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Sharks top league's best
San Jose's special teams comes through in
win
To say the Sharks special teams play has been a
challenge this season would be an understatement. When they turn that challenge
around against the best team in the NHL is a positive sign as the end of the
regular season sits on the horizon. San Jose converted on 2 of 5 power play
chances in their 4-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Thursday night, and
their special teams went a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill in an
entertaining game at a sold out SAP Center.
The Sharks 23rd ranked
power play unit has been in a spiral since November, but San Jose used a pair
of Logan Couture goals to snap a 2-2 tie with the top ranked Capitals. Couture
deflected a pair of pucks off Brent Burns feeds to snap that tie and propel the
Sharks to their 7th win in their last 10 games.
With 16 games left in
the regular season, the Sharks are hoping to turn their special teams issues
upside down with the playoffs looming. San Jose looked like giant killers on
Thursday night.
Washington had 5 chances on the power play themselves,
but the Sharks denied the Capitals, spearheaded by Martin Jones, who made 25
saves, including a dozen shots in the opening period.
The Capitals
grabbed the early lead on one of those shots when former Sharks rental Daniel
Winnik scored 5:26 into the game. Jay Beagle setup Winnik with a backhand pass
of the end boards from behind the goal. Winnik gathered the pass as he skated
across the top of the crease from left to right, slipping a shot from the
doorstep past Jones for his 9th goal of the season.
Trade deadline
acquisition Jannick Hansen made his Sharks debut a memorable one, by setting up
Joe Thornton with a pass from behind the Capitals goal 3 minutes later. Hansen
grabbed a loose puck on the forecheck as he skated out of the right corner,
before spotting Thornton cutting in on net from the left point. Thornton one
timed a shot that beat Braden Holtby for his 6th goal of the season.
Brooke Orpik clipped Melker Karlsson with a high stick with 90 seconds
remaining in the period, setting up a 4-minute Sharks power play. That power
play would carry over to the start of the 2nd period where the Sharks used the
remaining time to setup Joe Pavelski's 24th goal of the season.
Pavelski tipped a Burns shot past Holtby as he sat in the high slot. The goal
was first scored as an even-strength goal, before being changed to a power play
goal, only to be reverted back to the even strength variety.
The lead
held for 12 minutes until Brett Connolly tipped a Kevin Shattenkirk feed past
Jones on a give and go play at 14:40 of the period.
Couture went to work late in the period. Beagle put
the Sharks on the power play after tripping Chris Tierney, and San Jose took
all of 6 seconds to convert. After winning the faceoff, the Sharks kicked the
puck to Burns on the left side for a shot attempt that Holtby stopped, but
allowed a fat rebound out to the left circle. Couture pounced on the puck then
used a partial screen by Burns to slip a wrist shot past the Capitals
netminder.
Couture padded the Sharks lead to a pair of goals 8:05 into
the 3rd period after Karl Alzner was sent off for tripping Pavelski. Burns was
in on the goal, earning his 3rd assist of the night by sending a pass from the
right point to the front of the left post where Couture was cutting in for the
redirect.
The sellout crowd stayed to see if Couture would complete
the hat trick, but Hansen missed a golden opportunity to set up his teammate
after Holtby was pulled for an extra attacker. The new Shark elected to shoot
the puck, bouncing it off the left post.
San Jose had no problem
killing clock after Holtby vacated the net, sealing their 40th win of the
season.
Game Notes:
* Joe Thornton was honored before
the game with a ceremony that include his wife and two children. The Sharks
presented Thornton with a magnum of wine and an original oil painting in
celebration of his 1000th assist.
* The Sharks distributed
commemorative pucks that honored Thornton's assist feat and Patrick Marleau's
500th career goal.
* Alex Ovechkin was the marquee guest, but the
Sharks held him without a point. the Russian forward does not typically play
well at SAP Center.
* David Schlemko was scratched after he suffered
an apparent lower body injury in Monday's win in Winnipeg.
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Feeder Forums |
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1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| WSH |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
| SJ |
1 |
2 |
1 |
4 |
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| 1st period - 1, WSH,
Winnik 9 (Beagle, Wilson), 5:26. 2, SJ, Thornton 6 (Hansen, Martin), 8:43.
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| 2nd period - 3, SJ,
Pavelski 24 (Burns, Thornton), 2:32. 4, WSH, Connolly 14 (Shattenkirk), 14:40.
5, SJ, Couture 22 (Burns, Marleau), 18:04, (pp). |
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| 3rd period - 6, SJ,
Couture 23 (Burns, Pavelski), 8:05, (pp). |
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| 1st period - Pavelski,
SJ (tripping), 3:18; Martin, SJ (holding), 12:40; Orpik, WSH (high stick -
double minor), 18:32. |
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| 2nd period - Vlasic, SJ
(hooking), 8:27; Beagle, WSH (tripping), 17:58; Karlsson, SJ (slashing),
18:29. |
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| 3rd period - Alzner, WSH
(tripping), 7:08; Hertl, SJ (interference), 13:31; Carlson, WSH (interference),
15:32. |
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Shots |
Saves |
| WSH - Holtby |
24 |
20 |
| SJ - Jones |
27 |
25 |
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1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| WSH |
12 |
8 |
7 |
27 |
| SJ |
9 |
10 |
5 |
24 |
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| Referees: Morton,
Peel. Linesmen: Knorr, Cormier. |
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