|
|
Losing becoming easy for San
Jose
Red Wings latest underperformer to handle
SJ
The Sharks were gifted many things this season, but
their soft schedule in the month of March was one of the biggest ones. San Jose
tripped on that gift, and squashed it like a bug under a two ton truck. The
league's third worst team, the Detroit Red Wings, were the latest door mat to
embarrass the Sharks this month, taking a 3-2 decision and extending the Sharks
losing streak to 6 games. San Jose continues to spiral out of control, losing
to a team they should have man-handled.
San Jose looks so disjointed
on the ice right now, that it's hard to image the pain they'll endure in the
playoffs which start in two weeks. The Red Wings looked like a Stanley Cup
contender on Monday night, out chancing the Sharks with team speed that exposed
the Sharks.
Clinching a playoff spot has nothing to do with the Sharks
current woes. They were already halfway through their current losing streak
when they backed into a spot in the playoffs. They're just simply a bad hockey
team right now.
The absence of Joe Pavelski, Erik Karlsson and Radim
Simek seems to be having the most effect on the Sharks right now. The lack of
any reliable defense is putting the Sharks in holes early, and Pavelski's
scoring and leadership have left the kids alone unsupervised.
This one
was over before the majority of the 17 thousand paid were in their seats.
Dylan Larkin wasted no time backing the Sharks into a corner, by
scoring just 38 seconds into the game. The Red Wings worked a turnover in the
neutral zone, when Anthony Manta stripped Justin Braun, then fed Larkin, who
raced past the Sharks defense before scoring on Martin Jones. Larkin deeked
left then cut back to his right, opening up Jones 5-hole for his 28th deposit
of the season.
Braun showcased his defensive skills by tackling
Andreas Anthanasiou from behind, drawing a two minute holding penalty. Luckily
for San Jose the penalty killers kept the Red Wings from doubling up on their
lead off the man advantage.
San Jose would finish the lifeless period
with 11 shots on the shot counter, but no goals. Of those 11 shots, not much
came from within 15 feet of the net.
Anthanasiou took his own penalty,
a tripping infraction at 5:34 of the 2nd period, but the 3 shots the Sharks
generated on the man advantage did little to challenge Red Wings goaltender
Jonathan Bernier.
Anthanasiou made it a 2-0 Red Wings lead at 15:37,
when Joakim Ryan coughed up the puck in the neutral zone with the Red Wings
forward and Taro Hirose both behind him. Hirose flipped it forward to
Anthanasiou who raced in on net and slipped the puck past Jones for his 29th
goal of the season.
Dylan McIlrath put the sharks on the power play
with 12:39 left in regulation after he slashed Joe Thornton. San Jose went into
complete meltdown mode when they allowed Luke Glendening to skate up ice with
the puck while the Red Wings were on the penalty kill, then skated behind the
net and fed Christoffer Ehn who skated unimpeded down the slot. Enh buried the
puck for his 3rd goal of the season.
Evander Kane would convert on the power play with his
28th goal of the season 20 seconds later, but that essentially made the power
play a wash.
Dylan Larkin was sent off for hooking less than a minute
after Kane's goal, but the Sharks squandered the power play chance. Niklas
Kronwall followed him to the penalty box 6 minutes later, but the Sharks major
accomplishment on the power play was not surrendering another short-handed
goal.
Tomas Hertl scored his 33rd goal with 4.8 seconds left in
regulation to make the score sheet look like this was a close game. It never
was.
Game Notes:
* Former Red Wing forward Gus Nyquist
welcomed his former team to San Jose by turning in a -2 performance, with 2
shots on goal. His last shift ended with a slash across the wrist that left him
skating off with his hand dangling.
* Logan Couture was 2-for-11 from
the faceoff circle for an 11% conversion rate.
* Tomas Hertl's 33
goals are the second most in a season by a Sharks player age 25 or younger.
Jonathan Cheechoo had 56 at age 25 in 2005-06.
* Martin Jones has
allowed 50 goals in the first 5 minutes of periods this season, which is most
in the NHL. As a team, SJ has allowed 63, most by any playoff-bound
team.
* The Sharks 40 shots on goal were as big a misnomer as they
come. The Sharks put 17 shots on Jonathan Bernier, but it was still too little,
too late. Brent Burns led the sharks with 10 shots on goal, but most were long
range, unscreened shots that Bernier had no issue handling.
 |
|
| 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 |
| DET |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
| SJ |
0 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
|
|
| 1st period - 1, DET,
Larkin 28 (Mantha, Bertuzzi), 0:38. |
|
|
| 2nd period - 2, DET,
Anathansiou 29 (Hirose), 15:37. |
|
|
| 3rd period - 3, DET, Ehn
3 (Glendening, Helm), 8:35, (sh). 4, SJ, Kane 28 (Thornton, Heed), 8:55, (pp).
5, SJ, Hertl 33 (Meier, Labanc), 19:55. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1st period - Braun, SJ
(holding), 5:34. |
|
|
| 2nd period -
Anthanasiou, DET (tripping), 5:34. |
|
|
| 3rd period - Mciltrath,
DET (slashing), 7:21; Larkin, DET (hooking), 9:23; Kronwall, DET (slashing),
15:21. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shots |
Saves |
| DET - Bernier |
40 |
38 |
| SJ - Jones |
23 |
20 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| DET |
10 |
8 |
5 |
23 |
| SJ |
11 |
13 |
17 |
40 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Referees:
Sutherland, L'Ecuyer. Linesmen: Marquis, Rody. |
|
|
|
|
|
