Sharks Shutout 3-0 by Kraken in Game 82

Seattle Kraken center Morgan Geekie (67) looks to pass the puck against San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns (88) at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Fri Apr 29, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Lisa Walsh

The San Jose Sharks were shutout 3-0 by the Seattle Kraken in the Sharks final game of the 2021-22 season. Yanni Gourde, Adam Larsson and Viktor Rask scored for the Kraken. Chris Driedger made 24 saves for the shut-out win. Kaapo Kahkonen made 28 saves in the loss.

After that game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said of the game: “We just couldn’t get it done tonight. I think you could probably see, it’s no secret, there wasn’t a lot of guys who were sharp.”

Boughner also talked about the season as a whole and what comes next:

“For us, it’s just trying to relish the good times that we’ve had this year and I think there has been plenty of them. I think we know we’re not in the spot that we want to be and we know there’s a ton of improvement and that’s on everybody. That’s not on the players, it’s not just on the players and the coaches it’s everybody. We’ll address that but I think everybody needs a little time away to decompress first.”

Yanni Gourde scored his 21^st goal of the season to give the Kraken the lead at 6:17. Dennis Cholowski led the play into the zone up the middle, then passed the puck to Karson Kuhlman on the right wing. Kulman passed it back to Gourde who was trailing Cholowski. As Cholowski screened Kahkonen, Gourde took the shot.

Adam Larsson made it 2-0 at 18:31. Jamie Oleksiak had the puck deep along the right wall and passed it up to Matty Beniers at the point. Beniers made a quick pass to Larsson on the left wing and he scored with a one-timer.

Victor Rask scored into an empty net to make it 3-0 at 19:08 of the third period. Assists went to Riley Sheahan and Will Borgen.

Timo Meier finished the season by blocking a shot to stop an empty net goal at the end of the game.

The Sharks took just one penalty and gave up three shots to the Kraken power play. The Kraken took two penalties close together in the second period, giving the Sharks a five-on-three for a little over a minute. The Sharks got three shots during that power play. In the first period, the Sharks were out-shot 12-4, but bounced back in the second with 11 shots, allowing just six. They lagged again in the third, being out-shot 13-9. The Kraken prevailed in the face-off circle at 58%.

Lane Pedersen was back in the lineup for a last look of the season. He had one shot, one hit and was 40% in the face-off circle in 9:53 of ice time. Jonathan Dahlen was also in the game Friday. He had one blocked shot in 7:32 of ice time.

The Sharks will start next season in Prague, Czech Republic. They will face the Nashville Predators in a pair of games October 7 and 8 as part of the 2022 NHL Global Series.

Sharks Fall 5-2 to the Ducks in Final Home Game of 21-22 Season

Anaheim Ducks left wing Max Comtois (44) gets a floating corner shot top shelf goal against San Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen (34) at SAP Center in San Jose on Tue Apr 26, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks fell 5-2 to the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday. The Ducks got goals from Trevor Zegras, Max Comtois, Josh Mahura, and Zach Aston-Reese. Anthony Stolarz made 31 saves for the win. Brent Burns and Scott Reedy scored for the Sharks. Kaapo Kahkonen made 26 saves in the loss.

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

“I just thought the longer the game went on, I was okay with our game, I really was. It felt like they capitalized on their chances and we didn’t. Stolarz played well. I just thought it was one of those games, it would have been nice to win our last home game but I think that we just couldn’t find that goal we needed early.”

Scott Reedy has now played 33 games with the Sharks and has six goals. He scored four of those since April 14, showing major improvement at the NHL level. Boughner talked about what Reedy brings to the team:

“He’s got a knack around that net. Sometimes you can’t teach that, that hand-eye. He sticks around there. He scored 18 in 30-something games in the American League, and he comes here and he’s got six all of a sudden. You’d like to see what he could do at this level for a whole year.”

Trevor Zegras gave the Ducks an early lead with a power play goal at 4:05. His shot went over Kahkonen’s shoulder on the short side and lodged between the net and the camera, so hardly anyone realized he had scored until they could not find the puck out on the ice. Adam Henrique got an assist.

At 6:47, Troy Terry seemed to score but the goal was called back after a review. The puck had been directed with a distinct kicking motion.

Max Comtois made it 2-0 for real at 5:26 of the second period. Comtois carried the puck into the zone and then dropped it back to a trailing Kevin Shattenkirk. Shattenkirk passed it back for Comtois to take the shot. The puck went up over Kahkonen’s shoulder on the short side, again. Assists went to Shattenkirk and Simon Benoit.

Sonny Milano made it 3-0 less than a minute later. Troy Terry brought the puck into the zone and then made a drop pass to Milano in the slot. Milano used a backhand shot to send the puck over Khkonen’s right shoulder and in. Assists went to Terrry and Dominik Simon.

Brent Burns got the Sharks on the board at 15:32 with a power play goal. It was his second shot from the middle of the blue line in just a few seconds. Assists went to Logan Couture and Thomas Bordeleau.

Scott Reedy brought the Sharks within one at 18:36, redirecting a shot from Jaycob Megna. Assists went to Megna and Sasha Chmelevski.

Josh Mahura made it 4-2 at 10:47 of the third. His shot went just past Kahkonen’s glove, off the post and in. Assists went to Milano and Comtois.

Zach Aston-Reese scored and empty net goal at 19:18, with an assist going to goaltender Anthony Stolarz.

The shot counts for the Sharks went down with each period. They started out 17-7 in the first, then were even at 10 in the second, and the Ducks out-shot them 14-6 in the third. That last number is misleading as the Sharks had a lot of chances and pressed hard to start the third, but hit some posts.

In the face-off circle, the Ducks prevailed, winning 52% of the draws. The Sharks had two penalties to kill and gave up the one goal and no other shots. They had three power plays and had four shots and one goal.

The Sharks will play next on Thursday in Edmonton against the Oilers at 6:00 PM PT.

Sharks Beat Blackhawks 4-1, Ten Sharks Earn Points

San Jose Sharks center Nick Bonino, center left, is congratulated by defenseman Brent Burns (88), center Thomas Bordeleau, center right, and center Scott Reedy (54) at the SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Apr 24, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1 on Saturday. The Sharks showed some good depth in scoring, with ten Sharks in all earning points in the game. Jasper Weatherby, Tomas Hertl, Timo Meier and Nick Bonino scored for the Sharks. Kaapo Kahkonen made 27 saves for the win. Tyler Johnson scored for Chicago and Kevin Lankinen made 15 saves in the loss.

The Sharks announced the Bay Area media’s selections for end-of-year award winners after the game. Timo Meier was named player of the year, Jonathan Dahlen was named rookie of the year. Brandon Coe was named prospect of the year and James Reimer won for Media Good Guy.

On Saturday, the Sharks got goals from both Meier and Hertl, something that has not happened for a while. It is likely that the return of linemate Alexander Barabanov had something to do with that. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said that he would like to see Barabanov, a free agent this summer, return next season: “I think that that line works together, I think that he’s a guy that provides offense and, you know, this is a team that could use that. Now, I’m not on the business side, the numbers side, so that’s a different story but yeah, I like him as a player.”

The first goal of the game came from Jasper Weatherby and the Sharks’ all-rookie fourth line at 6:03. Sasha Chmelevski carried the puck in and around a defender before taking a shot. Scott Reedy picked up the rebound and sent it back at the net for Weatherby to redirect in.

The Blackhawks out-shot the Sharks 9-4 in the first period. They also beat them in the face-off circle, winning 56% of the draws.

Tomas Hertl made it 2-0 at 1:08 of the second period. Timo Meier carried the puck into the zone two-on-one with Hertl and made the pass just above the circle. Goalie Kevin Lankinen could not get across in time to stop Hertl’s shot. Assists went to Meier and Jaycob Megna.

Timo Meier added a third for the Sharks at 10:34. Meier and Alexander Barabanov entered the zone only to be blocked by Blackhawks. Meier pushed the puck through Alex Vlasic to Barabanov, who had to battle Seth Jones for control of the puck. Barabanov managed to move the puck to the net and Meier caught up to it at the corner of the net where he tapped it in with an outstretched stick.

Tyler Johnson broke the shut-out at 15:38. Jonathan Toews got away from Megna behind the net and made a backhand pass from just below the goal line. The pass got to Johnson up the slot for a clear shot. Assists went to Toews and Seth Jones.

The first penalty of the game came in the second period, and it went to the Blackhawks. The Sharks power play got one shot and gave up one short-handed shot. Chicago again out-shot the Sharks, 10-7, and beat them on the draw, winning 57% of the face-offs.

Nick Bonino scored on the power play to make it 4-1 at 6:19 of the third. With Scott Reedy screening the goaltender, Bonino had some time to pick his spot through traffic. Assists went to Brent Burns and Logan Couture.

The third period saw more penalties, with two for each team. The Sharks power play got the goal and three shots. Their penalty kill gave up three shots and had one short-handed shot. The final shot count was 28-19 Blackhawks and the final face-off tally was 28-18 Blackhawks.

The Sharks next play on Sunday in Las Vegas against the Golden Knights at 7:00 PM PT.

Sharks Win 3-2 Against Blue Jackets, Reedy Scores Twice; 10 game loss streak is over for San Jose

San Jose Sharks right wing Timo Meier (28) moves the puck past Columbus Blue Jackets’ Adam Boqvist (27) and Gavin Bayreuther (5) at the SAP Center in San Jose on Tue Apr 19, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2, ending a ten-game losing streak. It was also their first win with Kaapo Kahkonen in net. Scott Reedy scored twice for the Sharks and Rudolfs Balcers added the third goal. Kahkonen made 22 saves for the win. Jack Roslovic scored both of the Columbus goals and Elvis Merzlikins made 25 save sin the loss.

After the game, Sharks Captain Logan Couture talked about finally getting a win for goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen. Couture mentioned the goalie’s work ethic and said that Kahkonen “fits in really well, gets along everyone in the room. Those are the guys you want to play for. He’s played some really really good games, we haven’t been able to score for him. Tonight we were able to get three and hung on there, he made some great saves for us.”

Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner talked about Scott Reedy’s progress with the team:

“I think [Reedy] is a guy that seems to work hard number one, he’s trying to get better every day. And, fairly or unfairly, we’ve switched him from center to right wing, back to center a few times and he’s sort of found a home on right wing there. I think the offensive upside that he has, I think for a team that struggles to score, you want to keep developing these guys that have a touch around the net. You saw that touch tonight.”

Reedy scored the first goal of the game at 4:39 on the power play. Noah Gregor went to the net and took a shot in close. That created a rebound for a trailing Reedy. Assists went to Gregor and Logan Couture.

Rudolfs Balcers scored the next Sharks goal at 8:45. Thomas Bordeleau won a race to the puck and carried it behind the net for a quick pass up to Balcers in front of the net.

The Blue Jackets put the puck in the net at 15:41 but the Sharks challenged it for off side and the challenge was upheld.

Scott Reedy scored his second of the game at 18:14. Sasha Chmelevski sent the puck to the net from high in the zone and Reedy cleaned up the bouncing rebound.

The second period was scoreless but busy for the Sharks’ penalty kill. The Sharks killed three penalties in the period, allowing just two shots.

Jack Roslovic scored the first Blue Jackets goal at 1:32, on the power play. The Sharks were caught up ice on a short-handed bid when the Blue Jackets went the other way and got into the Sharks zone three-on-one. Justin Danforth made a cross-ice pass to Roslovic for the shot. Assists went to Danforth and Kent Johnson.

The Blue Jackets cut the lead to one at 13:33, with another goal from Roslovic. He had the puck behind the net and seemed to be trying to center it for someone else to shoot. But his pass went off of a Sharks and into the short side. Assists went to Jakub Voracek and Jake Bean.

The Sharks out-shot the Blue Jackets 28-24, and their power play had five shots on goal and one goal in two opportunities. In the face-off circle, the Sharks won 55% of the draws.

The Sharks next play on Thursday at 7:30 PM PT at home against the St. Louis Blues.

Sharks Fall 1-0 to Predators in OT

Nashville Predators’ Mattias Ekholm (14) celebrates with Ryan Johansen (92) after Johansen scored the winning goal against San Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen (34) in overtime at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Tue Apr 12, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost their seventh in a row 1-0 in overtime to the Nashville Predators Tuesday. Ryan Johansen scored the lone goal of the game. Juuse Saros made 25 saves for the win. The Predators moved into the first wild card spot with the win. Kaapo Kahkonen made 40 saves for San Jose in the loss.

Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen described what he saw from his team: “Good road game. We battled hard and we didn’t step back and did a lot of good things. We were in the game all game, just a tough result again. But I think a lot of good things for being on the road and playing a good team.”

Despite their current losing streak, the Sharks have been very close in many of their recent games, including this one. Sharks forward Rudolfs Balcers described the mood in the room after the game: “Frustrating, you know, trying to get that win here, it’s been too many losses. I mean, it’s just tough, you don’t score goals you don’t win a game. So, the guys are a little down.”

The Sharks put up a good fight, including fights in the first period and the third from Jeffrey Viel and Nicolas Meloche. In general, the team played well and certainly improved on their prior meeting with Nashville, when they lost 8-0. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said:

“I think that we did a decent job of sort of establishing our game. I think I looked up at the clock at one point in time it was 11 or 12 minutes to play in the first period and the shots were 2-1. So, those were things that we wanted to come out and establish. You know, we stood up to them physically and [Couture] came out hitting, [Viel], Meloche, guys like that. We took the hit to make the play we gave hits, it was a physical grind and I thought we answered the bell.”

There were two goals from the Predators in the game, but the first one was called back when the Sharks challenged the play for offside. Ryan Johansen’s overtime goal came 3:18 into the the extra frame. Johansen took the shot from a bad angle and it seemed to deflect of off a Shark before slipping under Kahkonen and into the net. Assists went to Mattias Ekholm and Filip Forsberg.

The Sharks were outshot by the Predators 25-41 through the game. In the face-off circle, they did well in the first period but by the end of the game were down to 43%. The Sharks killed two penalties, allowing just three shots. Their power play had one opportunity and got one shot on goal. Matt Nieto led the team in shots with four.

The Sharks play again on Thursday in Chicago against the Blackhawks at 5:30 PM PT.

Sharks Fall 4-2 to Canucks, Canucks Sweep Season Series

Vancouver Canucks’ Alex Chiasson and fans celebrate his goal during third period action at Rogers Place in Vancouver on Sat Apr 9, 2022 (The Canadian Press via AP)

Vancouver Canucks’ Alex Chiasson and fans celebrate after Chiasson scores in the third period against the San Jose Sharks at Rogers Place in Vancouver on Sat Apr 10, 2022 (The Canadian Press via AP)

By Mary Walsh

VANCOUVER- The San Jose Sharks dropped their sixth in a row, a 4-2 road loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday. The loss concluded the season series between the teams, with the Canucks winning all three games. The win put the Canucks within four points of a playoff spot. Jason Dicksinson, Conor Garland, Alex Chiasson and Luke Schenn scored for the Canucks. Thatcher Demko made 35 saves for the win. Tomas Hertl and Nick Bonino scored for the Sharks and Kaapo Kahkonen made 35 saves in the loss.

Like many of the Sharks recent losses, the game was close in many respects. Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner listed some of the missed opportunities that the Sharks had on Saturday:

“Had our scoring chances, again, I mean, I sound like a broken record but we had breakaways, we had three posts, you know, we had looks at the end in our six on five, six on four situation. You know, we had plenty of opportunities to score, we didn’t get it done.”

Sharks defenseman Ryan Merkley took a hit early in the first period after missing the mark with a drop pass in the Canucks zone. While he was getting to the bench, the Canucks went the other way and scored. He left the game until late in the period. Boughner discussed the hit and the play:

“I thought [the hit] looked a little high. Concerned about that, also concerned about the play. In the back of our net, that’s how we start the game. Things that we’re trying to get out of his game, out of our game. He’s a young guy. But I think that he got hit high, I looked at it a few times. He went through protocol, got checked out, it was good to see him come back healthy and ready to help us. But those are learning plays.”

Jason Dickinson gave the Canucks the lead just 2:05 into the first period. He intercepted a pass in the Sharks zone and went the other way two-on-one. He tucked the puck into the net at the last minute after Kahkonen had come too far out of the net.

Tomas Hertl tied it at 7:33 with a power play goal. Erik Karlsson set up Timo Meier for a shot from the circle. Demko stopped Meier’s shot but the rebound went right to Hertl on the other side. Assists went to Meier and Karlsson.

Conor Garland made it 2-1 at 4:49 of the second period. Garland picked up the puck at the Sharks blue line and went the other way with speed. He took the shot from the circle and to score his 15^th of the season. Alex Chiasson got the assist.

Nick Bonino, playing his 750^th NHL game, deflected a Brent Burns shot from the point to tie it at 18:37. Assists went to Burns and Noah Gregor.

Alex Chiasson made it 3-2 at 2:07 of the third period. He caught the puck low in the circle and put the shot through the short side. Assists went to Bo Horvat and Tyler Myers.

Luke Schenn scored a short-handed goal into and empty net with a second left in the game to make it 4-2.

The Sharks killed seven penalties in the game, allowing 12 shots to the Canucks power play. The Sharks power play had five opportunities and got one goal and five shots. In the face-off circle, the Sharks won 55% of the draws.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday in Nashville against the Predators at 5:00 PM PT.

Sharks Lose 4-2 to Flames, Reimer Injured

Calgary Flames left wing Milan Lucic (17) chases down the puck as the San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson (65) is in pursuit at the SAP Center in San Jose on Apr 7, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks lost to the Calgary Flames for the first time this season, by a score of 4-2 at SAP Center. It was the Sharks’ fifth loss in a row. For Calgary, the win was the capstone for a California sweep after they won in Los Angeles and Anaheim. Matthew Tkachuk, Trevor Lewis, and Elias Lindholm scored for the Flames. Dan Vladar made 31 saves for the win. Nick Bonino and Logan Couture scored for the Sharks. James Reimer made 32 saves before being injured in the third period. Kaapo Kahkonen made five saves in relief.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said:

“Our execution could be better. From a compete standpoint, and for being in games with some of the top teams, you know, we’re banging heads with them. I think that I always come back to the same thing: it’s tough to win games when you’re only scoring one and two. I know I sound like a broken record.”

The Flames took the lead at 7:19 of the first period. Matthew Tkachuk stole a puck at the Sharks blue line. He didn’t break stride as he skated at the Sharks net and shot the puck over Reimer’s shoulder.

The Sharks tied it with a goal off Nick Bonino’s skate at 14:29. Assists went to Jaycob Megna and Matt Nieto.

Trevor Lewis made it 2-1 for Calgary at 19:05, carrying the puck into the zone and all the way to the net to jam it past Reimer’s pad. Assists went to Rasmus Andersson and Noah Hanifin.

Elias Lindholm made it 3-1 at 13:28 of the second period. Tkachuk carried the puck across the line and then dropped it to a trailing Lindholm. Lindholm’s shot went between two defenders and over Reimer’s glove. Assists went to Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau.

The Sharks got the first six shots of the third period and were rewarded. Logan Couture cut the lead down with a power play goal at 5:24. Timo Meier sent the puck at the net from just above the goal line. Couture was at the net and the puck went off his leg and in. Assists went to Meier and Mario Ferraro.

James was injured midway through the third period after a collision with Couture who had tripped over Blake Coleman’s skate right in front of the net. Couture’s leg slid right into Reimer’s neck and head. There were no updates after the game about his injury.

The Sharks pulled Kahkonen with a little under 90 seconds left but lost control of the puck with 32 seconds left. The Flames went the other way and Lindholm scored into the empty net.

The Sharks power play had three opportunities and got three shots on net. Their penalty kill gave up seven shots to three Calgary power plays and had one short-handed shot. In the face-off circle, the Sharks won 48% of the draws. The Sharks blocked ten shots, Calgary blocked 20. Neither John Leonard nor Jonah Gadjovich, who both left the game Tuesday, were in the lineup.

The Sharks’ next game is on Saturday in Vancouver against the Canucks at 7:00 PM PT.

Sharks Fall 5-4 to Stars; SJ’s fourth loss in last five games

After being down 4-1 the San Jose Sharks closed the gap on the Dallas Stars but in the third period a goal by the Stars Joe Pavelski (center) at 7:44 proved to be the game winner celebrates with center, celebrates with Miro Heiskanen (4) and Jason Robertson (21) at the SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Apr 2, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks fell 5-4 to the Dallas Stars Saturday after nearly erasing a three-goal first period deficit. Jason Roberston, Vladislav Namestnikov, Jani Hakanpaa, Roope Hintz, Jason Roberston, and Joe Pavelski scored for Dallas. Scott Wedgewood made 24 saves for the win. Nick Bonino, Brent Burns, John Leonard and Logan Couture scored for San Jose. Kaapo Kahkonen made 10 saves in the first period and James Reimer made 14 saves in the loss.

Nick Bonino gave the Sharks an early lead, scoring off a rebound from a Noah Gregor shot. The goal was scored just 1:25 into the first period. Assists went to Gregor and Erik Karlsson.

Vladislav Namestnikov tied it up just 25 seconds later. Tyler Seguin intercepted a pass behind the Sharks net and centered it for Namestnikov, right on the doorstep.

Jani Hakanpaa gave the Stars the lead at 8:11. Tyler Seguin tried for a shot from up above the circle, but the puck went off the heel of his stick and wound up on the other side of the ice, on Hakanpaa’’s stick. Assists went to Seguin and Namestnikov.

Roope Hintz made it 3-1 a couple of minutes late. John Klingberg flung the puck at the net as Hintz and Pavelski skated to the net. The puck went off of Hintz’s leg and in for his 30^th goal of the season. Assists went to Klingberg and Joe Pavelski.

Jason Roberston made it 4-1 in the final second of the period. The Stars pulled their goaltender after an icing call against the Sharks. Robertson scored by banking the puck off of the goaltender. Assists went to Denis Gurianov and Tyler Seguin.

The Sharks replaced Kahkonen with Reimer after the first period.

Brent Burns scored for San Jose at 7:53 of the second period, going to the net and trying to make a pass across the slot to Chmelevski. The puck went off of a defender’s skate instead and bounced into the net. Assists went to Chmelevski and Jaycob Megna.

Joe Pavelski scored what would be the game-winner, 7:44 into the third period. Pavelski and Hintz skated into the Sharks zone with the Sharks hot on the heels of the puck carrier Hintz. Hintz got a pass away to Pavelski in the slot and Pavelski lifted the puck past Reimer on the blocker side. Assists went to Hintz and Robertson.

John Leonard narrowed the lead at 15:21 with his first goal of the season. After Erik Karlsson threw the puck into traffic at the net, Leonard found the puck on a rebound and shot it past Wedgewood. Assists went to Karlsson and Mario Ferraro.

Logan Couture brought the Sharks within one at 18:32. He pushed the puck over the line after Sasha Chmelevski doggedly pushed the puck past the goaltender’s skate at the corner of the net. Assists went to Chmelevski and Gregor.

The Sharks power play had one opportunity but got no shots on goal. Their penalty kill successfully killed three penalties, giving up just three shots. In the face-off circle, the Sharks won 47% of the draw.

Mario Ferraro and Jonathan Dahlen were both back in the lineup, recovered from injury.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday at home, against the Edmonton Oilers at 7:30 PM PT.

Sharks Fall 4-2 to Avalanche; SJ loses six of last nine games

San Jose Sharks center Logan Couture, left and Colorado Avalanche left wing Andre Burakovsky (right) scramble for the puck at the Ball Center in Denver on Thu Mar 31, 2022 (AP News photo )

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 4-2 to the Colorado Avalanche Thursday, the second loss in as many nights for the Sharks. Alex Newhook Darren Helm, Mikko Rantanen and Andre Burakovsky scored for the Avalanche. Pavel Francouz made 25 saves for the win. Timo Meier and Brent Burns scored for San Jose and Kaapo Kahkonen made 42 saves in the loss.

This was Kaapo Kahkonen’s second start as a Shark. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said, of Kahkonen: “I thought he was excellent, I thought that, you know, a couple of those goals he had no help on. I thought he made some big saves for us at the right time. I thought he played extremely well.” Of the team’s performance, he said: “I thought that we played hard for being in a back-to-back situation. I thought there’s a lot of good things to our game.”

Alex Newhook gave the Avalanche a 1-0 lead at 1:54 of the second period. Kurtis MacDermid sent the puck to the slot for Newhook, who spun and shot it past three skaters in front of the goaltender. Assists went to MacDermid and Erik Johnson.

Timo Meier tied it up at 12:09. Tomas Hertl fought his way into the zone and to the net before being pushed down in the slot. The puck still got to Meier to the side of the net so he could score his 31^st of the season. Assists went to Hertl and Alexander Barabanov.

Darren Helm made it 2-1 for the Avalanche at 2:05 of the third period. Helm was going to the net when he caught the pass from Valeri Nichushkin. He skated across in front of the goaltender before taking a shot that went off of the post and in.

Brent Burns tied it at 6:29 when Tomas Hertl got the puck to him off of a face-off. Burns carried it to the middle of the ice and took a quick wrist shot.

Mikko Rantanen restored Colorado’s lead with a power play goal at 12:17. Nazem Kadri set him up with a nice cross-ice pass down low for Rantanen’s 34^th of the season. Assists went to Kadri and Cale Makar.

Andre Burakovsky scored the insurance goal at 15:16, collecting a rebound in close and lifting it into the net. Assists went to Erik Johnson and Nazem Kadri.

The Avalanche outshot the Sharks 46-27. The Sharks power play had three shots in three opportunities and their penalty kill allowed nine shots I three penalty kills, including one five-on-three.

The Sharks next play on Saturday back in San Jose against the Dallas Stars at 7:30 PM PT.

Sharks Fall to Oilers 5-2, Kahkonen Makes 36 Saves in SJ Debut

San Jose Sharks’ Noah Gregor (73) chases Edmonton Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl (29) during first-period at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Thu Mar 24, 2022 (Canadian Press photo via AP)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost to Oilers in Edmonton by a score of 5-2 Thursday. Kailer Yamamoto, Leon Draisaitl, Derick Brassard, and Evander Kane scored for the Oilers. Mike Smith made 28 saves for the win. Erik Karlsson and Tomas Hertl scored for the Sharks. Kaapo Kahkonen made 36 saves in the loss, his first appearance as a Shark.

Logan Couture left the game midway through the second period after being injured by a Brent Burns shot. The puck seemed to hit him in the side and the injury was described as upper-body. There were no specific updates after the game. Timo Meier, who left Tuesday’s game with a lower body injury, was on the ice Thursday.

The Sharks penalty kill was conspicuously less good on Thursday than it has been this season. They failed to kill either of the penalties they took. That is in part due to the absence of regular penalty killers, Jake Middleton and Andrew Cogliano who were traded Monday and Matt Nieto who is still injured.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said: “We’re using a lot of different faces in our penalty kill and you could see that tonight.” Some of those new faces included Rudolfs Balcers, Sasha Chmelevski and Noah Gregor.

Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson did not think the penalty kill was terrible: “They’re one of the best power plays in the league, I think they showed that today. The goals that they scored are high-skilled goals. There’s nothing you can do about it sometimes.”

Karlsson scored the first goal of the game at 1:08 of the second period. After cleaning up an odd-man rush the other way that started with a broken stick in the Oilers’ zone, Karlsson got the puck to Timo Meier by the blue line, then skated in. Meier passed the puck across the ice to Tomas Hertl, who sent it back across the ice to Karlsson by the net for the shot.

Kailer Yamamoto tied it up at 4:34 with a power play goal. The Oilers got past the Sharks at the blue line and Yamamoto was in a shooting position before the Sharks could get back. Assists went to Ryan McLeod and Duncan Keith.

Leon Draisaitl scored at 7:39. Zack Kassian got the puck off of Erik Karlsson’s stick by giving him a shove in the hip and throwing him off balance. That went uncalled as Draisaitl skated by and took the puck to the net to score. After the game, Karlsson said, of the incident: “That’s hockey, it’s going to happen.”

Derick Brassard made it 3-1 at 6:49 of the third period. Brassard thew the puck at the net from the blue line. At first it seemed to go off of Ryan-Nugent Hopkins as he dove for the net. It did not hit him as it bounced over the line. Assists went to Jesse Puljujarvi and Evan Bouchard.

Tomas Hertl cut the Oilers lead down to one with a goal at 7:18. Timo Meier Had the puck on his was to the goal line and he found Hertl in the slot with a pass. Hertl shot it past three Oilers and past Smith of the stick side. Assists went to Meier and Karlsson.

Leon Darisaitl scored his second of the night at 13:55, on the power play. Zach Hyman caught a cross- ice pass from Connor McDavid and sent the puck to the net for Draisaitl to tuck into the net.

Evander Kane scored into an empty net at 17:18, with assists to McDavid and Yamamoto.

The Sharks were outshot 41-30 and won 49% of the face-offs. Their power play had four shots in two opportunities.

The Sharks next play on Saturday at home against the Anaheim Ducks at 7:30 PM PT.