Tag: NHL playoffs

Couture Scores in 2OT, Sharks Tie Series 1-1 with 4-3 Win in Vegas

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Photo credit: @ESPNStatsInfo

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks tied the series at 1-1 against the Golden Knights with a 4-3 2OT win at the T-Mobile Arena Saturday. Logan Couture scored the game-winner and a regulation goal, while Brent Burns also scored twice in regulation. William Karlsson scored twice for the Golden Knights, while Nate Schmidt tied the game in the third for Las Vegas. Martin Jones made 26 saves for the win, while Marc-Andre Fleury made 43 saves for Las Vegas.

Not only did the Sharks lose Game One in a big way on Thursday, but they lost one of their most prolific forwards when Evander Kane was suspended for one game after cross-checking Pierre-Edouard Bellemare in the head. Barclay Goodrow drew into the lineup for Game 2.

Sharks captain Joe Pavelski discussed how the Sharks came back and played a better game Saturday:

You want to play with that lead, you don’t want to chase the series all the time. So for us to come out in the second, start getting a little momentum going, score a few goals, understand what can work for us and… just overall our compete level was better, our details were better. They still played a good game, it came right down to the end and a few plays and it went our way.

Martin Jones, after being in net for the 7-0 loss Thursday, explained how he resets after a loss like that: “My confidence isn’t going to get shaken from one bad game. It’s not the first time I’ve had a bad game. Yeah, I mean, you put that behind you. That’s why you have a routine and you have the way you prepare for games. That’s so you can kind of lean on that and you just get ready for the next one.”

The Sharks outshot the Golden Knights 9-5 in the first period, only to keep the score even at zero for most of the period. Martin Jones made some saves, including a remarkable one on Tuch. The teams were playing their second four on four when Deryk Engelland made a pass across goal to Alex Tuch. Having to move all the way across the crease, Jones stretched to get a pad on it for the save.

Not long after that, Las Vegas scored. The goal came off an offensive zone turnover to William Karlsson, who passed it back to Nate Schmidt on the blue line. Schmidt passed it the length of the blue line to Colin Miller, who sent a shot wide. The shot went off the boards behind to net to Karlsson, who took the shot from a bad angle. Assists went to Miller and Schmidt.

Just 26 seconds into the second period, Karlsson scored again with just a hint of a screen from Reilly Smith, who had also prevented Marc-Edouard Vlasic’s clear seconds earlier. Smith got the only assist.

A holding the stick penalty put the Sharks on the power play at 1:56. Four seconds into that penalty, Brent Burns scored with a blast through traffic. Joe Pavelski got the assist.

At 4:17, William Carrier hit Dylan DeMelo knee on knee, sending DeMelo off the ice balancing on one leg. Carrier went to the box for kneeing. DeMelo returned to the bench quickly. The Golden Knights killed the penalty off.

The Sharks were back on the power play for a third time at 6:47 when Collin Miller was called for hooking Eric Fehr. That power play did not start well and ended with an interference call to Tomas Hertl. The Sharks had a couple of shots during the ensuing four on four, and then successfully killed off the very short Vegas power play.

A brief tussle between Vlasic and Marchessault put both players in the box at 9:54 for two minutes and yet more four-on-four hockey. A little less than a minute into that, Logan Couture scored off a well-placed pass from Tomas Hertl. Hertl got the only assist but Dylan DeMelo played a big part as well, sending the puck to the net and going after it. Driving to the net, he pushed Engelland out of position so Hertl could take the puck. Hertl had to fend off two more Knights before he could make the pass, so a third might have tipped the balance.

A third goal for the Sharks came from Brent Burns at 14:07, while the teams were playing four on four for the fifth time. This time it was for matching roughing penalties to Brenden Dillon and David Perron. The two stepped away from a group mauling in the corner and fell to the ice in the blue paint.

Joe Pavelksi won an offensive zone faceoff and got it to Timo Meier, who tapped it to Burns just above the faceoff circle. Seeing a gap along the board, Burns carried the puck down behind the net and put in with a wrap around. Assists went to Meier and Pavelksi.

Las Vegas challenged the goal, as Timo Meier was pushed into Fleury by Colin Miller. Fleury was outside the crease at the time of the collision, making it impossible for him to get back in time. The goal held up.

At 19:34, Jon Merrill was called for hooking Hertl, giving the Sharks 1:31 of power play time to start the third period.

That power play didn’t produce, and at 13:28 of the period, Las Vegas tied the game. The shot came right off a faceoff from Nate Schmidt and went off of Melker Karlsson’s skate. Shea Theodore and Erik Haula got the assists.

At the end of regulation, the teams were tied at three on the scoreboard, though the Sharks had outshot the Golden Knights. The goaltenders went into this playoff overtime with a significant experience advantage to Fleury. He had won 10 of 11 overtime games, while Martin Jones had just two wins in five games.

Las Vegas started overtime with several quick shots off of speedy zone entries. In just over five minutes, the teams had already taken four icing calls, a sign of the frenetic pace at both ends of the ice.

Just over four minutes in, Barclay Goodrow got a great breakaway chance but was stopped by Fleury. That chance started a push from the Sharks, including a slippery try by Pavelski. The Knights pushed back hard but the Sharks did not give them many second chances.

That was not the case by the end of the period, when the Knights got three shots in a row. The third one went in and was reviewed after Marchessault made contact with Martin Jones’ arm and stick, pulling him out of position. The goal was overturned.

Going into the second overtime period, the Sharks had three defensemen (Vlasic, Burns and Braun) with over 30 minutes of ice time. None of the Golden Knights had played that much in the game. Paul Martin had spent the first overtime on the bench while Pete DeBoer rotated five defensemen.

The Mikkel Boedker took a stick to the face in front of the Vegas net, giving the Sharks an early power play in the period. The Sharks got two shots and some close calls but did not score. The Golden Knights gave the Sharks another try with a hooking penalty at 5:05.

The Sharks finished it off with a power play goal at 5:13. Kevin Labanc made a beautiful, patient pass across the crease through skates and sticks to Logan Couture, who took a similarly patient shot that squeezed through on the short side. Assists went to Labanc and Burns.

Conference semifinal Game 3 between the Sharks and the Golden Knights will be on Monday in San Jose at 7:00 pm PT.

Sharks stymied for first time in NHL playoffs in 7-0 shutout by Golden Knights

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Photo credit: nhl.com/goldenknights

By Pearl Allison Lo

The San Jose Sharks became the one to suffer a 2018 Stanley Cup playoff loss first, as they were shut out 7-0 by the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 of the Western Conference second round at the T-Mobile Arena Thursday night.

Both teams were playing for the first time in over a week after they swept their previous opponents. It was a much more lopsided game than in the teams’ previous meetings and the Knights’ first win these playoffs by more than one goal.  

Vegas scored four goals in the first period, the first two just 26 seconds apart to set up the win along with three more goals on three shots.

Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury made 33 saves on the defensive end. It was his third shutout this postseason and second straight shutout.

Sharks goalie Martin Jones was removed during the game and Evander Kane received a game misconduct for cross-checking Pierre-Edouard Bellemare in the face while staring at him face-to-face.

11 different Knights had points. Jonathan Marchessault had a goal and two assists, Erik Haula, Alex Tuck and James Neal each had a goal and assist, William Karlsson and Reilly Smith each had three assists and David Perron had two assists.

After San Jose held Vegas on an early power play, the Knights exerted their strength beginning at 4:31 until 6:02.

Cody Eakin and Haula scored their second of the playoffs and Marchessault his first.

The game continued to trend downward for the Sharks when they followed their power play opportunity at 6:49 with a penalty 37 seconds after the end.

48 seconds later, San Jose went down to three men with another infraction. Tuck capitalized, as he weaved his way through four defenders to make it 4-0 at 11:43.

The Sharks got their own 5-on-3 chance later, but were unable to find the net.

San Jose ended the period with a flurry of shots versus Fleury (17 during the period) and Vegas had 15 blocked shots.   

Jones made two saves in the second, 14 seconds apart. However, Shea Theodore took Jones out of the game 40 seconds later, with the Knights’ fifth goal. Smith started the play by intercepting a pass at the other end. Theodore’s goal came at 3:28.  

Neal nearly had Vegas’ sixth goal and second on the power play at the end of the period, but it was negated.

While there were already a number of penalties in the game, the atmosphere was not chippy until the penalties at 3:25 of the third. First, Sharks captain Joe Pavelski received a slashing call after he just came out of the box 17 seconds earlier for interference. The bigger concurrent penalty came to Kane for cross-checking Bellemare in the face twice, which was a game misconduct.

This resulted in the Knights’ second 5-on-3 advantage and Colin Miller made San Jose pay with his first career playoff goal at 4:32.

Neal then got his goal with Vegas’ second straight on the power play, a quick wraparound.

The Sharks’ shots were few at first in the closing period, the first coming with 17:13 (shorthanded), 10:50 and 8:24 left.

Game Notes: It was San Jose goalie Aaron Dell’s playoff debut. He made 19 saves off 21 shots and his counterpart Jones made eight saves off 13 shots. The Knights’ William Carrier had a game-high eight hits. The Sharks’ Logan Couture had a game-high six shots on goal. Bellemare had a game-high five blocked shots.

Up Next: Game 2 will reconvene in Vegas at 5 pm PT Saturday.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Will going on an almost two week layoff for Vegas and San Jose have them fresh or will their timing will be off?

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 The NHL first round is not quite over yet, giving both the San Jose Sharks and the Vegas Golden Knights some six days off at this point as the Eastern Conference continues their first round playoffs.

#2 Does the six days rest give fresh bodies on the ice once the second round starts or does that mean their timing could be off kilter when they come back?

#3 What are some of the factors for the Sharks to get the sweep in the first round?

#4 Talk about the Sharks offense and what you see them bringing to the second round of the playoffs against a team like the Knights?

#5 Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer had his struggles in the regular season, but after sweeping the Ducks and what he’s brought in post season he has this team prepared.

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

 

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs: Sharks Take 2-0 Series Lead, Beat Ducks 3-2

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks took a 2-0 series lead over the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL Playoff quarterfinals with a 3-2 win Saturday. Tomas Hertl, Logan Couture and Marcus Sorensen scored for the Sharks, while Martin Jones made 28 saves. For Anaheim, goals came from Jakob Silfverberg and Hampus Lindholm, with 32 saves from goalie John Gibson. It was the first time that Anaheim lost two home games in a row since November 24.

The Ducks started the scoring just 40 seconds in. Jakob Silfverberg had just carried the puck over the line when he took a long shot that must have surprised Jones, as it went right by him. Hampus Lindholm got an assist.

The first penalties went to Evander Kane and Jakob Silfverberg, matching roughing penalties at 6:12. Each team added a shot to their total but neither team scored four on four.

The Sharks tied the game up at 9:41 when Brenden Dillon’s blue line shot came off the boards behind the net and went right to Marcus Sorensen next to the goal mouth. He tapped it in for his first playoff goal.

Near the 15 minute mark, the Sharks were trapped in their own zone for long time, including two icing calls. Mikkel Boedker finally got the puck out and seconds after the much needed change, Melker Karlsson drew a hooking penalty from Brandon Montour at 13:37.

The Sharks took the lead at 14:41 with a goal from Logan Couture on the ensuing power play. Kevin Labanc caught Couture with a pass across the slot as Couture was skating hard for the net. Couture pulled the puck across the crease and away from Gibson’s poke-check before putting it away with a backhand. Assists went to Labanc and Joe Pavelski.

At the end of the period, the Ducks mustered sustained pressure against the Sharks, almost catching up on the shot clock. That count was 9-8 Sharks after the first.

That late-period pressure from the Ducks did not phase the Sharks as they jumped into the second period. Tomas Hertl scored with a back hand after skating by a couple of Ducks from the blue line to the net. Mikkel Boedker gave him the puck as he came fast through the neutral zone, earning the first assist on the 1:11 goal. Logan Couture got the secondary assist.

Shortly after the goal, Ryan Getzlaf caught a deflected puck to the face. He left the ice only briefly and returned with an ice pack for use between shifts.

Paul Martin was called for slashing at 6:30, giving the Ducks their first 5 on 4 power play of the game. Hampus Lindholm took advantage of Martin Jones being pulled off balance by Brenden Dillon’s skate as Dillon tried to get in front of the net to defend. Jones was helpless to stop the shot. Assists went to Ryan Getzlaf and Ryan Kesler.

The Ducks were back on the power play at 6:12 of the third period after Evander Kane’s clearing attempt went over the glass. The Sharks killed that off and got their own power play at 9:17 after Nick Ritchie tripped Marcus Sorensen in the neutral zone. Despite a number of good chances, the score remained 3-2 Sharks.

At 16:17, Corey Perry hit Melker Karlsson while he did not seem to have the puck, knocking his helmet off and spinning him around. He went to the box for interference. The Ducks started their penalty kill with a short-handed opportunity, but the Sharks pushed back and held the zone after that.

The Ducks pulled John Gibson with under two minutes left but the Sharks held them off for the win.

The Sharks finished with 35 shots on goal to the Ducks’ 30.

Game three will be Monday in San Jose at 7:30 pm PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Could Pavelski and Burns really light up the Ducks and lead Sharks to victory this round?

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Photo credit: nhl.com

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 Losing the last game at home of the regular season and dropping five out of their last six games, does that pose many questions on how the Sharks will do entering Thursday’s playoff game in Anaheim?

#2 The Sharks’ Evander Kane is excited to be in his first post season after playing some 574 regular season games. It’s a long time waiting for the former Buffalo Sabres star.

#3 Joe Pavelski and Brent Burns are expected to help lead the Sharks in this first round and to victory. Do you see that kind of prediction making sense?

#4 The top players on the Ducks: Richard Rakell 34 goals, 69 points, and Ryan Getzlaf with 50 assists for Anaheim.

#5 The first round is like a new season for the Sharks after having a tough ending to the regular season. Can they come out and have a break out in the first round?

Mary Lisa does the Sharks podcast each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

One of Three Sevens: Sharks, Kings Must Win or Go Home

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By Mary Walsh

Seven. Each NHL Playoff round is a best of seven games, and three of eight first round match-ups have gone the distance. Second round dates have already been set, even for the Penguins who do not yet know who they will play.

With three Game Sevens today, it seems likely that we will see at least one upset… if you define upset as the triumph of the team with the lower position in the standings. In the case of the Pacific Division contest, the predictions have been for the third place team to upset the second place team all along, so would that even count as an upset? Is it really an upset if it was expected? Will the Kings live up to expectations, or will the Sharks reassert themselves?

All three of today’s games came to be with a Game Six win won by three goals. The Flyers and the Wild both beat their opponents 5-3 and the Kings beat the Sharks Jose 4-1. A little more eerie than that is the Philadelphia connection to Los Angeles: Mike Richards and Jeff Carter were both part of the Flyers team that upset the Bruins in 2010, and now they are in another Game Seven after a three game comeback, while their old team is playing a Game Seven on the same day.

The Sharks are not playing in three games, only one. They are not even playing in seven games, they only have one tonight. Is it any different from any other game? Sharks forward Logan Couture said:

Every playoff game has a different atmosphere compared to a regular season game. I mean, guys know, obviously, what’s at stake. I don’t think it’s any big difference.

Playing in and winning a Game Seven is every young hockey player’s dream. But after squandering a three game lead in the series, the Sharks might be feeling some extra pressure. This morning, Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle was asked about the fun and the pressure of a Game Seven:

This is fun, you know everyone’s going to talk about how we got to this point but at this point it really doesn’t matter. We’re in Game Seven, we got to win a hockey game to move on and we’re at home. So you’re right this is fun and we’ve got to channel our energy the right way.

The Kings won three games in a row, as did the Sharks, but the Kings played all of those games with the threat of elimination hanging over them. They were all “win or go home” situations. Is it any different for the Sharks now that they too must win or go home? This morning, Sharks defenseman Jason Demers said:

I don’t think so. But it’s like I said, it’s just about executing. You can talk as much as you want about x’s and o’s, but it’s just about executing those x’s and o’s… Just executing when we need to execute to win.

Sharks head coach Todd McLellan’s approach to the win or go home situation is to go back to his core group:

I think our core on our team has to step up, and they were there early in the series. LA’s core has been there later in the series. Tonight’s the deciding game and in my opinion Nemo’s a very big part of that core and they’re going to get their chance to perform in Game Seven.

It is April 30, 2014, or 4/30/14. Add month and day together without the zeros and you get seven. Divide the year by two and you get seven. All three games start in the seventh hour, two of them at seven sharp. It seems like it should mean something, but I can’t tell what that is or what could possibly be done about it. Probably a safe bet that everyone should steer clear of deadly sins.

Sharks goaltender Antti Niemi said his routine would not change for this game:

I just got to think about my own game… and do the same things to get ready as I do every day.

Sounds like a plan.

Lose-Lose Game 5 for Sharks

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By Mary Walsh

Just one win. It felt like a must-win game for the Sharks, even though the Kings were the ones on the verge of elimination. The Sharks were healthy and confident.

All the Sharks needed was one win after a tight overtime victory on the road in Los Angeles. Instead, they lost two in a row, giving a resilient Kings team more than enough confidence to push through two more wins.

Additionally, the Sharks lost Marc-Edouard Vlasic for two periods and possibly longer. Statistically, the only consolation for that would be if Jarret Stoll were suspended for taking him out. That could help the Sharks with their faceoffs anyway. If Vlasic is out for one or more games, it would not be a fair trade but it would be something.

Did the Sharks approach these last two games like they had four tries to get it right? Does this mulligan theory come into play? I doubt it. The Kings just have more urgency since their season is at death’s door. But that does not explain losing 3-0 at home, even playing with five defensemen.

The lone bright spot in Saturday’s shutout loss was a stellar performance from Alex Stalock. He faced 22 shots and stopped them all. He came in early in the second period after 3 of 19 shots got by Antti Niemi.

Still, the team in front of Stalock could not seem to help him out. He did more than his part, distributing the puck well, making the saves and even drawing a penalty. But the Sharks couldn’t score to save their lives even when they had some chances at the end of Saturday’s game.

That might be unsurprising after the amount of puck luck they had in the first two games. Their lack of composure in the rest of the game was not a matter of puck luck. The Kings’ early goals seemed to dismantle any confidence the Sharks started with. Hurried passes turned into giveaways, too-slow decisions hampered the power play. The only thing the Sharks did well were some of their penalty kills.

Two goals against should not send a team into a panic, not in a series that has featured such high scores. Letting the game get away from them like that is cause for panic. Now they go back to Los Angeles with an opponent on a roll and still fueled by desperation.

Maybe the Sharks can borrow some of that desperation before they are looking at a seventh game, tired and banged up and in no shape to dominate a next round– if they make it that far. Sharks fans can but hope.

“Must-Win” Marathon Could Benefit Sharks

Published on by M WalshLeave a comment

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell behind the Anaheim Ducks again with Saturday’s 3-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. While other teams are in a race to make the playoffs, the Sharks are in a race to not face the Los Angeles Kings in the first round. That would be a good thing to avoid, but the Sharks’ schedule won’t make it easy.

Even with a home ice advantage, the Sharks could anticipate a physically gruelling first round if they face the Kings. Los Angeles does present an uncommonly heavy-hitting adversary, but playoff hockey is rough no matter who the opponent is. Minnesota, Phoenix or Dallas will come ready play hard in their own way.  The Sharks’ particular history with the Kings carries extra baggage but history lives only in our heads. If the Sharks face someone else in the first round, they could lose as easily, especially if they underestimate their opponent just because it isn’t Los Angeles.

The Ducks finish the regular season playing five of eight games against teams in the bottom third of the standings. The Sharks play three of six games against top eight teams to finish. One of the other games is against the Phoenix Coyotes, who may well be fighting for a playoff spot to the last game. The race against the Ducks won’t be easy for the Sharks to win.

On the other hand, whether they catch the Ducks or not, the Sharks will have a chance to elevate their game because they are facing such good competition. That could benefit them no matter who they play in the first round. The Sharks, like many good teams, can stumble in “should win” situations. The risk of injury or fatigue could outweigh the mental conditioning benefits of tough games, but over a span of six games the physical wear and tear should not be very different.

The advantage of avoiding the Kings in the first round is a real one, but ultimately the Sharks will have to be the better team if they want to advance to the finals. Maybe ramping up to the playoffs with a rigorous stretch against top opponents will do the trick.