honest with you. I didn’t think it was good enough for a game like this. I thought that we weren’t physical enough, we didn’t stop them, we didn’t stop their feet enough.”

The first period saw just one goal scored, from Christian Dvorak at 6:20. Christian Fischer passed the puck behind the net to Conor Garland, who sent it up front for Dvorak. Assists went to Conor Garland and Christian Fischer.

The Coyotes outshot the Sharks 12-4 in a penalty-free first period.

Tomas Hertl’s short-handed goal came at the end of the Sharks’ first penalty of the second period. Hertl broke away with Evander Kane backing him up. He made a beeline for the net and no one got in his way. The assist went to Erik Karlsson.

The Coyotes took the lead back at the end of the period with a goal from Nick Schmaltz. Ilya Lyubushkin sent the puck to the net from the point and Schmaltz was able to tip it in as he arrived in front of the net. Assists went to Lyubushkin and Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

The teams were dead even in shots during the second period, with 10 each. The Coyotes had two power plays, but the Sharks penalty kill allowed just one shot.

Christian Dvorak scored the Coyotes’ third goal of the night, at 7:48 of the third. Dvorak intercepted a pass from Brent Burns and no one could catch him as he made his way to the net.

Dryden Hunt made it 4-1 at 9:08. Hunt took advantage of a rebound off a Lawson Crouse shot. Assists went to Crouse and Derick Brassard. Boughner challenged the goal for goaltender interference. Crouse’s stick did touch Jones’ leg as he skated by and it may have caused Jones to spin the wrong way. In any case, the goal was allowed and that put the Sharks on the penalty kill.

Phil Kessel made it 5-1 at 9:59, during the ensuing power play. Clayton Keller’s pass from near the goal line found Kessel in the slot. Assists went to Keller and Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

Patrick Marleau scored on the power play at 12:30. Coyotes goalie Aiden Hill had gone behind the net to gather up the puck but he lost it. He was still trying to get back into the net when Marleau snatched the puck up and put it over the line. Assists went to Mario Ferraro and Timo Meier.

Each team took two penalties in the third period. The Sharks got one shot in their power plays and scored on that one. The Coyotes got two shots on their power plays and scored with one. The Sharks held a small lead in third period shots, 8-6. The Sharks won 52% of the face-offs in the game.

Radim Simek was pushed into the boards midway through the third period. He was able to skate back to the bench but he went to the locker room after that. The hit was penalized as boarding. There was no update after the game.

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

Jones The Difference-maker Again, Sharks Top Kings 4-2

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Matthew Harrington

It was a different night, but a similar result for the San Jose Sharks in a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings at the SAP Center Wednesday night. Martin Jones followed up his 41 save effort with a 42-save showing and Evander Kane scored a pair of goals to give San Jose (13-14-4) the sweep of the two-game series. Alex Iafallo and Adrian Kempe scored for the Kings (13-13-6). The victory came with a price for San Jose though after Logan Couture took the butt end of Jeff Carter’s stick to the jaw and exited the game late in the third period.

The Sharks were leading by a slim 2-1 margin heading into the third period, but widened the chasm on the scoreboard in the first two minutes of the final frame. Evander Kane tipped a Mario Ferraro shot past Kings netminder Cal Petersen 21 seconds into the period for his 14th of the year and second of the game. Then, at the 1:43 mark Tomas Hertl beat Petersen for his ninth of the year and a 4-1 Sharks lead. Adrian Kempe scored his 12th to cut the lead at the 4:27 mark but the Kings would not beat a sharp Jones again for the remainder of the game.

Rudolfs Balcers opened the scoring 2:14 into the second after both Petersen and Jones were flawless in the first. The Latvian finished off the tic-tac-goal after Marcus Sorensen’s drive down the left wing pulled Petersen to the left. His feed cross-crease left a gaping net for Balcers, who scored in his second game back from an injury.

Kane potted his first goal of the game on a similar play off the rush, only this time he was coming down the left wing. He took the Labanc pass from the right wing and waited for Petersen to commit on the desperation push across the blue paint before beating him up top for a 2-0 Sharks lead with 6:21 left in the second.

Jones was 21 seconds away from his fourth straight game of one goal allowed, but a set play with just a couple dozen seconds left in the second led to Iaffalo’s late goal. Drew Doughty entered the Sharks zone and dropped the puck to Dustin Brown on the blue line. Brown ripped a shot from the point that Iaffalo redirected in for his eighth of the year.

The Sharks will play their fourth consecutive Friday-Saturday back-to-back when they travel to Glendale to face the Arizona Coyotes. For a quasi-weekend set. The Coyotes currently sit three points ahead of San Jose just below the cut line for the Western division’s last playoff spot.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks overcome loss streak looking to sweep Kings tonight

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Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick (32) looks back after the San Jose Sharks Logan Couture (not seen in photo) scores in the first period at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Mar 22, 2021 (AP News photo)

#1 The San Jose Sharks (12-14-4) who had been struggling with a four game loss streak brought it to an end on Monday night with a narrow 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings (13-12-6) a crucial win.

#2 The Sharks Logan Couture and Ryan Danato both scored a goal a piece. Couture’s goal came in the first period at 8:22 and Danato’s which turned out to be the game winner at 3:48.

#3 Head coach Bob Boughner said to the team not to focus where they are in the standing right now but focus on each game as they the team prepares for game 2 of this two game series on Wednesday night.

#4 Martin Jones who had some rough games in goal this season had a fine game on Monday night stopping 41 of 42 shots allowing just one Kings goal by Matt Roy who scored in the second period to tie the game at 17:31.

#5 The Sharks who came off that four game losing streak and narrowly won on Monday will face off with the Kings again tonight at 7:30pm how much will Boughner push the offense to get more goals for tonight’s game?

Join Len Shapiro for the Sharks podcasts each Wednesday morning at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro Wed Mar 24, 2021 by Sports Radio Service | Free Listening on SoundCloud

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Sharks just edge out Kings; Snap four game skid

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The Los Angeles Kings Jeff Carter (77) puts one on net against San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones (31) in the second period. Jones stopped 41 out of 42 shots on Mon Mar 22, 2021 at SAP Center in San Jose (Bay Area News Group photo)

#1 Mary Lisa a close game last night at SAP Center in San Jose as the San Jose Sharks just got by the Los Angeles Kings 2-1

#2 The win ended a four game losing streak for the Sharks in a game that Sharks head coach Bob Boughner is hoping will start getting some wins together.

#3 The Sharks took a 1-0 lead in the first period and the Kings came right back in the second period with a Matt Roy goal to tie it up. The Sharks got a winning score in the third period and avoided playing overtime for the one goal win Ryan Danato scored early within the first four minutes.

#4 The Sharks got just enough offense from Ryan Danato and Logan Couture as Kings goalie Jonathan Quick stopped 21 shots allowing two goals.

#5 Sharks host the Kings again at SAP Center on Wednesday night close game last night Martin Jones in goal for San Jose stopped 41 shots allowed one goal in one of his better games this season is he back?

Join Mary Lisa for the Sharks podcasts each Tuesday morning at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh Tue Mar 23, 2021 by Sports Radio Service | Free Listening on SoundCloud

Jones’ 41 Saves, Flawless PK Push Sharks Past Kings 2-1

Published on by Matthew HarringtonLeave a comment

The Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick (32) feels the pain quick after the San Jose Sharks Logan Couture lights the lamp with a first period goal at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Mar 22, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks beat the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 Monday night, riding an outstanding Martin Jones performance and a herculean penalty killing effort to victory and a snap out of a four-game skid. Jones made 41 saves, Ryan Donato and Logan Couture scored for the Sharks (12-14-4) and Patrick Marleau tied Steve Larmer for fourth place on the all-time iron man list with 844 consecutive games played.

“We looked a little sluggish,” said Sharks coach Bob Boughner. “I attribute that to taking too many stick infraction penalties. We tried to roll our bench. LA was a team that played last night and we wanted to roll our bench and grind them down a bit. Everytime we killed a penalty, we got our lines going then we got another penalty. It was a choppy game but our penalty kill was really strong.”

When the Sharks were able to roll their lines, they did get a good result that directly impacted the outcome. Ryan Donato made the most of his first opportunity with the Sharks this year down the middle, centering the fourth line in his first appearance in the center’s role with Kurtis Gabriel and John Leonard on his wings. Donato scored his fifth of the year on a wraparound backhander that slipped through the five-hole of Jonathan Quick 3:48 into the third period. Leonard picked up an assist on Donato’s second goal of the three-game homestand.

“I liked him there,” said Boughner of his fourth line center.” I liked that line. Put in proper positioning. They gave us exactly what we needed at the right time of the game.”

The Sharks were coming off their fifth penalty of the game just seconds before after Nikolai Knyzhov picked up his second penalty of the game just five seconds into the period. He joined play after a fifth-consecutive minor to pick up the secondary assist. The penalty kill really was the Sharks MVP after a flawless showing that including Martin Jones making five saves short handed.

“He’s playing bigger in his net,” said Boughner of Jones. “He’s coming out of his net a little more, trying to get to the top of that blue paint. I think that’s helping his game. He’s been working hard at making the proper adjustments. For me, I’m not a goalie guy, but it’s about getting the save you need at the right time of the game and he did that.”

The Sharks had the early lead after Logan Couture snapped his five-game scoreless skid 8:22 into the game. His shot hit Quick and ricocheted off Kurtis MacDermid into the Kings net. Kevin Labanc and Evander Kane assisted on the goal. To atone for his mistake, MacDermid fed fellow Kurtis Gabriel a couple knuckle sandwiches in a first period fight.

The Sharks had one of their better faceoff performances of the season, winning 57 percent of draws but it was a faceoff loss that led the Kings’ goal. Gabe Vilardi won the faceoff against the Sharks best faceoff man Tomas Hertl, hit Austin Wagner on the half-wall who slid it to Matt Roy at the point. Roy’s slap shot beat Jones to tie the game with just 2:29 left in the second period for his first of the year.

The Sharks continue the four-game homestand with a contest Wednesday night against the Kings (13-12-6) again. Presumably Devan Dubnyk will be in net, but Boughner could ride the hot hand with Jones.

Notes: Marleau moved up to the second line, on the wing with Timo Meier sandwiching Tomas Hertl….Rudolfs Balcers was back in the lineup after missing the last two games and five of the last six…Kurtis Gabriel and Kurtis MacDermid’s fight was premeditated, the two had discussions along the red line during warm-ups…Dylan Gambrell and Tomas Hertl both won 70 percent or better of their draws Monday night…Matt Nieto was out for the second consecutive contest.