NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: Sharks get huge win to extend win streak to seven; Hall’s breakaway helps Devils get past Pens 4-3; Bruins’ Pastrnak starts three-goal comeback rally for 3-2 win

Photo credit: @PR_NHL

On the NHL podcast with Matt:

#1 The Sharks won their seventh straight game win over the Calgary Flames on Saturday afternoon by a score of 5-1.  Matt talks a little about the successes of why they have such a long win streak going.

#2 New Jersey’s Taylor Hall got a break away goal that put the Devils over the top with just 27 seconds left in overtime to edge the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3.

#3 Another close one as the Boston Bruins got a 3-2 one goal win past the Dallas Stars on Friday night. David Pastrnak broke a 2-2 tie with 12 seconds left and the Bruins scored three unanswered goals in the third period for the one-goal comeback win.

#4 The St. Louis Blues faced off against the Vancouver Canucks and the Blues’ Patrik Berglund got two goals to help the offense as St. Louis got its fourth straight win. Blues goaltender Jake Allen stopped 19 shots in Allen’s eighth start for St. Louis.

#5 The Montreal Canadiens got a 3-0 shutout behind the netminding of Antti Niemi, who save 35 shots and picked up his first shutout in 27 months. The Habs picked up their first road win past the Buffalo Sabres in eight games.

Matt Harrington covers the San Jose Sharks for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Sharks Win Seventh in a Row, Trounce Flames 5-1

Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE — The San Jose Sharks won their seventh straight game 5-1 against the Calgary Flames Saturday. Sharks goals came from Brenden Dillon, Jannik Hansen, Evander Kane, and Justin Braun. Brenden Dillon came away with a Gordie Howe hat trick, while Kane missed one by an assist. The lone Flames goal came from Michael Stone.

Sharks goaltender Martin Jones made 37 saves for the win, while Flames goaltender David Rittich made 28 saves in a losing effort.

Of the importance of this winning streak, Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer said:

I think this is the time of year you want to be playing well, you want to get hot. For me, it’s about our game. You know, the results are nice, the wins are nice. You know, out of the seven games, this was probably our sloppiest of the seven but we found a way to win and our goaltender was great. So we’ll clean a few things up but you’re never going to complain too much about winning.

Despite the recent additional injuries, the Sharks have kept up their momentum with the help of some good depth. Stepping in for Joakim Ryan is Paul Martin, who has missed most of this season with an injury.

Brenden Dillon scored the first go, at 7:52. Chris Tierney caught a short pass from Timo Meier and made a beautiful behind the back pass to the trailing Dillon, setting the Sharks defenseman up perfectly in the slot. It was Dillon’s fourth goal of the year. After the game, Chris Tierney talked about how he saw that play: “I just saw him coming in late and Timo dropped it too me and I thought their guy was kind of stepping up on me. So I thought he’d be the trailer coming in late, hopefully, he found it.”

Jannik Hansen scored next, his second of the season, and his second in the last three games. Hansen deflected a Burns shot that was going well wide of the net. Hansen’s deflection was at such a sharp angle that Rittich did not see it in time. Assists went to Burns and Barclay Goodrow.

Michael Stone got Calgary on the board at 12:17 with a slap shot from the blue line that found its way through a lot of traffic. Assists went to Micheal Ferland and Chris Stewart.

At the end of the first, the shots on goal were 11-9 Calgary.

The next goal came in the second period at 8:26. The Sharks were on a power play when Kevin Labanc was called for holding, ending the power play and putting the teams on a four-on-four. Neither team scored then, but after the Calgary penalty expired and the Sharks were short-handed, Chris Tierney skated almost to the goal line with the puck. He hovered around there for a bit, looking like he might take the shot, but instead he made a pass to Evander Kane who had an open net. It was Kane’s fourth short-handed goal of the season.

In all, the teams took eight penalties in the second period, after taking none at all in the first. Two of those penalties overlapped at least in part, and two went to Evander Kane as double minor for roughing. Despite the overlaps, it was a rowdy period.

The shot count for the second period was 17-14 Calgary.

Evander Kane’s trips to the penalty box were not over with the second period. He went back there at 3:15 of the third for a fight with Travis Hamonic. In addition, both Hamonic and Kane received minors for unsportsmanlike conduct. None of those penalties resulted in a man advantage. Before those penalties had expired, Mark Giordano was called for cross-checking Melker Karlsson–awarding the Sharks the first power play of the period–for the fifth penalty of the period.

Justin Braun extended the Sharks lead to 4-1 at 10:09 of the third period. Braun caught the puck just as it crossed the Calgary blue line and, after just a couple of strides, took the shot from above the faceoff circle. The shot beat Rittich over the right shoulder. Assists went to Logan Couture and Melker Karlsson.

San Jose’s lead grew again at 12:10. Joe Pavelski tipped a Dillon shot at the net from a ways out, using Evander Kane and Hamonic as a screen. The puck touched Kane on the way in, giving him his second of the game. Assists went to Pavelski and Dillon.

Brenden Dillon left the game a bit early after a fight with Garnet Hathaway at 15:02 of the third. Both left the game as the fight took place in the final five minutes.

The Sharks next play on Monday at 5:00 pm PT in Chicago against the Blackhawks.

Couture helps Sharks take 2-1 OT win over Golden Knights

Photo credit: @TheSpearSJSU

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Sharks welcomed the Pacific Division-leading Las Vegas Golden Knights to their home ice at SAP Center Thursday night. The Sharks brought a five-game win streak into Thursday’s game compared the Golden Knights’ two-game streak, but the biggest storyline was that the Knights had a chance to clinch a playoff berth that night.

The Knights got down to business when Tomas Tatar fired the puck past Sharks goalie Martin Jones for an early 1-0 lead at the 16:13 mark of the first period. Assists went to Jonathan Marchessault and Shea Theodore.

Shots were 13-11 in favor of the Sharks, but they trailed the Knights 1-0 after 20 minutes of play.

The Sharks tied the game at one apiece when Brent Burns fired a slap shot that went past traffic and into the net, beating Knights goalie Malcolm Subban for his 11th goal of the season at the 16:33 mark of the second period. Assists went to Paul Martin and Jannik Hansen.

Sharks rookie Kevin Labanc put some of his offensive skills on display, but he gave the puck to a Knights player and missed out of a chance that might’ve led to a scoring opportunity for San Jose.

The score was tied at one apiece after 40 minutes of play. Shots were 31-15 in favor of San Jose.

The score remained tied at one apiece after 60 minutes of play. Shots were 43-22 in favor of San Jose.

Logan Couture scored the game-winning goal, his 31st of the season, just 39 seconds into the overtime period to lift the Sharks to a 2-1 victory over the Knights. Jones finished with 24 saves for San Jose. Subban made 42 saves in a losing effort for Vegas.

Regardless of the outcome, Vegas made history as an expansion team after hitting the 100-point mark as the game went into overtime.

Notes
Sharks’ starting lineup: 
Evander Kane – Joe Pavelski – Melker Karlsson
Tomas Hertl – Logan Couture – Mikkel Boedker
Timo Meier – Chris Tierney – Kevin Labanc
Barclay Goodrow – Eric Fehr – Jannik Hansen

Paul Martin – Brent Burns
Marc-Edouard Vlasic – Justin Braun
Brenden Dillon – Dylan DeMelo

Martin Jones

Aaron Dell

Scratches: Tim Heed, Joel Ward, Joonas Donskoi and Marcus Sorensen.

Knights’ starting lineup: 
Jonathan Marchessault – William Karlsson – Tomas Tatar
David Perron – Erik Haula – James Neal
Ryan Carpenter – Cody Eakin – Alex Tuch
Tomas Nosek – Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – Ryan Reaves

Brayden McNabb – Nate Schmidt
Shea Theadore – Deryk Engelland
Jon Merrill – Colin Miller

Malcolm Subban

Oscar Dansk

Scratches: Brad Hunt, Oscar Lindberg and Zach Whitecloud.

 

Up Next
The Sharks host the Calgary Flames this Saturday at 1:00 pm PST.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Be very careful, Vegas is coming to SAP Center with the conference’s best record

Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

The New Jersey Devils who paid the San Jose Sharks a visit on Tuesday night were caught off guard, getting crushed 6-2. You can’t take the Sharks for granted against the Sharks you have to play steady and play a good defensive game that what the Sharks really need. If they get into one of these 11-goal games, it’s going to be a fun game to watch, but that’s a little too risky. Defense is the Sharks’ key to success. Last night’s game was a good model, but we don’t know if the Devils were all they can be.

As a model, the Sharks have to play a good defensive game and shooting every time they stand in range of the net is a good idea. The Vegas Golden Knights, who lead the Western Conference, are eight points ahead of the Sharks, who are in second place, and it’s a question of whether or not the Sharks can catch them. It’s certainly worth trying. It’s better than losing points. The only goal in front of the Sharks right now is catch Vegas.

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

 

Fourth Line Leads Way in Sharks’ 6-2 Win Over Devils

Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Matthew Harrington

Tuesday night was a feel-good night for the San Jose Sharks all around. Sure, the Sharks won 6-2 over the visiting New Jersey Devils to run their win streak to five, but how they did it was far more exciting than what they did.

The Sharks’ fourth line members each scored a goal apiece, Jannik Hansen lit the lamp for the first time this season and Paul Martin picked up his first NHL point of the 2017-18 season. Logan Couture scored his 30th goal, crossing the triple-decade club for the third time in his career and first since 2012. The power play scored not once, but twice in a game, and to cap it all off, coach Peter DeBoer picked up his 350th win.

That Joe Thornton was spotted skating earlier in the morning, or that the Los Angeles Kings lost in overtime earlier in the night to fall back four points behind team teal for second in the Pacific Division were just icing on the cake.

New Jersey came into the contest on an impressive run, having beaten Vegas, Nashville and Los Angeles before falling to the Ducks in the previous quartet of games. San Jose put the Devils on their heels early though, thanks to fourth liner Eric Fehr’s third goal of the year 5:32 into the game.

Brent Burns fed Paul Martin, up with the big club and playing largely thanks to injuries to a number of blueliners with Tuesday’s victim being Joakim Ryan, who then teed up a point shot. The shot whistled wide of the net to keeper Corey Schneider’s right but ricocheted off the back wall to Fehr on the opposite post. Fehr went top corner of Schneider’s shoulder for the 1-0 lead.

Hart Trophy candidate Taylor Hall breathed life into the Devils devils at the 11:19 mark after Justin Braun failed to clear up an aerial pass. No. 9 scooped the puck up on a hop and scored easily on the breakaway for his 32nd goal of the season.

Joe Pavelski scored the most Joe Pavelski-like goal just over a minute later on the power play, tipping a Kevin Labanc shot past Schneider for his 19th goal of the year and a 2-1 lead.

Jannik Hansen, the “beneficiary” inserted onto the fourth line due to injuries to Joel Ward and Joonas Donskoi, used his speed to get a breakaway on former Vancouver Canucks teammate Schneider, scoring his first goal of the year with 4:46 left in the first period.

The final member of the fourth line to Barclay Goodrow chased Schneider from the game after scoring his career-best seventh goal of the season 10:38 into the second period.

Logan Couture then put the Sharks up 5-1, beating relief netminder Keith Kinkaid on the first shot he faced with 8:42 left in the period. Brendan Dillon assisted on both goals.

The Sharks would take advantage of another power play opportunity, with Mikkel Boedker scoring his 14th goal of the year with 1:40 left in the second. Brent Burns assisted on the goal for his third point, all assists, of the game. In total, San Jose was a perfect 2-for-2 on the man-advantage.

New Jersey would beat goalie Martin Jones just once more over the duration of play, with Blake Coleman scoring an even strength goal with 1:36 left in regulation for the final score of 6-2. Jones made 26 saves.

San Jose now sits four points ahead of LA and five ahead of second wild card team Anaheim. They sit behind the Vegas Golden Knights for the division lead though, eight points back with nine to play. If San Jose hopes to gain ground, they’ll need a victory over the expansion team when they visit the Shark Tank Thursday night.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks get sweet road sweep; Timo Time scores twice against Canucks; Sharks got lots of offense going against Canucks

Photo credit: @SportsCentre

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 The San Jose Sharks defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-3 at the Rogers Arena on Saturday night, completing a sweep of their Western Canadian road trip.

#2 Two goals came from Timo Meier, including the game-winner. Tomas Hertl, Logan Couture and Kevin Labanc also scored three goals for the Sharks. Sharks goaltender Aaron Dell made 28 saves for the win.

#3 Canucks’ goals came from Nikolay Goldobin, Alexander Edler and Bo Horvat. Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom made 25 saves in a losing effort.

# 4 Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer described Saturday’s game as a “huge, gutsy performance. You know, when you have the deck stacked, end of a road trip, we lost two men early, down two guys

#5 The New Jersey Devils 37-26-8 head to SAP Center to face off with the Sharks Tuesday night. Jersey’s Taylor Hall leads the team in points, assists and goals how crucial is someone like Hall for New Jersey

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

Meier Scores Two Goals, Sharks Beat Canucks 5-3

Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-3 at the Rogers Arena on Saturday night, completing a sweep of their Western Canadian road trip. Two goals came from Timo Meier, including the game-winner. Tomas Hertl, Logan Couture and Kevin Labanc also scored three goals for the Sharks. Sharks goaltender Aaron Dell made 28 saves for the win.

Canucks’ goals came from Nikolay Goldobin, Alexander Edler and Bo Horvat. Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom made 25 saves in a losing effort.

Sharks head coach Pete DeBoer described Saturday’s game as a “huge, gutsy performance. You know, when you have the deck stacked, end of a road trip, we lost two men early, down two guys. You know, we were up and then kind of let them back in the game and still found a way to rebound. I thought it was a huge character…gutsy, all those adjectives.”

The game added some injuries to the road trip’s casualty list.

First, Melker Karlsson started the game with Joe Pavelski and Evander Kane, but left the ice in the first four minutes, limping after blocking a shot from Alexander Edler. Marc-Edouard Vlasic left the game about five minutes into the second period, after taking a deflected slap shot in the neck or face area. Neither player returned to the game, and the team had no updates in postgame.

Joonas Donskoi missed his second game since being injured in Edmonton. Joakim Ryan also missed Saturday’s game with an upper body injury.

Vancouver’s Nikolay Goldobin opened the scoring with a power play goal at 10:48. Goldobin’s quick shot around a lot of moving traffic beat Dell on on the right side. Assists went to Derrick Pouliot and Reid Boucher.

San Jose’s Kevin Labanc tied it up at 14:58, also with a power play goal. Pavelski scooped up a skittering rebound created by a Logan Couture shot, then tapped it over to Labanc for a close-in shot.

Couture added to the lead just over a minute later. Tomas Hertl carried the puck over the blue line and sent an ungainly-looking pass in Couture’s direction. Couture was still fighting his way toward the net. The puck reached him just as he started to lose his balance but his backhand shot went home. Assists went to Hertl and Mikkel Boedker.

Meier gave the Sharks a 3-1 lead less than two minutes into the second period. Right off an offensive zone faceoff, Brenden Dillon took a shot from the blue line and Meier tipped it in from the hashmarks.

Bo Horvat trimmed the Sharks lead at 5:23 with another Vancouver power play goal. Sam Gagner looked like he would take the shot, but instead passed the puck to Horvat, who was right on the doorstep. Assists went to Gagner and Alexander Edler.

Edler tied the game up with yet another power play goal. A Meier penalty was about to expire when Paul Martin went to the box for high sticking. The 16 second five-on-three was killed off by Braun, Tierney and Dillon, but with 34 seconds left in the second penalty, Edler’s slap shot found its way by Dell. Assists went to Gagner and Daniel Sedin.

The tie held until 8:07 of the third, when Meier took a great shot from above the faceoff dot and beat Markstrom on the right side. Assists went to Labanc and Braun.

Hertl put the nail in the coffin with an empty-net goal at 19:35. He carried it all the way from the Sharks’ net to the Vancouver zone, avoiding some defenders on the way before taking the shot.

The win puts San Jose five points ahead of Los Angeles and Anaheim, as well as the two current wild card teams, Dallas and Colorado. They still trail the Pacific Division’s first place Las Vegas by six points.

Paul Martin played his first NHL game in four months. Despite taking a penalty, he seems to be ready to step in. Tim Heed is another possibility to fill in on the blue line, playing currently with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday against the visiting New Jersey Devils, who are on a bit of a tear right now. They have won three in a row against Western Conference teams, including that noteworthy 8-3 win over Las Vegas. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 pm PT.

 

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

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.

San Jose Sharks Podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Sharks prepare for three-game road trip starting tonight in Edmonton

Photo credit: nhl.com/sharks

On the San Jose Sharks Podcast with Mary Lisa:

1.The Sharks are coming off two wins out of their last four games. The Sharks got a 5-3 win past the Detroit Red Wings on Monday night. What a relief it was as San Jose recently struggled on home ice with losses to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Washington Capitals.

2. The Sharks improved their power play with a power play goal last Thursday against the St. Louis Blues after going 0-30 on their 32nd try they lit the lamp to snap the drought.

3. The Sharks face the Edmonton Oilers, a team they handled without a problem on Tuesday, February 27th, but after the convincing win past ex-coach Todd McLellan and company, the Oilers will be out for revenge on their home ice tonight.

4. The Sharks also have to contend with Connor McDavid, who dominates in Edmonton and leads the Oilers in goals. Will the Sharks’ double team him to slow down his offense?

5. The Sharks conclude their road trip Friday and Saturday with back-to-back nights in Calgary and Vancouver. How do you see these match ups this weekend?

Mary Lisa Walsh is the San Jose Sharks beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: After losing two out of three, Sharks set for Red Wings tonight; Sharks able to contain Ovechkin last Sunday

Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

On the Sharks podcast with Len:

1 It’s two out of three for the Sharks as they drop their second on Sunday and their first a 3-2 one goal loss to Columbus on Saturday, March 4th. The Sharks got blanked 2-0 by the Washington Caps on Sunday after defeating the St Louis Blues on Thursday night 2-0.

2 The Caps got goals from Nick Backstrom and Lars Eller, which was enough offense to help them get past the Sharks.

3 The Sharks were able to contain Alex Ovechkin as he went 0-6 on shots on goal.

4 The Detroit Red Wings are in San Jose for a Monday night face off at SAP Center the Red Wings are 26-31-11 fifth in the Atlantic.

5 The Wings bring in goalie Jimmy Howard, who has a 2.82 GA, .911% save percentage. Backup goalie Petr Mrazek leads the team in shutouts with three.

Len has the Sharks podcasts every Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com