NHL Podcast with Matt Harrington: Pens Crosby trying to make comeback after wrist surgery; Knights Martinez out with undisclosed injury; plus more news

The Pittsburgh Penguins Sid Crosby is trying to make a come back after having wrist surgery on Sep 8, 2021. He’s trying to return to morning skates and practices. (NHL.com file photo)

On the NHL podcast with Matt Harrington:

#1 Matt talk about how hampered the Pittsburgh Penguins are without someone like Sid Crosby in the line up. Crosby said he’s trying to come back from wrist surgery and has missed two morning skates and practices. Crosby had the surgery on Sep 8th from an injury that he got back on Mar 23, 2014.

#2 Matt talk about the Vegas Golden Knights Alec Martinez who is out with undisclosed injury. Martinez did not play on Friday against the Edmonton Oilers and got the injury during the third period against the St Louis Blues on Wednesday. The Knights did not disclose how long Martinez will be out. Also the Knights forward Mattias Janmark played his first game after coming off Covid 19 protocols.

#3 The Anaheim Ducks Max Jones is out from four to six months with a pectoral muscle injury. Jones who played in two games this season has no points in two games this season and Ducks general manager Bob Murray says it’s a tough blow for the team.

#4 The arena formerly known as the Key Arena now Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle will be open for business on Saturday night for the inaugural season for the Seattle Kraken as they host what could be their rivals the Vancouver Canucks. Matt, amongst the amenities a spacious dressing room, hanging scoreboards, and luxury suites. Should be a great venue for the new NHL team.

#5 The Edmonton Oilers have got off to a great start winning their first four games of the season and having the top three players in categories to lead the league, Conner McDavid with six goals and 11 points and Leon Draisaitl with six assists which explains why their off to such a great start.

Join Matt for the NHL podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

https://soundcloud.com/sports-radio-service/nhl-podcast-with-matt-harrington-sat-oct-23-2021

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks on five game road trip three wins and two to go

Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Michael Hutchinson (30) lays on top of the puck as the San Jose Sharks’ Andrew Cogliano (11) and Matt Nieto (83) try to dig it during the third period at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Thu Oct 22, 2021 (Canadian Press photo)

On the Sharks podcast with Len:

#1 The San Jose Sharks (4-0-0) it seems like no one can get in their way as they picked up their fourth straight win this time over the Toronto Maple Leafs (2-2-1) 5-3 at Scotiabank in Toronto on Friday night.

#2 The Sharks drew first blood in the second period scoring twice and three times in the third period that speaks to their offense and they made work of Leafs goalie Michael Hutchinson who faced 30 shots stopping 26.

#3 Timo Meier, Erik Karlsson and Jonathan Dahlen all scored a goal each and two from Logan Couture. Talk about the goal contribution the Sharks have been getting from those four on Friday night in Toronto.

#4 Looking back on the Sharks game in Ottawa the Sharks Erik Karlsson a former Senator let one slip on the air while being interviewed by TSN’s Gord Miller the former Senator Karlsson was congratulated by Miller for picking up his first point against the Senators and said “that don’t mean s-word.” Karlsson said they haven’t got the points yet when he was interviewed with 20 minutes left but said it was nice to be back.

#5 The Sharks are in Boston (2-1-0) for their next game on this five game road trip the fourth of the five. The Bruins always a tough customer took it to the Buffalo Sabers (3-1-1) 4-1 on Friday night in Buffalo. Getting got defensive help from goaltender Linus Ullmark stopping 35 out of 36 shots.

Catch the Sharks podcasts with Len each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Defeat Maple Leafs 5-3; Sharks undefeated at 4-0

The San Jose Sharks Logan Couture goes for the victory skate in front of the Sharks bench after scoring a second period goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Fri Oct 22, 2021 (Canadian Press photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks won their fourth in a row, beating the Maple Leafs 5-3 in Toronto. Sharks goals came from Timo Meier, Erik Karlsson and Jonathan Dahlen and two from Logan Couture. Adin Hill made 30 saves for the win. Jason Spezza, Ondrej Kase, and John Tavares scored for Toronto. Michael Hutchinson made 26 saves in the loss.

In a scoreless first period, the teams were tied in shots at 11 each. They each had one single-shot power play.

Logan Couture got the scoring started at 2:31 of the second period. He was the beneficiary of a dogged play by Marc-Edouard Vlasic. Off the face-off, Vlasic skated down and took a shot. The shot rebounded but he was already there to collect it, carry it behind the net to try for a wrap-around. That needed a little help and Couture was there to finish it off.

Jason Spezza tied it up with a quick shot from the slot at 3:27. The Sharks stopped several shots and attempts before Spezza’s got through. Wayne Simmonds got the assist.

Timo Meier gave the Sharks another lead less than 20 seconds later. His shot from the wall zipped through before Hutchinson could even see it.

Those three goals were scored in the space of just one minute and 13 seconds.

Ondrej Kase tied the game again at 10:44. After a flurry of activity in the Maple Leafs’ zone, Kase broke away for a clear shot at Hill. A little fake before a backhand shot tricked Hill and the puck went past the prone goaltender. The Sharks looked outmatched in the face-off circle, winning just 35% of the draws.

Erik Karlsson scored a little over a minute later to give the Sharks their lead back. Karlsson took the shot from the blue line and it went by a few bodies before sneaking into the short side top corner. An assist went to Middleton, who kept the puck in after Karlsson’s first shot and then got the puck back to Karlsson for the scoring shot.

The teams were tied in shots again in the second period, this time 12-12. In face-offs, the Sharks improved a bit, to a win percentage of 47. There were no penalties in the period.

25 seconds into the third period, Logan Couture passed the puck back from the goal line to the front of the net for Jonathan Dahlen. Dahlen put the puck in the net for San Jose’s fourth of the night. Assists went to Couture and Meier.

John Tavares got one back for Toronto at 13:39. William Nylander’s shot hit Adin Hill up high and spun into the air. It landed and hit Tavares’ skate before bouncing off of Middleton and into the net. Assists went to Nylander and Jake Muzzin.

Logan Couture scored into the empty net with 40 seconds left in the period. Andrew Cogliano got the assist.

The third period was by far the Sharks’ best in the face-off circle. They won 61% of those draws for a game total of 48%. Their power play got three shots on goal and their penalty kill gave up three shots. The final shot count for the game was 33-31 Toronto.

The Sharks next play on Sunday in Boston against the Bruins at 10:00 AM PT.

Sharks Beat Senators 2-1; SJ improves record to 3-0

The San Jose Sharks Logan Couture (39) scores a second period goal on the Ottawa Senators goaltender Matt Murray (30) one of two goals enough for the Sharks to win it at the Canadian Tire Center in Ottawa on Thu Oct 21, 2021 (Canadian Press news photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks won their third in a row, winning 2-1 against the Senators in Ottawa. Logan Couture and Kevin Labanc scored for San Jose, and James Reimer made 30 saves for the win. Drake Batherson scored for Ottawa and Matt Murray made 22 saves in the loss. For Sharks defenseman Brent Burns, Thursday’s contest was his 600th consecutive game. He earned an assist and skated for 25:56.

Sharks Captain Logan Couture said that the key to this win was work:

“We didn’t have our best legs tonight. We didn’t have our best, we turned too many pucks over throughout that game. [Reimer] made some big saves, especially early in that third, but we just worked. Blocked shots at the ends, Reims stepped up huge, stuck together as a team.”

Sharks defenseman and ex-Senator, Erik Karlsson, said:

“This was a great win for us. I don’t think that we played good at all. This was our sloppy game. I feel like you could tell that they had a little bit more energy, they got a little bit more bounces, they were a little bit hungrier. But we thought we might win, that’s the most important thing.”

The Senators’ Drake Batherson scored the only first period goal, at 10:06. A Sharks three-on-two turned into a Senators two-on-one as Sharks scrambled to get back. Batherson opted to shoot instead of passing to Josh Norris and squeezed the puck under Reimer’s arm for his first of the season. Assists went to Brady Tkachuk and Artem Zub.

Midway through the period, the teams took almost simultaneous penalties and played most of two minutes four-on-four. During that time, Kevin Labanc put the puck in the net but the Senators challenged it for off-side and got it called back. Both Brent Burns and Nick Bonino had their skates in the zone before the puck crossed the line. While Burns was legal, since he had control of the puck, that exception did not extend to Bonino.

The Senators were short one forward as Shane Pinto sustained a shoulder injury during his first shift of the first period. He attempted to return for the second but left again after just one shift.

Shots were almost even at 8-7 Senators for the first period. Face-offs were also close, with the Sharks holding a slight edge at 58%. Both teams took penalties in the final minute of the period, so that the Senators had part of a power play to start the second period.

The Sharks killed that penalty off and tied the game with a goal from Logan Couture at 1:58. Brent Burns’ pass from the point found Couture right above the blue paint. Couture tapped the puck into an open net, as Murray was on the wrong side of the crease. Burns and Timo Meier got assists.

Kevin Labanc got his goal back on the power play at 14:36, giving the Sharks a 2-1 lead. Erik Karlsson sent the puck to Labanc at the top of the face-off circle for a quick shot through traffic. Jasper Weatherby created a good screen in front of the goaltender. Assists went to Karlsson and William Eklund.

Shots were even closer in the second, 13-12 Senators. Ottawa took two penalties in the second period, and the Sharks power play tallied four shots. The Senators power play had two shots. The Senators bounced back in the face-off circle, winning 71% of the draws.

In the third period, the Sharks rebounded in the face-off circle, winning 60% of the draws. The shots were very uneven in the final frame, at 11-4 Senators. The Sharks penalty kill gave up just one shot.

The Sharks next play on Friday in Toronto against the Maple Leafs at 3:00 PM PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh podcast: Sharks get help from rookie Dalhen scores twice and Hill gets a shutout in Montreal

First period action San Jose Sharks rookie Jonathan Dalhen (76) scores his first goal against the Montreal Canadiens Dalhen receives congratulations from teammates Mario Ferraro (38) and Timo Meier (28) as the Habs Nick Suzuki (14) can only skate away at the Bell Centre in Montreal on Tue Oct 19, 2021 (Canadian Press photo)

On the Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 San Jose Sharks (2-0) rookie Jonathan Dalhen scored the two quickest goals from a rookie in franchise history and it certainly fired up the offense who scored a 5-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens (0-4)

#2 It’s too early to tell but Dalhen has really arrived on the scene and head coach Bob Boughner is hoping to see Dalhen more chances if this is going to be something of the norm.

#3 The Sharks certainly have dominated with three goals in the first period setting the tone to start the game leaving the Canadiens off balance for the rest of the contest.

#4 Canadiens goalie Carey Price is away dealing with some mental health issues while Jake Allen started in goal and faced 25 shots and allowed five goals. Was this a matter of the Sharks just were skillfully executing their shots on net or Allen has just been overwhelmed in net for the Habs who are now winless in four games.

#5 The Sharks will head to Ottawa to face the Senators (2-1) on Thursday night at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa. The Sens in their last game just got by the Dallas Stars (1-2) 3-2. The Senators scored early with a goal in the first period and two in the second period the Stars scored twice with former Shark Joe Pavelski picking up one of the two goals. With the Sharks coming in off two straight wins how do you see this match up?

#6 Lastly Evander Kane who is serving a 21 day suspension for using a fake Covid 19 card will not face any discipline by the NHL after the league did not find any evidence that he physically abused his wife Anna. Anna made the claim that Kane bet on the Sharks and hockey but there was no evidence of that and later no evidence that Kane abused his wife. Kane is expected to return on Nov 30th in New Jersey.

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

Sharks Shut Out Canadiens 5-0 in Montreal

San Jose Sharks rookie Jonathan Dahlen (76) holds up the stick after scoring a second period goal on the Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jake Allen (34) the Sharks Nick Bonino (13) and the Canadiens David Savard (58) look on during Tue Oct 19, 2021 game at the Bell Centre in Montreal (Canadian Press photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks (2-0) won their first road game of the season, 5-0 against the Montreal Canadiens (0-4). Jonathan Dahlen scored his first and second NHL goals, the fastest first two goals from a rookie in Sharks history. Erik Karlsson, Timo Meier and Kevin Labanc scored the balance of the goals. Adin Hill made 21 saves in the shut-out win. Jake Allen made 20 saves for the Canadiens.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner talked about how Dahlen fits on the line with Logan Couture and Timo Meier: “Dahlen is a real smart player and I think he’s a good complement to that line. He’s a guy that’s new to the league but you can put him out in situations, like we want to have [Couture] against the other teams’ top lines.”

Sharks Captain Logan Couture also talked about how well his line is working: “Timo’s playing so well and Dahls is such a smart player, easy to play with. I think we read really well off each other.”

Jonathan Dahlen scored the first Sharks goal at 1:22 of the first. Brent Burns caught a pass up the boards from Logan Couture and sent it right down the slot. The puck went off of Timo Meier first, the Dahlen’s stick sent it in. The goal was initially given to Meier,until the second deflection was spotted on review. Meier and Burns got the assists.

Dahlen scored again a little more than two minutes later. Couture carried the puck down the slot and took a shot that hit Allen in the pad. Dahlen arrived just in time to catch the rebound and put the puck in the empty net. The skaters celebrated as if it were Dahlen’s first NHL goal. Evidently he was not sure about the first one either. Assists went to Couture and Meier.

Erik Karlsson made it 3-0 in the final minute of the period. Karlsson’s shot from the blue line snuck through a bit of traffic in front of the net, perhaps even touching a defender. Assists went to Matt Nieto and Mario Ferraro.

The Sharks had to kill one penalty in the first period, giving up no shots, and they had three shots in their one power play. The Sharks out-shot the Canadiens 12-3 in the period, and won 63% of the face-offs.

Timo Meier made it 4-0 with a power play goal at 3:09 of the second period. Couture’s pass from the slot found Meier at the top of the face-off circle. He took a quick wrist shot that got by Allen on the short side. Assists went to Couture and Karlsson.

The Sharks won 85% of the face-offs in the second period, but were out-shot 11-5 by Montreal. Each team had two shots on the power play.

Kevin Labanc Made it 5-0 with a power play goal at 14:31 of the third period. Labanc caught pass from Karlsson and took his shot from the top of the face-off circle. Jasper Weatherby was helping with a screen when the puck went in. Assists went to Karlsson and William Eklund.

The Sharks won 62% of the face-offs in the game, with Jasper Weatherby taking eight draws and winning six. San Jose out-shot Montreal 25-21. Timo Meier contributed seven of those shots.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Ottawa against the Senators at 4:00 PM PT.

In other news, the NHL has suspended Evander Kane for 21 regular season games for using a false COVID-19 vaccination card.

Sharks Start Season With 4-3 Win Over Jets

Winnipeg Jets left wing Nikolaj Ehlers (27) takes the puck past the San Jose Sharks center Andrew Caliano (11) during the second period at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Oct 16, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks won 4-3 in their season opener against the Winnipeg Jets. Sharks rookie forward, Jasper Weatherby, scored his first NHL goal in his first NHL game. Tomas Hertl, Rudolfs Balcers and Andrew Cogliano also scored for the Sharks. Adin Hill made 20 saves for the win. Pierre-Luc Dubois, Andrew Copp and Jansen Harkins scored for the Jets. Connor Hellebuyck made 27 saves for the Jets.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said: “The bench was very cohesive tonight, together, very positive, helping the young guys out, you know, and being able to spread some ice time out and roll four lines was a treat for me.”

Those young guys made a good showing. Jasper Weatherby had a shot, a goal and and assist in 10:25 of ice time. William Eklund had a shot, an assist and a hit in 14:01. Jonathan Dahlen had a shot and a hit in 14:45. Lane Pedersen had four hits in 10:27 of ice time.

Tomas Hertl, explaining his exuberance celebrating the Sharks’ fourth goal, scored by Balcers, said: “It was a lot of fun again, I missed that, you know, just win at home, full crowd, it was amazing.” It has been a long time since the Sharks played for a crowd of 16,000+.

The Jets the only first period goal 4:20 in. Adin Hill had just made an impressive diving stop seconds earlier, when a puck went off of a linesman and surprised everyone by bouncing right to the net. But he was sliding in the wrong direction when Brenden Dillon’s shot was knocked down in front of the net by Pierre-Luc Dubois. Dubois gathered it up and put it away. Assists went to Dillon and Neal Pionk.

The Jets outshot the Sharks 10-6 in the first. The Sharks held a slight edge in the face-off circle, winning 57% of the draws. Each team took a penalty in the final two minutes. The Jets power play got one shot in before taking their own penalty. The teams started the second period 4-on-4 for 29 seconds before the Sharks went on the power play.

Copp scored almost 30 seconds into the Sharks power play, Copp scored short-handed to make it 2-0 Jets. Hill was trying to move the puck away from the net and instead put it into Erik Karlsson’s skates as the defenseman went around behind the net. The puck trickled around the back of the net and Adam Lowry got to it first, then put it in front of the net for Copp to shoot it in.

The Sharks got no shots on goal during that power play. Soon after, the Sharks were back on the penalty kill.

Andrew Cogliano changed things up for the Sharks by scoring short-handed about 25 seconds into the Jets power play. Assists went to Logan Couture and Brent Burns.

Adam Lowry knocked Rudolfs Balcers down with an elbow from behind at 6:44. That led to a fight between Logan Stanley and Jacob Middleton. Middleton acquitted himself well before going to the box to watch his team’s power play. The Sharks power play got one shot on goal.

They had another chance at 11:59. Jasper Weatherby caught a pass from Erik Karlsson at the top of the face-off circle. Weatherby took the a quick shot and beat Hellebuyck on the glove side. Assists went to Karlsson and Kevin Labanc.

The Sharks led the Jets in shots 11-6 for the second. In the face-off circle, they won 53% of the draws.

The Sharks took the lead with a powerplay goal at 3:25 of the third. William Eklund’s shot created a rebound that went right to Tomas Hertl who had an almost open net to shoot at. Assists went to Eklund and Karlsson.

Soon after, Rudolfs Balcers scored another goal for the Sharks while falling into Hellebuyck, who was next to the net instead of in the blue paint. The Jets took issue with that and several scrums broke out by the Winnipeg net. Assists on the goal went to Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl.

The Jets got one back at 13:28. The Sharks had just killed off a Jets power play and scored an empty net goal that didn’t count due to a player being off side. Jansen Harkins knocked a rebound in after Stanley’s slapshot created a big rebound. Assists went to Stanley and Josh Morrissey.

The Sharks won 69% of the third period draws, bumping their game total up to 59%. They led in shots 31-23 for the game.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday in Montreal against the Canadiens at 4:00 PM PT.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Hill named by Boughner to work between the pipes for tonight’s opener

The San Jose Sharks goaltender (33) Adin Hill will get the start against the Edmonton Oilers in the home opener at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Oct 16, 2021 (Mercury News file photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 Len, Sharks head coach has named Adin Hill to start in goal on Saturday night against the Winnipeg Jets but it’s not an indication that he will be the starter is this a test drive.

#2 The Sharks open a five game road trip starting in Montreal on Tuesday night will Boughner look at alternating goaltenders throughout the trip to get an idea who may have the hot hand?

#3 “My message was, I don’t think I’m making anybody a (No. 1) or a 1A,” Boughner told the Mercury News “These guys will have to compete all year for the net.”

#4 Len talk about the other goaltender James Reimer he was in goal for the Sharks minor league affiliate the Barracuda loads of experience with 173 wins and 131 loses, 11 years of NHL experience and Boughner is hoping these goaltenders can be reliable all season long.

#5 The Edmonton Oilers star player Conner McDavid who led the Oilers with 33 goals last season, got two points and two assists against the Vancouver Canucks last Wednesday at Rogers Place in Edmonton. The Oilers picked up an opening night win 3-2 in a shootout that’s a narrow contest how much of contest will the Oilers offense put up when they skate against Hill in net for the Sharks?

Join Len for the Sharks podcasts each Saturday night at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: Predators pay banner tribute in loss to Kraken; CBJ’s remember their late goalie Matiss Kivlenieks; plus more

Virtual banner by the Nashville Predators congratulating the Seattle Kraken on their very first franchise win against the Predators in Nashville on Thu Oct 14, 2021 (photo from nhl.com)

On the NHL podcast with Matt:

#1 The Nashville Predators paid tribute to the Seattle Kraken with a virtual banner saying “Gave Seattle First Franchise Win” after Seattle got win on Thursday in Nashville. The Kraken said it was a bit of southern hospitality.

#2 The Columbus Blue Jackets paid tribute to late goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks on Thursday. Kivlenieks died in a fireworks accident in July. The CBJs had #80 also embossed under the ice surface in memory of Kivlenieks.

#3 Matt talk about the New York Islanders long road trip which has them embarking on a 13 game road trip to open their season because they are waiting for UBS Arena in Elmont to be finished the Isles new home.

#4 Matt talk about Charlie McAvoy signing with the Boston Bruins for $76 million which translates into $9 million annually. McAvoy scored 30 points and was tops in ice time last season.

#5 The Detroit Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin was suspended for roughing Tampa Bay Lightning forward Mathieu Joseph in last Thursday Oct 14th’s game. Larkin will loose $30,500 for the one game loss and the money will go to the players emergency fund.

Matt does the NHL podcasts each Saturday night at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Fan favorite Drew Remenda will do color on Sharks radio this season; plus more Sharks news

San Jose Sharks radio analyst Drew Remenda joins play by play announcer Dan Rusanowsky for the Sharks 2021-22 season. Remenda is best remembered for doing TV work with Sharks play by play announcer Randy Hahn (file photo from Bay Area 4 Bar Stool)

On the Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 Former San Jose Sharks fan favorite Drew Remenda returns to the Sharks broadcasts this time as color announcer on radio. Remenda who worked with the Sharks last season doing a few Sharks games but will be doing all Sharks games on radio with Dan Rusanowsky this season.

#2 Remenda left the Sharks in 2015 to do Edmonton Oilers games on TV as color analyst. Remenda will also be joined on the radio side by Scott Hannan, Bret Hedican, Mark Smith.

#3 The Sharks have left Evander Kane off their opening night roster for this Saturday night’s game against the Jets. The Sharks are waiting for the NHL’s investigation results regarding Kane’s wife’s accusation that he assaulted her.

#4 Kane’s $7 million contract for this season will not impact the Sharks cap and gives San Jose some $8.8 million in cap room going into opening night.

#5 The NHL nor league Commissioner Gary Bettman has not suspended Kane under the code of conduct rules. The Commissioner can also cancel Kane’s contract but most likely the league is waiting on the results of the assault accusation.

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