|
|
Sharks go to work in
SoCal
San Jose wins season series with Kings
3-2
Winning division games are always important, but
they're always sweeter when they come against the Los Angeles Kings. The Sharks
3-2 win at Staples Center on Wednesday night gave the Sharks the edge in the
season series 3-2, but more importantly. it helped them keep pace with the
contenders in the Pacific Division. San Jose sits three points out of the
division lead, and they have two teams ahead of them. The 4-point game also
staked the Sharks to an 8 point lead over the Kings, who sit in the final a
playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Wednesday night's game was an
overnight business trip for the Sharks, who were all business. Playing short
with a rash of injury and illness, the Sharks had to focus their offense.
With Joonas Donskoi moved to the disabled list on Tuesday and Logan
Couture on the shelf with an illness, San Jose leaned on their lineup top to
bottom. Those healthy enough to play did their job, grabbing control of the
game early, and buckling down defensively.
Brent Burns opened the
game's scoring 3:31 into the game after Joe Thornton worked his magic with the
puck. Thornton controlled the puck behind the Kings goal and fought off a
defender as he skated it back up the left wing boards before dropping a pass to
Burns on the left point. The Sharks defenseman ripped a shot that deflected in
front of Petr Budaj for his 19th goal of the season.
Tanner Pearson
tied the game 2 minutes later by tipping a Derek Forbort shot from the left
side. Pearson was loitering at the top of the left post and got a stick up high
to redirect Forbort's shot for his 14th goal of the season.
San Jose
took control of the game in the 2nd half of that 1st period. The Sharks 4th
line cashed in to give San Jose the lead on a blue collar goal. Micheal Haley
flashed some Thorntonesque skills by skating the puck up the left wing, then
send a saucer pass over Jake Muzzin's stick to Tommy Wingels on the off wing.
Wingels gathere dthe pass and lifted a shot past Budaj for the 2-1 lead.
Jeff Carter put the Sharks on one of four power play chances midway
through the 2nd period. Thornton tried to work a deflection in front of Budaj,
but the puck kicked wide right of the net. A big rebound off the end boards
landed on Joe Pavelski's stick. The Sharks captain gathered the fortuitous
rebound and lifted a shot past Budaj from the endline outside the right post.
The Kings cut into the Sharks lead with 4:41 left in
the period on a broken play. Marion Gaborik was the benefactor of a shot
attempt that slipped behind Martin Jones. Kyle Clifford tried to get a shot off
after gaining the puck on the right side of the slot, but his spinning attempt
rolled off his stick and through the skates of two Shark defenders to Gaborik
who snuck past everyone on the left side for the deposit.
The penalty
bug bit both teams later in the period. San Jose had a would be 4-minute power
play reduced to the 2-minute variety after Melker Karlsson was called for a
phantom hold. The Sharks forward was clipped by a Trevor Lewis high stick that
drew blood. Patrick Marleau would be called for an illegal check to Dwight
King's head on what can only be described as questionable.
If the
Kings had any real plans to comeback in the 3rd period, the Sharks squashed
that notion by limiting Los Angeles to 5 shots in the period. Two of those came
on a sequence with 9 minutes to play that ended with King pumping a rebound on
goal that should have found twine, but Jones made one of his best saves of the
year by kicking out his right pad to deny the scoring chance.
Game
Notes:
* Micheal played like a man possessed. On top of the assist
he earned on Tommy Wingels goal, Haley was all over the ice, and was ready to
drop the gloves with Kyle Clifford, but the linesmen broke them up and assess
delay of game penalties.
* Mikkel Boedker missed on a breakaway chance
in the 3rd period that was simply a head scratcher. Rather than taking the puck
to the net, Boedker elected to shoot from 25 feet out and missed the net by 6
feet.
* Marc-Edouard Vlasic led all skaters with 4 shots on goal.
Every Sharks forward recorded a shot on goal except for Boedker and Kevin
Labnc.
* Vlasic also recorded team low -2.
 |
|
| What did you think of
this article? Post your comments on the Feeder Forums |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
What did you
think of this story? Post your comments on the
Feeder Forums |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| SJ |
2 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
| LA |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
|
|
| 1st period - 1, SJ,
Burns 19 (Thornton, Karlsson), 3:31. 2, LA, Pearson 14 (Forbort, Brown), 5:46.
3, SJ, Wingels 5 (Haley), 15:42. |
|
|
| 2nd period - 4, SJ,
Pavelski 16 (Ward, Thornton), 10:00, (pp). 5, LA, Gaborik 4 (Clifford, Brown),
15:19. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1st period - Gaborik, LA
(hooking), 6:41; Braun, SJ (holding), 9:42. |
|
|
| 2nd period - Carpenter,
SJ (interference), 3:10; Carter, L A(high sticking), 9:51; Wingels. SJ
(tripping), 10:48; Karlsson, SJ (holding), 13:06; CLifford, LA (high sticking -
double minor), 13:06; Haley, SJ (delay of game), 15:35; Clifford, LA (delay of
game), 15:35; Setoguchi, LA (hooking), 17:56; Marleau. SJ (illegal check to
head), 19:35. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shots |
Saves |
| SJ - Jones |
24 |
22 |
| LA - Budaj |
27 |
24 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| SJ |
9 |
12 |
6 |
27 |
| LA |
7 |
12 |
5 |
24 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Referees: Hebert,
Dwyer. Linesmen: Murphy, Heyer. |
|
|
|
|
|
