The San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks battled at the SAP Center in San Jose in the second exhibition game for the Sharks Tue Sep 24, 2024. The Sharks face off against the Ducks once more this Thu Sep 26, 2024 (photo from The Hockey News)
San Jose started strong but could not keep the lead throughout the game.
By Fernando Abarca
The San Jose Sharks were back in action this Tuesday night after losing 4-2 over the Golden Knights. The Sharks hosted the Anaheim Ducks, the teal team was ready to brush things off and move on. During a horrendous 2nd period the Sharks could not find answers and added another loss at home and now go on the road for revenge at Honda Center next Thursday night.
San Jose and Anaheim shared the same experiences from last year as both teams ranked worst in the Western Conference. Both teams are undergoing a series of changes, and the team is being rebuilt around young talent. The significance of the game was to see whose team is doing better and has the best chance to do well in the regular season.
The Sharks scored two PowerPlay goals and a wrist shot during the first period.
During the first period, the game started plagued with penalties as Anaheim’s Tyson Hinds slashed F. Zetterlund and Urho Vaakanainen received a penalty against Scott Sabourin for high-sticking. The Sharks did not fall behind as Colin White received a high-sticking penalty against Scott Sabourin.
During the periods, mitts were dropped on the ice as Travis Howe and Scott Sabourin got in a tilt on the ice receiving a penalty.
The first period seemed like a dream for San Jose scoring two goals, the first coming when the clock ticked 11:59, Alexander Wennberg scored the first of the night assisted by F. Zetterlund and J. Walman.
San Jose’s second goal did not take too long as Danil Gushchin netted the second one making a margin of 2-0 for San Jose. The Teal team seemed to take care of business heading to the 1st intermission and relieving the pressure.
During the second period, San Jose netted the final of the night when, on a powerplay, San Jose scored less than a minute at the start of the second period when Jack Thompson sealed the 3-0 for the home team.
The night turned upside down and became a nightmare. Anaheim came in full strength and I took advantage of all the advantages to be able to come back epically and forcefully over San Jose
The 3-0 result seemed like something that did not bother the visitors. The mentality played a significant factor and they knew how to overcome adversity.
Anaheim’s Carson Meyer, Yegor Sidorov, Brett Leason, and Mark Pysyk were the ones who orchestrated the comeback against San Jose. Anaheim scored two power plays leaving San Jose’s penalty kill very frowned upon
The mood in the SAP center was very fleeting.
Entering the third period, the result was 4-2, a result in which San Jose could tie but the 20 minutes were not enough, and without much action, the Anaheim team maintained the victory and San Jose could not find the answers.
With this game, the team adds its second loss, and questions begin to arise about how the team will be looking as the regular season approaches. The Sharks will be on the road for their back-to-back games with Anaheim this Thursday night.
San Jose returns to home ice on Tuesday, Oct. 1st against the newly relocated Utah Hockey Club.