Tag: Joe Pavelski

San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Barracuda need to pick up win in Game 3; Balcers what the doctor ordered

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

On the San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko:

#1 The series restarts tonight in Tucson as both the Tucson Roadrunners and San Jose Barracuda are tied at one apiece. Is tied series an indication of who these two teams are?

#2 In Game 2 played at SAP Center on Friday, April 21, the Barracuda evened the series with a 6-3 win. Rudolfs Balcers scored two goals. Also, Balcers got four points in the game.

#3 The Cuda lost the first game last Wednesday night 4-2, but in Game 2, it was a quick turnaround. The Cuda also got goals from Helewka (1), Wiederer (1), and Chartier (2).

#4 In goal for tonight’s game in Tucson, Antoine Bibeau, who stopped 22 shots and they needed the defense to keep them in the Game 2.

#5 Game 3 is tonight. How do you see these two teams matching up in Tucson? Will San Jose be able to handle a series on the road that could possibly go five games?

Marko Ukalovic does the San Jose Barracuda podcast each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Thornton out for Game 1 Thursday night; Speed the key for Sharks in series where Knights have home ice

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 The San Jose Sharks will play Game 1 of the second round in Vegas after some seven days off after playing their last game in San Jose against the Anaheim Ducks last Wednesday.

#2 Nothing official has been announced yetm but Game 2 in Vegas on Saturday, Games 3 and 4 in San Jose on Monday and Wednesday nights.

#3 The Knights’ head coach Gerard Gallant says the Knights are ready and are anxious to get started like San Jose is. Gallant said they’ve been waiting too long for round two to get started.

#4 Talk about the Sharks’ key players for this second round and how they match up for this series with Vegas. Also, the Sharks will be without Joe Thornton for Game 1.

#5 The Knights have one of the toughest goalies in the NHL, Marc-Andre Fleury. How do you see the Sharks faring against him?

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

 

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast with Joe Lami: Bruins go up 3-1 with win over Leafs; Caps tie series with CBJs; Who will be the favorite between Vegas and San Jose?

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Photo credit: @NHLBruins

On the NHL podcast with Joe:

#1 The Boston Bruins go up three games to one over the Toronto Maple Leages with a 3-1 win Thursday night at Air Canada Centre in Toronto. The Bruins goals were scored by Jake DeBrusk, Tony Krug, Brad Machand

#2 Washington and Columbus series is tied at two as the Caps got a convincing win past the CBJs 4-1 Thursday night. The Caps got goals from Evgeny Kurznetsov, Alex Ovechkin, Tom Wilson, and TJ Oshie.

#3 The Western Conference playoff matchup says Minnesota is at Winnipeg for Game 5 as the Jets have a 3-1 lead over the Wild.

#4 The Nashville Predators lead the Colorado Avalanche 3-1 in their series’ Game 5 is tonight in Nashville. The Predators could advance tonight.

#5 The San Jose Sharks and Las Vegas Golden Knights are both coming off sweeps and face each other once the NHL first round games are decided. Joe tells who he likes in this match.

Joe Lami does the NHL Stanley Cup Playoff podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

All Grown Up from 2014: Sharks far more business-like, focused in Game 4–up 3-0–this time

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By Morris Phillips

SAN JOSE–On the April 2014 night that the Sharks were supposed to send their old nemesis from La La land packing, a substantial project that was accomplished in 2011, but didn’t get finished in 2013–when the Kings escaped in Game 7 of the conference-semis–they were all over the place, hardly focused enough for the task at hand.

Most obviously, Antti Niemi’s goaltending wasn’t where it needed to be. Even as the Sharks raced to three wins in the first three games of the series, Coach Todd McLellan’s chirping about the goaltending could be heard loud and clear. But he wasn’t all that happy with his team’s penalty killing and physicality either.

Team leaders Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau butted heads with their coach frequently in then his sixth year of seven coaching the team, and they weren’t helping their individual causes by tearing up the Kings. While Thornton and Marleau weren’t no shows, both were on the ice too frequently for too many of the opponent’s goals in that series.

Dan Boyle was well on his way to a contentious, undignified end to his San Jose career. Younger stars Joe Pavelski and Logan Couture were in the midst of breakout years. Who’s team was it that season? With the new wave ascending, and the old guard aging, it was often hard to tell.

In Game 4 at Staples Center, the Sharks committed four of their whopping 10 penalties in the first period. But they survived, tied 1-1. But in the second, a couple more trips to the penalty box ignited the Kings who scored three goals, and then a fourth just 34 seconds into the final period. Down 5-2, McLellan pulled Niemi, and both teams tried to send messages with a couple of well-intentioned fights. The Sharks were still in control, up 3-1, but the Kings were well on their way to getting back into the series.

We all know what transpired next.  The Sharks shriveled, got shut out in Game 5, then scored just one goal each in Games 6 and 7. Jonathan Quick took over the series, and the Kings became just the fourth team in league history to brush aside a 3-0 deficit.

“When I look at it, I look at it as they fixed their problems, we didn’t,” McLellan admitted. “Our problems got progressively worse as we went along,”

Only six Sharks remain from Game 4 of that series four years ago. A seventh, Thornton, is injured, didn’t face the Ducks, and isn’t expected back for the start of the series to come with the Vegas Golden Knights. Couture, Pavelski, Thomas Hertl, Justin Braun, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Brent Burns all have that 2014 series in their memory banks, and that seemed to fuel them on Wednesday. Pavelski took the lead, and put the mindset into words.

“The biggest lesson you can learn in the playoffs: the commitment level and what you have to sacrifice. Whether you win or lose, it has to be there on a nightly basis to give yourself the best chance,” Pavelski said.

“We asked them to come into this series and play with composure,” Coach Peter DeBoer said. “We knew what we were going to get, they were going to try to push us out of the series physically. We stood in there and did it without taking penalties and with discipline.”

In winning 2-1 to wrap up the series, and earn at least a week of recuperation and time to prepare for the Knights, the Sharks showed how they’re in a much better place.

Martin Jones, ironically the backup goaltender for the Kings four years ago, is standing on his ear.  Not only did he rack up the saves versus Anaheim, he came up with the biggest when the momentum could have shifted. On Wednesday, he came up big at the end of the second period, and then again, early in the third.  Jones had 30 saves in all.

The Ducks managed just four goals in the series, further illustrating Jones’ dominance.

Hertl came up with the game-winning goal–on an assist from Vlasic–less than 90 seconds after the Ducks broke through to tie it.  The goal helped illustrate how the Sharks are getting contributions from four lines, which DeBoer highlighted after the game.

Evander Kane is playing his part as the high-profile, late season acquisition. Pavelski and Couture are the leaders on and off the ice, and DeBoer isn’t a wearing voice.

In fact, he’s an occasionally funny voice.

“I know we’re going to be heavy, heavy underdogs (against the Pacific Division champion Knights). So hopefully, you guys will write that , and we’ll go from there,” he said.

 

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs/San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks roll into the tank with lots of momentum; Could this kettle of fish sweep the Ducks?

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@ SanJoseSharks photo: Jubilant even in practice the San Jose Sharks celebrate a practice goal at Sharks Ice in San Jose on Monday morning

On the Sharks podcast with Len:

#1 Can the San Jose Sharks win tonight pushing the visiting Anaheim Ducks to the brink of being swept out of the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs?

#2 What attributes to the Sharks success as some of the key elements of getting off to such a great start

#3 The NHL playoffs are always a different season from the regular season. The Sharks who lost five of their last six games of the regular season certainly regrouped at the top of this first round.

#4 The Sharks Evander Kane scored twice during game one has meant so much to this team

Len Shapiro does the Sharks podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Lose 6-3 to Wild, Will Start Playoffs On Road in Anaheim

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photo from at mnwild: San Jose Sharks Timo Meier (28) tries to put the puck on net is defended from behind from the Minnesota Wild’s defenceman Jonas Brodin (25) while the Wild’s goaltender Devan Dubnyk (40) watches

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE– The Sharks lost 6-3 to the Minnesota Wild for their final regular season game of 2018. Goals for Minnesota came from Matt Cullen, Jonas Brodin, Mikael Granlund, Eric Staal, and two from Jason Zucker. Sharks goals came from Joe Pavelski, Brent Burns, and Timo Meier. Devan Dubnyk made 27 saves for the win. Martin Jones made 14 saves on 19 shots before being replaced by Aaron Dell, who made 4 saves on 4 shots for San Jose.

The loss puts the Sharks in third place in the Pacific, so they will start the playoffs on the road in Anaheim. The Sharks came close to falling into a Wild Card spot, but the Los Angeles Kings lost to the Dallas Stars Saturday. Of starting the playoffs on the road, Sharks Captain Joe Pavelski said:

I mean, home ice is always nice. It’s not do or die by any means for us, for this group. We’ve always believed in our road game here, we’ve backed it up. We have some results, past results. But this is a new team and this is a team that has to find that identity each and every night. You know, that’s what it takes to win on the road, is just a hard-nosed detailed game. And it’s not something I don’t think we’re up to the challenge for.

The Sharks stumbled through the first period, getting only three shots on goal while giving up two goals to Minnesota. After the game, Pavelski said: “Obviously, they were on us. We weren’t very good the first ten, twelve, fifteen minutes. It was really good to see the guys settle down and get a couple, answer right back. It felt light we had a lot of momentum at that point.”

The first Minnesota goal came at 10:53 from Joan Brodin. Charlie Coyle evaded the Sharks defense along the boards until he could get the puck to Brodin at the blue line. Brodin’s shot went right by Sharks goatender Martin Jones. Assists went to Coyle and Tyler Ennis.

Four minutes later, Matt Cullen put the Wild up by two. A scramble around the net drew attention away from Cullen as he moved away from the crowd and shot into an almost open net. Assists went to Tyler Ennis and Louie Belpedio.

The period looked like a complete loss until Brent Burns cut the lead in half with a shot from the blue line. Dylan Gambrell helped win the puck along the boards in the offensive zone and went to the front of the net. He may have screened Burns’s shot, and at first it looked like he had tipped it in. One review, the goal went to Burns with assists going to Marcus Sorensen and Joel Ward.

With just 3:28 left in the period, Pavelski tied it up. Mikkel Boedker, under defensive pressure, sent the puck in Pavelski’s direction as Pavelski skated in from the blue line. Pavelski caught the pass with his skate and moved it to his stick for a quick shot, beating Dubnyk on his glove side.

At the end of the period, the shot count was 12-5 Minnesota, with the score tied at 2.

The score remained tied until 11:19 of the second when Mikael Granlund made it 3-2, using Dylan DeMelo as a screen. Assists went to Jordan Greenway and Nick Seeler.

Jason Zucker made it 4-2 just 29 seconds later. Niederreiter caried the puck in on a quick entry and made a made across the slot to Zucker. Zucker was moving across in front of Jones and his backhand shot caught Jones moving. Assists went to Neiderreiter and Matt Dumba.

Zucker went on to make it 5-2 3:22 later. Zucker and Eric Staal escaped the Sharks zone with the puck and went in against Justin Braun two on one. Assists went to Neiderreiter and Belpedio.

The shot tally was even during the second period, just seven shots from each team.

Aaron Dell replaced Martin Jones for the third period. The Sharks pushed hard, ultimately outshooting the Wild in the third 18-5. Still, most of the period was scoreless.

In the last two minutes of the period, Kevin Labanc took a slashing penalty during a Sharks power play. The teams played for almost a minute four on four, and when that time expired, Pete DeBoer pulled Dell. With the net empty, playing five on five, a Dylan DeMelo shot was tipped by Timo Meier, bringing the score to 5-3. Assists went to Dylan DeMelo and Brent Burns.

The point was DeMelo’s 20th, making him the fifth Sharks defenseman to reach the 20 point mark this season.

Eric Staal scored into the empty net to make it 6-3 Minnesota at 19:34.

In the last couple minutes of the third period, Logan Couture was struck by a Brent Burns shot in the wrist. He left the ice briefly but did return to the game. He said later that he had gotten the all clear from the doctor before returning.

San Jose Sharks-Anaheim Ducks playoff schedule:

#1 Thu Apr 12 @ Anaheim

#2 Sat Apr 14 @ Anaheim

#3 Mon Apr 16 @ San Jose

#4 Wed Apr 18 @ San Jose

#5 Fri Apr 20 @ Anaheim (if necessary)

#6 Sun Apr 22 @ San Jose (if necessary)

#7 Tue Apr 24 @ Anaheim (if necessary)

 

Sharks Fall to Golden Knights 3-2, Knights Clinch 1st in Pacific

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sjsharks.com photo: The Vegas Knights’ center Cody Eakin (21) and the San Jose Sharks Logan Couture (39) chase down the puck during Saturday night’s game at T Mobile Center

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost on the road to the Las Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 Saturday. Las Vegas goals came from Shea Theodore, Oscar Lindberg and William Karlsson. Sharks goals came from Joe Pavelski and Marc-Edouard Vlasic.  Marc-Andre Fleury made 29 saves for the win, while Martin Jones made 35 saves for the Sharks.

Saturday’s win clinched first place in the Pacific Division for the Knights. Sharks forward Chris Tierney said, of the NHL’s newest team:

They have a lot of speed. You know, they create chances off of turnovers and they move pucks well in the o-zone. If you’re sleeping a bit or if you lose your guy they’re going to find him and make plays. They play with a lot of speed, a lot of energy, and they cane hurt you if you don’t manage the puck well.

As the playoffs approach, the return of injured players is particularly good news for the Sharks. Saturday saw Joonas Donskoi return for his first game since March 14. Joel Ward played his third game since his lengthy absence. Barclay Goodrow and Eric Fehr are out now. Fehr is expected back before Goodrow, who in recovering from finger surgery. No return date is set yet for Joe Thornton, though he has been skating.

Shea Theodore opened the scoring in the first period at 2:21. A nice play from blue line to faceoff circle and back up to the high slot was aided by a good screen from Alex Tuch. Assists went to William Karlsson and Deryk Engelland.

The Sharks answered back at 7:14 with a goal from Joe Pavelski. Joonas Donskoi carried the puck into the zone along the boards and found Timo Meier near the faceoff dot. Meier’s shot created a big rebound that went right to Pavelski for the goal.

The second Vegas goal came after Kevin Labanc’s failed clear landed right on Shea Theodore’s stick at 3:03 of the second period. Theodore’s shot went through traffic, off Oscar Lindberg’s stick and right under Jones. Theodore got the only assist.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic tied the game at 9:50. The Sharks had just added an extra skater during a delayed penalty against Las Vegas when Joe Pavelski took a shot from the blue line. The shot hit Fleury and came back out for Vlasic to put away. It was Vlasic’s 11th goal of the season, a career high. Assists to Pavelski and Justin Braun.

The Knights challenged the goal for goaltender interference, as Timo Meier looked close to Fleury. Meier and Fleury did make some contact. but not inside the crease, and well before the shot came through.

William Karlsson scored the game winner short-handed at 8:35 of the third period. The Sharks power play was struggling mightily, hardly able to get through the neutral zone. Karlsson picked off a failed pass from Joe Pavelski to Brent Burns and took off on a breakaway. He went all the way to the net, then let the puck go between his legs for a nice little trick shot.

The Sharks play next on Tuesday in San Jose, against the Dallas Stars at 7:30 pm PT.

Evander Kane Scores Four Goals and Nets First Career Hat Trick, Sharks Douse Flames 7-4

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Calgary Flames 7-4 at the Scotiabank Saddledome  on Friday night. The Sharks scored seven goals compared to the Flames’ four goals. New Sharks left wing Evander Kane scored four of those goals, tying the Sharks’ record for most goals in a game. The other Sharks who scored that many goals were Owen Nolan, Tomas Hertl and Patrick Marleau.

Hertl, Kevin Labanc and Eric Fehr scored the remaining balance of goals for San Jose. Johnny Gaudreau, Troy Brouwer, Mark Jankowski and Michael Ferland scored for Calgary.

After the game, Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said this about Evander Kane:

It’s always a special night when someone can score three, and then for him to get that fourth, you know, it’s pretty cool to see. He’s definitely made a huge impact on us as a team, on his teammates. And, you know, he’s been one of those guys driving the bus here for the last week or two and he came through big for us tonight.

The Sharks started the game on the right foot. Just five minutes in, Timo Meier seemed to have scored, but his stick was above the crossbar when he touched the puck.

Undeterred, Kane scored only a minute later. Kane took a rising wrist shot from just below the blue line as he raced into the zone. Mike Smith missed the puck with his glove as it fell toward the goal. Jannik Hansen got the lone assist.

The Sharks had a power play after Mikkel Boedker was tripped up on a breakaway 37 seconds after the goal, but they did not get a shot on goal.

Gaudreau left the ice briefly after a collision with two Sharks players, seeming to severe  his arm or hand, but nothing was wrong and he quickly returned to the ice.

Brouwer tied it up with 3:18 left in the period. Sharks goalie Martin Jones had come out to handle the puck, but he was back in the net before Brouwer took his shot from the slot. Curtis Lazar made the pass to Brouwer from below the goal line. Assists went to Lazar and Matt Stajan.

The Flames took the lead at 2:10 of the second period. Mark Jankowski was high in the faceoff circle when Meier pulled the puck out of a crowd and tried to pass it to some Sharks defensemen in the middle of ice. Jankowski intercepted it and took a quick shot that went over Jones’ shoulder. A lone assist went to Garnet Hathaway.

The Sharks’ Melker Karlsson drew a holding the stick penalty that gave the Sharks their second power play at 2:45. This time, they did get a shot on goal, but they also gave up a two-on-one short-handed chance.

After the power play, Tierney was moved to the top line with Pavelski and Kane. With that line on the ice, Dylan DeMelo took a shot from the blue line and Kane tipped it in to tie the game again at 6:29. DeMelo and Brenden Dillon picked up the assists.

Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer made another line change, putting Fehr, Karlsson and Meier together. They created a good chance almost eight minutes into the second, getting two shots on goal.

The Flames took the lead again at 10:16. Gaudreau skated in with the puck, handled it around two Sharks players near the boards, then darted to the slot before taking the shot. Assists went to Ferland and Michael Stone.

Labanc tied it again at 11:42, with a wrist shot from the left side, using a Calgary defenseman as a screen. Brent Burns got the lone assist.

The Sharks found themselves on the wrong side of two penalties close together, starting at the 12:24 mark. They had to defend 45 seconds of five-on-three after Kane joined Tierney in the box. The Sharks killed all of that off, but they seemed to have burned some fuel doing so.

With a little over three minutes left in the second, Tierney got control of the puck behind the net after Pavelski pushed it through a board battle. Tierney found Kane in front of the blue paint with a quick pass. Kane took a shot, then caught the rebound and took another shot to net his first NHL hat trick.

The Sharks extended their lead with only 1:58 left in the second period. Justin Braun carried the puck in along the boards and sent the puck to the net. Hertl was right there at the crease to tap the puck under the goaltender. Assists went to Braun and Marc-Edouard Vlasic.

The third period went all wrong for the Flames. Pavelski took a shot from the blue line just as Mike Smith was getting settled after a trip behind his net to retrieve the puck and play it not very well. Kane was standing by to deflect it in for his fourth of the game, just 1:02 into the period. With that goal, Kane tied the Sharks record for most goals in a game.

That was it for Mike Smith. David Rittich came in to replace him.

Calgary coach Gen Gulutzan decided to pull his goaltender for the extra skater with almost six minutes still to go. The move paid off with Micheal Ferland parked in front of the net while the Flames moved the puck relentlessly around the Sharks’ zone. When the shot finally came, Ferland put the puck in with a backhand shot from a tight angle.

Fehr scored the Sharks’ seventh goal into the still empty net at 16:02. Hertl got an assist on that one.

The Sharks next play on Saturday in Vancouver at 7:00 pm PT.

After being injured Wednesday in Edmonton, Joonas Donskoi remained out and was replaced by Jannik Hansen for tonight’s game. There was no timetable for Donskoi’s return yet.

Sharks Lose to Wild 3-2 in OT Again

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nhl/wild.com photo: The Minnesota Wild’s Jared Spurgeon (46) nets the overtime game winner past San Jose Sharks goalie Martin Jones (31) at Excel Energy Center in Minnesota

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks finished a four-game road trip Sunday at the Xcel Energy Center with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild. The last time these teams played, in San Jose, the Sharks came back to tie the game and lost 4-3 in overtime. This time, the Wild made the comeback but the general result was the same. The Sharks initially took a 2-0 lead with goals from Joakim Ryan and Chris Tierney. The Wild answered with goals from Matt Cullen, Eric Staal and Jared Spurgeon. Wild goaltender Devin Dubnyk made 26 saves for the win, while Sharks goaltender Martin Jones made 38 saves in a losing effort.

“Their game got better as the night went on, ours kind of went the other way a little bit,” said Sharks captain Joe Pavelski. Sharks goaltender Martin Jones made a number of critical saves during the game, keeping it closer than it looked like it should be. After the game, the Jones said: “They forechecked us hard, we had a tough time getting out of our zone with any kind of possession. So you just end up kind of dumping it out and defending a lot.”

“We took some penalties, I didn’t think we broke out well. I thought lines got caught on long shifts. Had opportunities to change, and guys stayed out there longer than they should have. That usually leads to tired legs,” said Sharks forward Logan Couture.

Joakim Ryan scored at 14:00 of the first period. Barclay Goodrow carried the puck into the zone and quickly made a drop pass to Jannik Hansen. Hansen found Ryan through the skates of a Minnesota defender and Ryan didn’t waste time getting the shot away. It was Ryan’s third of the season.

Chris Tierney’s goal came from a two on one 2:28 into the second period. Kevin Labanc carried the puck in along the boards and found Tierney in the slot for a perfect shot to Dubnyk’s right. It was Tierney’s 15th goal of the season and his 10th on the road.

The Sharks held that two-goal lead until the final minute of the second period, when Jared Spurgeon carried the puck in from the red line and got a shot off just above the faceoff dot. Matt Cullen was coming in fast and was able to tip it perfectly over Jones’ shoulder. Assists went to Spurgeon and Marcus Foligno.

The Sharks maintained the one goal lead for most of the third period, but they were on their heels. They took two penalties to the Wild’s one and they were outshot 10-6. With just over five minutes left in regulation, Eric Staal scored with a quick wraparound shot. Assists went to Ryan Suter and Jason Zucker.

Jared Spurgeon’s overtime winner came after Brent Burns had trouble clearing the puck out of the zone. Spurgeon was right there to pick up the puck and pass it across the slot to Zucker. Martin Jones had to move across to cover Zucker but could not get back when Zucker passed the puck back to Spurgeon.

With about five minutes left in the third period, Chris Tierney left the game briefly, but he returned for overtime. Justin Braun was out with the flu and Tim Heed played with Brenden Dillon while Dylan DeMelo slotted in next to Marc-Edouard Vlasic.

The Sharks next play in San Jose against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday at 7:30 pm PT.

Feature: Sharks In Desperate Need of More Power Play Opportunities

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By: Peter Elliott

CHICAGO–Peter DeBoer’s squad was deprived of something other than a win on Friday night: opportunities on the power play.

The Sharks only had one chance to execute on the man advantage in their 3-1 loss to the Blackhawks. It lasted 22 seconds.

San Jose’s only time on the ice with less than five red sweaters was during the third period, when Chicago defenseman Connor Murphy was booked to the penalty box with an interference minor. 22 seconds later, Brent Burns was sent off to the Sharks penalty box on a holding minor, offsetting the Sharks’ 5-on-4 upper hand. If I haven’t stressed it enough, 22 seconds is not enough time to type a tweet, much less let alone score a goal.

The power play had been a strength for the Sharks all season and a reason for their high offensive benchmarks. But lately, not so much.

The team is suffering through a scoreless 0-19 stretch in the power play category, an unusual drought for a team that has been so stellar on the man advantage for the majority of the season. The Sharks still remain among the best in the league in the category, up there with division leaders Nashville, Pittsburgh, and Tampa Bay. But if their recent struggles continue, they surely won’t keep up with that company for very long.

“We need to get a little bit of that confidence back, stepping over the boards and understanding that it can win us some games,” said Sharks captain Joe Pavelski of his team’s power play scoring skid, per Kevin Kurz of The Athletic. “We need to be better there. Bottom line is we need to execute, make another play, stick one in the net.”

As noted, it’s absence has been sorely missed on the offensive side of the ice recently. Especially on Thursday night during a 7-1 blowout at the hands of Nashville, in which DeBoer’s squad failed to net on a single goal during their five power play opportunities. The Sharks undoubtedly just need both more opportunities and repetitions with the power play. 

Success will come soon.

The power play magic that has helped the Sharks postseason aspirations is currently M.I.A., but luckily for the Sharks, they’ll have time to re-discover it before a Sunday evening game against Minnesota. The Wild boast a pedestrian penalty kill percentage of 80.8%, which makes the playoff contending Wild a ripe target for a power play resurgence.

San Jose has been able to maintain a 6-5 record in the month of February, although that is not ideal for a team in the middle of a tight playoff race. A stronger showing on the man advantage certainly could have alleviated some of those deficits.

The Sharks are set to square off against the Blackhawks again on March 1 in San Jose. Maybe then, the Sharks can get a power play that lasts a whole 30 seconds.