The Sharks returned home after their recent
4-game road trip, starting with a date with the Vegas Golden Knights. San Jose
held a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes, but they fell apart in the 3rd period,
allowing the Knights to score 3 unanswered goals in the final frame to take the
4-2 decision. The loss was the 7th in 9 games for the Sharks, who failed to
follow up their 3-0 win over Philadelphia on Sunday.
The opening
period was all Golden Knights. Sharks netminder James Reimer held Vegas at bay
for most of the period, but his teammates hung him out to dry with just over 4
minutes remaining in the period. Phil Kessel took a Brett Howden lead pass just
outside the Vegas blueline, then raced up ice, beating defenseman Matt Benning
before lifting the puck over Reimer's right shoulder.
The goal was the
400th of Kessel's career, but it was odd to see the less-than-speedy forward
beat Benning. The Vegas forward was playing in his 990th consecutive NHL game,
which set a NHL record.
The Knights would finish the period with a
14-6 advantage in shots.
The Sharks tied the game 5:33 into the 2nd
period when Nico Sturm deflected an Evgeny Svechnikov shot past former Sharks
goaltender Adin Hill. Sturm slipped to the front of the net as Svechnikov fired
a shot in from the right point. Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo tried to fill the
space occupied by Sturm, but the veteran forward got his stick blade to the
puck first.
The goal was Sturm's 4th of the season, which leads all
Sharks skaters this season.
The Knights went on the power play 4:46
into the 2nd period with the game's first penalty. Nico Sturm was sent off for
interference, setting up the league's 19th ranked power play unit. True to
form, the Sharks 4th ranked penalty kill denied Vegas, stopping their 9th
consecutive penalty on home ice this season.
The Sharks grabbed the
lead with 35 ticks remaining in the period, when Tomas Hertl found Matt Nieto
lurking at the Vegas blueline. Hertl sprung him with a 60-foot pass from the
Sharks zone. Nieto had nothing but ice between him and Hill, so he raced in and
lifted a shot that caught the upper right corner of the net for his 1st goal of
the season.
Vegas wasted no time to open the 3rd period. Shea Theodore
fired a puck from the blueline that weaved through several skaters before
finding the back of the sharks net to tie that game at 2-2. The goal was the
defenseman's 2nd goal of the season.
Nicholas Hague was sent off for goaltender
interference at 1:56, but the Sharks could do nothing with their power play
opportunity. San Jose has converted twice in 26 chances this season.
Chandler Stephenson missed on a breakaway chance 7:30 into the period, but
Reimer denied him with a blocker save.
Vegas grabbed the lead at 13:13
when William Karlsson raced past a flat-footed Erik Karlsson then raced into
the Sharks zone and roofed a shot for his 3rd tally of the season.
Mark Stone put the game away 62 seconds later when he tapped home a Stephenson
feed. The Knights captain established position on Logan Couture, who looked
disinterested in defending. Stephenson sent a pass through the slot from the
left side.
Game Notes: * Nick Bonino was scratched for
the second straight game, as he nurses the upper body injury he sustained in
New Jersey. Scott Harrington and Jonah Gadjovich were healthy scratches.
* Timo Meier recorded 8 shots in the game, but as has been the case
all season, he failed to find the back of the net. The Sharks forward is trying
everything to pot his 1st goal of the season. His best chance came in the 2nd
period when goaltender Adin Hill fell to the ice, exposing the net. Meier
rushed the shot and hit a defender in the leg, missing the wide open net.
* One stat of note was the 26 blocked shots by Vegas. Numbers like
that are an indication that the Sharks were trying to generate offense from the
perimeter, rather than forcing the issue in tight.
* The announced
tickets sold was 12,003. Not that you'd expect a big crowd on a Tuesday night,
but there should be some interest in October and the second home stand of the
season. 2 wins in 9 games won't help the gate numbers.
* Brayden
McNabb and Shea Theodore were both +3 in the game. Matt Nieto was the only
Sharks to record a positive plus minus.
