Sharks Blank Kings 5-0, Hill Back in Net

San Jose Sharks defenseman Jacob Middleton (21), goaltender Adin Hill (33), left wing Jeffrey Viel (63) and defenseman Brent Burns (88) celebrate a shutout victory over the Los Angeles Kings at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Mar 12, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks shutout the Los Angeles Kings 5-0 Saturday night in San Jose. Five goals again? The Kings must be having nightmares about the Sharks and five-goal games. This time, those five were not all scored by Timo Meier. Meier did score one, as did Matt Nieto and Jonathan Dahlen. Tomas Hertl scored two. Adin Hill made 29 saves for the shutout win, his first start in six weeks. Cal Petersen made 22 saves for the Kings.

After the game, Sharks goaltender Adin Hill said: “It felt pretty good. I mean, the guys did a hell of a job in front of me tonight and kept chances to a minimum and boxed guys out and made my job simple.”

Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner talked about the difference it makes to have “full time” players back in the lineup:

“It’s nice, we’re just rolling our bench, we get contributions from every line, and, you know, can spread ice time out. And we’re staying out of the penalty box, that’s a big difference. Tommy Hertl and [Couture] and those guys aren’t playing those heavy heavy minutes and that makes a big difference for their offense.”

Timo Meier scored at 9:19, on the power play. Brent Burns made a pass from below the goal line, through the traffic in front of the net, to Meier up in the slot. Assists went to Burns and Nick Bonino.

Matt Nieto made it 2-0 at 11:55. Bonino got to the puck behind the net, then made a reverse pass off the back of the net to Nieto by the post. Petersen was caught off guard by the change of direction and Nieto was able to put the puck over his pad for his fifth of the season.

Jonathan Dahlen scored at 19:11. Timo Meier stole the puck along the boards and centered it quickly for Dahlen in the slot.

Each team had a power play in the first period. The Sharks scored with their first shot on the power play. Their penalty kill allowed three shots to the Kings. The shot count for the period was 15-11 Kings.

Hertl scored his first goal of the night on the power play at 8:05 of the second. Timo Meier took a shot from above the circle, it went off the post, then bounced off of Logan Couture and back across the blue paint to the other side of the net. Hertl was there to put it away. Assists went to Couture and Meier.

The Sharks had a goal waved off for goaltender interference at 14:38. The initial shot came from Scott Reedy but it wasn’t clear who last touched the puck as it bounced around in a pile of bodies at the crease.

The Sharks had the only power play in the second period, and again scored on their first shot. The shot count for the period was 12-8.

Hertl scored his second at 15:04 of the third period. Alexander Barabanov played the puck off the skate of Rudolfs Balcers so that it went through the blue paint to where Hertl was on hand to put it over the line. Assists went to Balcers and Barabanov.

In the third period there were three penalties called, two that resulted in four-on-four play and one that came with just three seconds left. The shot count for the period was 6-4 Kings. In the face-off circle, the Sharks dominated the first period with 63% of the wins, but they dropped down to 31% and 33% in the second and third periods for a game total of 45%.

The Sharks will host the Florida Panthers on Tuesday at 7:30 PM PT.

Sharks Fall 3-1 to Bruins

Boston Bruins left wing Taylor Hall (71) goes after the puck and San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro (38) slides into the dash boards at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Feb 26, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks fell 3-1 to the visiting Boston Bruins Saturday night. The Bruins got two goals from Brad Marchand and one from Patrice Bergeron. Jeremy Swayman made 15 saves for the win. Timo Meier scored for San Jose and James Reimer made 34 saves in the loss.

The Sharks have not beaten the Bruins since 2016, and this year’s Boston team is clearly a contender. So the loss was not surprising. But it did highlight some ongoing issues for the Sharks. The Sharks had just 16 shots on goal in the game, a low for the season. Their power play, however, continues to produce at a good clip, with nine goals in their last nine games. But their inability to score first is looming large. They have given up the first goal in eight games in a row.

Defenseman Mario Ferraro had to be helped off the ice midway through the second period. The Sharks have used eleven defensemen this season. Nicolas Meloche is also out with injury now, and Erik Karlsson is still recovering from surgery.

Also in the troublesome injury category is the fact that James Reimer played his tenth game in a row Saturday, and may play his eleventh tomorrow. It would not be unreasonable to expect to see Zach Sawchenko in net Sunday, if Adin Hill is still not recovered from his injury. If ever there were a good reason to put an untested goalie in net, ten starts in a row would be it.

Brad Marchand gave the Bruins a lead at 14:24 of the first period. Jake Debrusk carried the puck in with Marchand two-on-one. Debrusk made the pass and Marchand put it past Mario Ferraro and Reimer for his 22nd of the season. Assists went to Debrusk and Erik Haula.

The Sharks tied it up at 12:50 of the second with a power play goal from Timo Meier. Brent Burns, midway up the slot, faked a shot before making a mass to Meier in the face-off circle. Meier’s one-timer beat Swayman on the glove side. Assists went to Burns and Logan Couture.

Early in the third period, Brad Marchand scored his second of the night to make it 2-1 Bruins. Taylor Hall made a backwards pass from the goal line to the left of the net across to the circle on the right side of the net. That is where the pass found Marchand for the game-winning shot. Assists went to Hall and Craig Smith.

Patrice Bergeron added another for the Bruins with just 40 seconds left in the game. David Pastrnak skated in as if to shoot, but then centered the puck for Bergeron. Bergeron put it past Couture and Reimer both for his 14th of the season. Assists went to Pastrnak and Marchand.

The Sharks next play on Sunday at 7:00 PM PT, in San Jose against the Seattle Kraken.

Sharks Lose 5-4 in OT to Canucks, 5th Loss in a Row

Vancouver Canucks right wing Brock Boeser (6), Matthew Highmore (15), center J.T. Miller (9) and Conor Garland (8) celebrate Miller’s goal in overtime at the SAP Center in San Jose on Thu Feb 17, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks lost 5-4 in OT to the Vancouver Canucks Thursday. Juho Lammikko, Brock Boeser, Quinn Hughes, Connor Garland, and J.T. Miller scored for Vancouver. Thatcher Demko made 24 saves for the win. Logan Couture, Timo Meier ad Alexander Barabanov scored for San Jose, with two goals from Meier. James Reimer, making his sixth start in a row, made 22 saves in the loss.

In the first period, the Sharks were badly outshot, 15-4. In the second, the Sharks pushed back and had 15 shots to the Canucks’ 5, and in the third the Sharks had 9 shots to the Canucks’ 5. The Sharks had no shots in overtime. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said:

“I think the shots were something like 24,25-10 in the last two periods. I thought we had a lot of good looks. So, yeah, that’s our identity, that’s how we gotta play. I think if we could play the way we played in the last two periods, we’re going to get our fair share of points down the stretch but we’ve got to start on time.”

Sharks forward Tomas Hertl summed it up as: “We need effort for 60 minutes otherwise we will not win games here.”

Brock Boeser scored the first goal for Vancouver at 14:54 of the first. Skating to the net, with traffic in front of Reimer, Boeser shifted around the traffic and found an opening. He put the puck in the to top corner on Reimer’s glove side. Assists went to J.T. Miller and Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

Quinn Hughes scored at 17:40 to make it 2-0. Hughes took a shot from the point that bounced under Michael Highmore, back into the air and past Reimer.

Logan Couture got the Sharks on the board 3:35 into the second period. Couture seemed to be making a pass to Gregor but the puck hit the stick of Tyler Meyers and went into the Vancouver net. Assists went to Matt Nieto and Noah Gregor.

Juho Lammikko restored the Canucks’ two-goal lead at 10:49. Kyle Burroughs took a shot from high in the slot and the puck went off of Lammikko and into the net. An assist went to Burroughs.

Timo Meier scored on the power play to cut the lead back down to one at 14:03. Tomas Hertl passed it to him from below the goal line. Meier found a small gap to put the puck between Demko and the post. Assists went to Hertl and Alexander Barabanov.

Meier scored a second power play goal to tie it just 45 seconds into the third. This time he took the shot from above the right face-off circle. Demko had lost track of the puck and Meier had an open net to shoot at. Assists again went to Hertl and Barabanov.

Vancouver grabbed the lead back at 14:23 with a goal from Connor Garland. During a scramble in front of the net, Garland found the puck and put it in.

In the final second of the third, with the Sharks net empty, Alexander Barabanov tied the game with a shot from just above the goal line. Assists went to Meier and Brent Burns.

J.T. Miller scored the game winner during a delayed penalty with a shot into the top corner over Reimer’s stick. Assists went to Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes.

The Sharks were dominant in the face-off circle through all three periods, winning 33 of 55 draws. The Sharks power play had seven shots, and their penalty kill gave up 3.

The Sharks next play on Sunday at 5:00 PM PT against the Vegas Golden Knights in San Jose.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Meier earned every bit of his All Star selection in Vegas

San Jose Sharks right wing Timo Meier (28) waves to the SAP Center crowd in San Jose against the Los Angeles Kings on Mon Jan 17, 2022 when Meier scored five goals in one game (AP News file photo)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 Len we’ve been remote from the T Mobile Center in Las Vegas for the NHL All Star game and representing the San Jose Sharks is Timo Meier.

#2 Former Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer who coached Meier said of Meier that when you draft somebody as high as Meier DeBoer said he was everything you expected him to be.

#3 Meier has 21 goals and 26 assists in the first half of the season and has been a huge part of the Sharks offense and one of the big reasons for some of those key Sharks wins.

#4 Meier also has had a number hat tricks and there was the one game when Meier scored not only a hat trick but topped it with five goals against the Los Angeles Kings on Martin Luther King Day on Jan 17th at SAP Center in San Jose.

#5 Len, DeBoer who is the current head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights says that he’s proud of the work that Meier has done says he’s worked at his game and is coachable and DeBoer added he really enjoyed coaching him.

Join Len Shapiro does the San Jose Sharks podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Welcomed In, Then Ushered Out: Kraken seize Sharks first trip to Seattle, win 3-2

By Morris Phillips

SEATTLE–In the NHL, physical confrontations win games. They create lingering animosity, spark rivalries and snap losing spells too.

Mark Giordano knows better than anyone. The 38-year old played 949 games in a Flames sweater, followed by a mere 33 games with expansion Seattle, but enough hockey to provide him the savvy to sense an opening by dropping the gloves with 20-year old Adam Raska of the Sharks.

Giordano’s instincts, and fists highlighted his well-rounded evening on the ice as the Kraken rallied to defeat the Sharks 3-2 in San Jose’s first NHL visit to Seattle.

The Sharks failed to leapfrog the Kings and Ducks in tightly-bunched Pacific Division standings while the Kraken won in regulation for the first time in a month ruptured by a pair of COVID interruptions that forced the team into seven game cancelations.

“The consistency in our game wasn’t there early,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. “I give our guys credit for stepping up in the second and third period and finding a way to get it done.”

The Sharks needed just 38 seconds to introduce themselves to the Climate Pledge Arena crowd with Tomas Hertl’s goal assisted by Alexander Barabanov. The goal was Hertl’s team-leading 21st, and Barabanov contributed on his first shift after missing three games due to COVID protocols.

The first period was an illustration of the host’s struggles, which saw them drop nine straight before beating the Blackhawks on Monday. Talented and experienced in the realm of league expansion teams, the Kraken have seen their developing chemistry suffer under the weight of the two, inactive periods due to the virus. In the first 24 minutes Thursday, the Kraken gave the puck away five times and afforded the Sharks precious, additional scoring opportunities.

But all that disjointed play ended when Mason Appleton maintained control despite taking a big hit against the wall, then shuttled the puck to an open Carson Soucy, who delivered the Kraken’s first goal from inside the face-off circle.

Soucy’s goal enlivened the crowd, and a subsequent goal that was waved off for offsides upon video review, didn’t see that momentum to dissipate. Again Soucy stepped up, battling his way through traffic for a second goal four minutes after the first, putting the Kraken up, 2-1.

Two penalties against the Sharks followed that for seven seconds gave Seattle a 5 on 3 advantage. Both were killed, but San Jose’s biggest threats, Timo Meier and Hertl missed ice time as the penalty killers worked. The momentum swung to the Kraken and their crowd.

“After the first, we stopped playing,” Hertl said. “They were all over us, they managed the game better and we couldn’t find a way. It’s a tough loss because everybody knows what is coming–the last five games before the break.”

Giordano was already having a big night with an assist and some gritty defensive stops. When Raska drew a cross checking penalty from Soucy, the 6’1″ Giordano got in Raska’s face accusing him of being a bit of an actor. The gloves dropped, the punches flew and the crowd howled. Both players were assessed fighting majors.

For Raska, in just his fourth NHL game, it was a lesson that left him overwhelmed. For Giordano, experiencing his first fighting major in three years was a cerebral act and in some ways a game decider.

Philipp Grubauer, the Kraken’s goaltender countered a very disappointing month with a pair of saves on Hertl, one each on Brett Burns and Barbarov, as well as corraling Meier’s breakaway opportunity earlier in the period. He finished with 22 saves.

The Sharks had chances. Along with the giveaways they were afforded, they went 1 of 6 on the power play, and saw Seattle’s Riley Sheahan win 12 of his 17 faceoffs, most of those in special team situations.

Calle Jarnkrok put the Kraken up 3-1 in the third with Giordano picking up his second assist.

The Kraken’s pair of wins in their first two encounters with San Jose puts them in the company of the 1998 Predators and 2017 Golden Knights as the only expansion teams to defeat the Sharks consecutively.

Meier kept up his torrid goal scoring streak by cashing in a power play opportunity in the third that trimmed the Sharks deficit to 3-2. Despite another power play opportunity in the game’s final two minutes, the Sharks were denied.

Adin Hill had 16 saves for the Sharks as he got the starting assignment in place of James Reimer. Hill avoided disaster in the third period when he found himself out of the crease with the Kraken on the attack, but he gave his team a chance. Still, the loss was Hill’s 12th, the most he’s had in any of his five NHL seasons.

The Sharks next skate on Saturday at home in a difficult match-up with Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning, who are atop the Atlantic Division along with the Florida Panthers.

SHARKS’ GOAL SCORING CONUNDRUM: The Sharks aren’t particularly adept at scoring goals, ranking 22nd in the NHL with 2.76 goals per game. However, Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl are tied for seventh in individual goal scoring with 21 each. The issue? What if either misses extended time in the season’s second half, which for the Sharks, begins on Saturday with a home date with the Lightning? The burden for goal scoring falls upon Logan Couture and Brent Burns, and neither is suited to be a front line sniper.

Could the team be in the market for another goal scorer in the trade market? Most likely, yes.

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Meier Scores 5, Sharks Beat Kings 6-2; It’s Timo Time all the time

San Jose Sharks right wing Timo Meier (28) raises the puck high, Meier scored five goals against the Los Angeles Kings on Martin Luther King Day at SAP Center in San Jose on Mon Jan 17, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE– Timo Meier scored five goals in the San Jose Sharks (21-17-2) 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings (20-14-5) Monday afternoon. It was the first time in Sharks history that a Shark scored that many in one game. Rudolfs Balcers also scored, for the second game in a row. James Reimer made 39 saves for the win. Anze Kopitar and Mikey Anderson scored for the Kings and Jonathan Quick made 11 saves in the loss.

Apart from Meier’s stunning play Monday, the game also saw the Sharks’ struggling power play score twice, Tomas Hertl earn four assists and Erik Karlsson get three, including his 500th.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach talked about the game:

“I’m very happy and proud for Timo, I think he’s put a lot of hard work in. For our team, a team that hasn’t scored a lot and has played well of late and hasn’t gotten quite the results that I think we deserve, it was nice to see, as a team, one of our big guys go off like that.”

Timo Meier scored his first of the afternoon at 3:02 on the power play. From just inside the left face-off dot, Meier caught a cross-ice pass from Brent Burns and whipped into the net on the short side. Assists went to Burns and Erik Karlsson.

Rudolfs Balcers made it 2-0 at 15:56 of the first. Balcers sent the puck out of his zone to Hertl in the neutral zone. Hertl carried the puck along the blue line before shooting it right down the slot. Balcers caught it with the back of his stick and then shot it past Quick on the glove side.

Meier scored his second at 18:48, unassisted. While he skated across in front of the blue paint, the puck went off of his skate. He spun and gathered it up for a quick roofer.

He completed the hat trick 21 seconds later. Hertl dug the puck out of the corner and got it to Meier in a nice shooting spot. Meier’s shot did not go in but he moved to the other side of the net and cleaned up a rebound. Hertl got the assist.

The busy final minute was not over, as Anze Kopitar scored for Los Angeles with just 16 seconds left in the period. Kopitar took advantage of a turnover at the blue line and then charged into the zone for a shot from outside the face-off dot.

Meier started working a second hatty to start the second period, with another power play goal at 1:24. He caught a cross-ice pass from Erik Karlsson just outside the face-off dot and scored with a quick wrist shot. Assists went to Karlsson and Hertl.

Meier scored his fifth goal at 19:32 of the second. He caught a cross-ice pass from Hertl, brought the puck around a defender with a toe drag. He shot it past Quick’s glove, off the post and in. Assists went to Hertl and Karlsson.

Mikey Anderson scored the only third period goal to make it 6-2. Drew Doughty centered the puck from low in the zone and Anderson tipped it in. Assists went to Doughty and Viktor Arvidsson.

The Kings out-shot the Sharks 41-17 in the game. The Sharks had three power plays, scored on two of them with two shots. The Sharks’ penalty kill allowed four shots through three penalties. In the face-off circle, the Kings prevailed with 53% of the draws.

The Sharks next play in Seattle against the Kraken on Thursday at 7:00 PM PT.

Sharks Shut Out By Rangers and Shesterkin 3-0; Three game win streak comes to an end

New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin, left, who threw a shutout against the San Jose Sharks and center Jasper Weatherby (26) stops a shot on net at SAP Center in San Jose on Thu Jan 13, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks fell 3-0 to the New York Rangers in San Jose Thursday. Chris Kreider scored twice, Braden Schneider scored once for New York and Igor Shesterkin made 37 saves for the shut-out. Adin Hill made 28 saves for the Sharks.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner said:

“Tonight I thought we played a good game. I don’t think that we shot ourselves in the foot or, you know, we got dominated in any single area. I thought that Shesterkin made some great saves early. We couldn’t find the goal we needed. We fought hard and the difference I think was giving up a shorty.”

Timo Meier, recently selected for the 2022 All Star Game, talked about the loss: “We were right there the whole time. We had good legs, I think the energy was good too. From our side. We just couldn’t score, that extra centimeter in front of the net that we couldn’t get tonight.”

Chris Kreider gave the Rangers the lead with a short-handed goal midway through the first period. Mika Zibanejad and Kreider broke away during the Sharks power play and with one pass avoided the Sharks defense and scored. Assists went to Zibanejad and Adam Fox.

The Sharks out-shot the Rangers 10-6 in that period, but their power play gave up two shots and the goal, while only getting one power play shot. The teams were even in the face-off circle at 50% each. In the second period, the Rangers raised their face-off wins to 63% and out-shot the Sharks 13-10.

The Sharks took one penalty early in the period and their penalty kill gave up one shot. The second period was marked by a number of penalties. Timo Meier and Jacob Trouba scuffled and received matching minors. Jeffrey Viel then fought Trouba shortly after Trouba exited the box.

Braden Schneider scored his first NHL goal at 1:27 of the third, making it 2-0 Rangers. A turnover at the blue line left the Sharks in disarray while the Rangers went on the attack. Schneider arrived late and got a shot away before anyone picked him up. Assists went to Ryan Strome and Filip Chytil.

The Sharks had a late power play, out-shot the Rangers 17-12, and pulled their goaltender in the final minute to no avail. Chris Kreider scored his 200th goal into an empty net. Kevin Rooney got the assist.

The Sharks did improve in the face-off circle during the third period, winning 65% of the draws.

The Sharks next play on Saturday, in San Jose against the Pittsburgh Penguins at 7:30 PM PT. Nick Bonino has come off of the COVID-19 list and played Thursday. Alexander Barabanov has been put on the list so he will miss some time.

Sharks Beat Red Wings 3-2 in OT; Fifth win out of last eight for SJ

San Jose Sharks center Logan Couture (39) gets the puck past Detroit Red Wings goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (39) as Nick Leddy (2) defends for the game winning goal in overtime at the SAP Center in San Jose on Tue Jan 11, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE– The San Jose Sharks beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in overtime in San Jose on Tuesday. Timo Meier, Jeffrey Viel and Logan Couture scored for San Jose. Adin Hill made 17 saves for the win. Tyler Bertuzzi and Nick Leddy scored for Detroit and Alex Nedeljkovic made 37 saves in the loss.

The Sharks played Red Wings just a week ago in Detroit, and lost 6-2. That was the game when Jacob Middleton was injured in a hit from Givani Smith. The Sharks responded by giving up two short-handed goals in the ensuing five minute major. Early in the first period on Tuesday, Jeffrey Viel and Givani Smith fought and went to the box.

The Sharks took a 1-0 lead at 14:24 with a power play goal from Timo Meier. Jonathan Dahlen carried the puck almost to the goal line before making a backhand pass, through traffic, across the slot to Timo Meier right in front of the goal. Nedeljkovic could not get across in time to stop Meier’s 15th goal of the season. Assists went to Dahlen and Brent Burns.

The Sharks had two power plays in the first period, and had three shots and the goal. Their penalty kill gave up no shots in their one kill.

The Red Wings tied it at 19:38 of the second period, with a two man advantage. Filip Hronek sent the puck to the net from the blue line and Tyler Bertuzzi deflected it in. Assists went to Hronek and Mortiz Seider.

In the second period, the Sharks had one power play and got two shots. Their three-man penalty kill gave up the one shot that went in the net.

The Red Wings took the lead at 1:48 of the third with a goal from Nick Leddy, who carried the puck from one end of the ice to the other and then took a shot around Ryan Merkley. The puck went over Hill’s shoulder for Leddy’s first NHL goal. Assists went to Hronek and Bertuzzi.

Jeffrey Viel tied it back up at 3:18. Viel was chasing the puck to the net when he lost his footing with some help from a defender. He ended up sliding into the net himself and making some contact with the goaltender. An assist went to Brent Burns.

The Sharks pressed hard in the final minutes of the period, but Nedeljkovic held his ground and the game went to overtime.

Logan Couture scored with the Sharks’ only overtime shot. Brent Burns took a shot from the left side of the net and the puck went under the goaltender, coming to rest just above the goal line. Logan Couture was falling down on the other side of the net after fighting for space. He was able to reach across with his stick and nudge the puck over the line. Assists went to Burns and Dahlen.

After a lengthy review in Toronto, the goal was allowed. The review was for off-side and may have also been about the octopus that was thrown onto the ice during play.

The Sharks out-shot the Red Wings 40-19, and did so in each period, 12-6 in the first, 14-6 in the second and 13-6 in the third. The Sharks also led in the face-off circle, winning 52% of the draws.

The Sharks next play on Thursday, in San Jose against the New York Rangers at 7:30 PM PT.

Sharks Win in Buffalo, Beat Sabres 3-2

San Jose Sharks goaltender Adin Hill stops one of the 37 shots he saved against the Buffalo Sabers this one in the first period in Buffalo on Thu Jan 6, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 Thursday. It was just the Sharks’ fourth win in Buffalo in franchise history. Matt Nieto, Timo Meier, and Tomas Hertl scored for the Sharks. Adin Hill made 36 saves for the win. Jeff Skinner and Zemgus Girgensons scored for the Sabres. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 18 saves in the loss.

The Sharks were again without Logan Couture and Jonathan Dahlen but defenseman Mario Ferraro returned to the lineup from the COVID-19 list. Goaltender James Reimer was also unavailable due to a lower body injury of unspecified severity. This puts some pressure on Adin Hill to return to form as the starter.

Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner mentioned that Adin Hill had his swagger back in Thursday’s game, and the team fed off of that confidence. He summed up the team’s performance as: “We weren’t perfect but we were a lot better and it’s a good sign.”

Sharks forward Matt Nieto talked about scoring a goal with his line-mates Andrew Cogliano and Nick Bonino: “We haven’t really created offense the way we would like to. We think we’ve gotten a lot of chances so it’s nice to get one tonight. Hopefully more start coming.”

Nieto started a brief first-period flurry of scoring for the Sharks at 12:27. Andrew Cogliano sent the puck up from the goal line to Nieto inside the face-off dot. Nieto took the shot from an awkward angle but got it by Luukkonen on the blocker side. Assists went to Cogliano and Nick Bonino.

Timo Meier made it 2-0 at 13:44. Tomas Hertl got the puck across the line and then dropped it to Meier. Meier took a quick shot from the point and rang it off the post and in. Assists went to Hertl and Mario Ferraro.

Tomas Hertl made it 3-0 at 17:24. Alexander Barabanov cleared the puck out of the Sharks zone and then chased it down to carry it into the Sabres zone. He dropped it to a trailing Hertl who took the shot from the slot for his 17th of the season.

Jeff Skinner scored for Buffalo at 7:56 of the second. Skinner pulled the puck out of a board battle and carried it to the slot before taking the shot. The puck went over Hill’s stick, off the post and in. Victor Olofsson got the assist.

Zemgus Girgensons made it 3-2 with a power play goal at 18:14 of the third. Tage Thompson took a shot from the point that went off of the bar and came back out to bounce down Hill’s shoulder before landing behind him. Before Hill could find it, Girgensons swept it in. Assists went to Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin.

The Sabres pulled their goaltender with 92 seconds left and made a good push but the Sharks held on.

The Sabres out-shot the Sharks in every period for a shot total of 39-21, and in the third period they out-shot the Sharks 22-5. The Sabres also beat the Sharks in the face-off circle, winning 60% of the draws. The Sharks only had one power play but had no shots on that one. The Sabres had three power plays in which they had seven shots and a goal.

The Sharks’ next game is on Saturday in Philadelphia against the Flyers at 4:00 PM PT.

Sharks Beat Coyotes 8-7 in Shoot-Out

San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl scores as teammates congratulate him in the third period with Jayden Halbgewachs (89), Mario Ferraro (38), Noah Gregor (73) and Brent Burns (88) against the Arizona Coyotes on Tue Dec 28, 2021 at SAP Center in San Jose (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks won 8-7 in a barn-burner against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday. Alexander Barabanov, Nick Bonino, Radim Simek, Jeffrey Viel, Timo Meier, Tomas Hertl and Logan Couture scored for the Sharks. James Reimer made 39 saves for the win. Lawson Crouse (2), Janis Moser(2), Clayton Keller, Shayne Gostisbehere and Andrew Ladd scored for the Coyotes. Scott Wedgewood made 20 saves in the loss.

On Monday, Adin Hill was added to the Sharks COVID-19 protocol list. Jonathan Dahlen and Tomas Hertl were added to the list list on December 21. Brent Burns was put on the list on the 17th, and removed from it on December 26. That made him available to play his 1200th game Tuesday.

Shortly after a fight between Jonah Gadjovich and Jan Jenik, Alexander Barabanov started the scoring at 2:46 of the first period. Logan Couture took a shot from the slot that banked perfectly off of Barabanov and into the net. Couture and Timo Meier got the assists.

Lawson Crouse tied it up at 5:36. Phil Kessel set up the shot with a pass from the corner, to Crouse in the slot.

Nick Bonino made it 2-1 Sharks at 11:22. Bonino started the play by knocking the puck off of Shayne Gostisbehere’s stick. When Andrew Cogliano took a shot, Bonino was on hand to gather the rebound and backhand it in. Assists went to Matt Nieto and Andrew Cogliano.

Janis Moser tied it back up at 17:40, scoring his first NHL goal. Lawson Crouse got the puck away from Brent Burns below the goal line and made a qick pass up to Moser for the shot. An assist went to Crouse.

The Sharks had the only power play of the first period, and had two shots with the man advantage. The Coyotes out-shot the Sharks 14-8 in the first.

Radim Simek gave the Sharks a 3-2 lead at 5:27 of the second period. Tomas Hertl was in front of the net when Simek tooka shot from the blue line. The puck went between Hertl and Janis Moser and over Wedgewood’s glove. Assists went to Jayden Halbgewachs and Marc-Edouard Vlasic.

Jeffrey Viel scored his first NHL goal to give the Sharks a 4-2 lead at 5:34. Viel may have been making a pass to center ice, where Jonah Gadjovich was going to the net. The puck never reached Gadjovich, and instead went off of a Coyote defender and into the net. Assists went to Gadjovich and Lane Pederson.

Clayton Keller got one back for Arizona at 7:48. The Coyotes were having trouble getting through the neutral zone when Phil Kessel found Keller across the ice and in the open. Keller was into the zone and taking the shot before the Sharks could get to him. Assists went to Kessel and Johan Larsson.

Timo Meier restored the Sharks’ two-goal lead at 14:13. With Couture, Barabanov and Meier attacking the net, Meier knocked the puck out of the air and over the goaltender for his 13th of the season. Assists went to Barabanov and Couture.

Janis Moser cut the lead back down to one, with his second NHL goal, on the power play at 19:37. After a failed clear, the Sharks penalty kill was looking weary when Moser took the shot from the blue line. The puck went by five skaters and in. Assists went to Larsson and Loui Eriksson.

The Coyotes had the only second period power play, and had two shots with the man advantage. Arizona out-shot San Jose again, this time 14-11.

Tomas Hertl made it 6-4 at 1:44 of the third. Noah Gregor got the puck to Hertl with a back-hand centering pass from the boards. Hertl put it away with a slap shot, scoring his 15th of the season.

Lawson Crouse scored for Arizona at 7:35. Crouse gathered a loose puck up at the corner of the net, then slipped between Reimer and Erik Karlsson before lifting the puck into the net. Assists went to Dysin Mayo and Phil Kessel.

Logan Couture scored the Sharks’ seventh of the night at 13:00. Still in the neutral zone, Erik Karlsson banked the puck off of the end boards. Barabanov got to it first and the dropped it to Couture for the shot. Assists went to Barabanov and Karlsson.

Shayne Gostisbehere scored for Arizona at 16:51. Gostisbehere took a shot from the blue line that went off of Nick Bonino and in. Assists went to Kessel and Larsson.

Andrew Ladd tied the game at 18:31 on the power play. Ladd was the last Coyote to touch it before it bounced up and over Reimer and into the net. Assists went to Crouse and Gostisbehere.

The Sharks penalty kill gave up 8 shots and a goal in the third period across two penalties. The Sharks power play got no shots on goal in the third. In overtime, the Sharks power play got one shot on goal and gave up two short-handed shots to the Coyotes. The Coyotes won 57% of the face-offs.

The game went to a shootout after a scoreless overtime. Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl scored for San Jose, Nick Schmaltz missed for Arizona and James Reimer stopped Clayton Keller.

The Sharks next play on Thursday at 7:30 PM PT in San Jose against the Philadelphia Flyers.

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On Sunday, Jim Wiley passed away at the age of 71. Wiley was the Sharks’ third Head Coach, coaching the Sharks for most of the 1995-1996 season. He was a professional hockey player for eight years, from 1972-1980. He went on to coach for fourteen years, retiring in 2008.