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Home stand from hell ends with 3-1 loss
Sharks still searching for offensive output
10/19/2023 - By Mike Lee

The Sharks concluded their 4-game home stand from hell with a listless 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins on Thursday night at SAP Center. The Sharks had the tough task of facing all four division winners from last season, including the last 2 Stanley Cup Champions and a President's Cup winner. To nobody's surprise, the Sharks didn't fare well against those teams. They recorded a single point in the standings out of a possible 8 points, which has them sitting in the NHL's basement.

Boston did little to incite any hope of a Sharks upset by smothering them most of the night. Of their 10 1st period shots, only 3 came off the sticks of a Sharks forward. The Bruins peppered Kaapo Kahkonen with 17 shots in that opening period.

It was a rare site to see a Sharks forward in possession of the puck in the offensive zone. Boston simply out-classed the lifeless San Jose offense.

The Bruins held a 2-1 shot advantage for most of the game, but Kaapo Kahkonen and the Sharks defense kept Boston off the board until a late letdown stung San Jose.

Brad Marchand used Mario Ferraro as a screen when he snapped a shot from the left dot at 18:06 of the period to crack the game's scoring. Kahkonen never appeared to see the puck which zipped past his left shoulder.

Boston forced the issue 21 seconds later when they pushed the ensuing faceoff into the Sharks zone and then to the front of the net. Trent Frederic bounced a shot off Kahkonen's pad from just inside the right post, but the puck slid over to the left side. Kahkonen had his right skate pinned to the left post with the puck nestled up to his leg pad, but James Van Riemsdyk forced it and Kahkonen's leg over the goal line by bulldozing it.

Sharks head coach David Quinn elected not to challenge for fear of drawing a penalty for delay of game. Quinn tentative approach to the challenge seemed influence by his poor challenge record last season. Whatever the reason, the Sharks found themselves down by a pair of goals heading into the 1st intermission.

San Jose did a better job of controlling the shot disadvantage in the middle period, but the Bruins would score the only goal of the period to extend their lead to 3-0.

Kahkonen would defend the first 6 shots he faced in the frame, but would fall victim to a fluky goal with 3:14 left. David Pastrnak skated up the right wing before cutting toward the net and trying to put a shot on goal. Marc-Edouard Vlasic would upend the Bruins forward from behind, while his defensive partner, Matt Benning, would try to take away a shooting lane by dropping to a knee as he cut across the to of the crease. Pastrnak lost control of the puck, but it hit his skate before deflecting off Benning's stick and into the Sharks goal.

The Sharks netminder played what would have been the likely trajectory of a Pastrnak shot had Vlasic not wiped out the Bruins forward.

Anthony Duclair finally go the Sharks on the board, when he scored his 1st in teal at 11:13 of the 3rd period. The Quebec native carried a Tomas Hertl lead pass up the left wing before stopping near the left post and lifting a backhand shot past Linus Ullmark after spinning 270 degrees to his left.

The Sharks pulled Kahkonen with 3 minutes to play, but it proved fruitless. The upside is that San Jose didn't offer up an easy goal of the empty net variety.

Game Notes:

* The Sharks made a series of roster moves on Wednesday and Thursday. First, defenseman Henry Thrun was assigned to the San Jose Barracuda (AHL), then the Sharks placed defenseman Radim Simek, who should report to the Barracuda if he is not claimed by another team. Nikita Okhotiuk was recalled from the Barracuda to fill one of the two vacated defensive roles. Marc-Edouard Vlasic returned to the lineup after missing Tuesday night's loss to Carolina.

* Matt Benning took a shoulder from Milan Lucic midway through the 1st period and was evaluated for a concussion shortly thereafter.

* 12 of the Sharks 27 shots came from the defense. San Jose had issues generating any offensive chances through the first half of the game.

* San Jose missed 19 shots, which contributed to their offensive woes. The Sharks are averaging a paltry 1.50 goals per game through their first 4 contests.

* Kevin Labanc was in the lineup for the first time this season. With rumors swirling that San Jose was poised to waive the forward, they made an about face and elected to insert Labanc into the lineup after he was scratched the first three games of the season. The absence of much offensive punch may have motivated the move. Labanc finished the game with 2 shots, 2 misses and 2 hits in 17:28 of ice time.


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Scoring
1 2 3 T
BOS 2 1 0 3
SJ 0 0 1 1
1st period - 1, BOS, Marchand 1 (Beecher), 18:06. 2, BOS, Van Riemsdyk 3 (Frederic, Coyle), 18:25.
2nd period - 3, BOS, Pastrnak 4 (Carlo), 16:46.
3rd period - 4, SJ, Duclair 1 (Hertl), 11:13.
Penalties
1st period - None.
2nd period - Burroughs, SJ (cross checking), 1:25; DeBrusk, BOS (hooking), 3:01.
3rd period - Coyle, BOS (tripping), 0:58; Marchand, BOS (hooking), 19:23.
Goaltending
Shots Saves
BOS - Ullmark 27 26
SJ - Khakonen 36 33
Shots On Goal
1 2 3 T
BOS 17 7 12 36
SJ 10 7 10 27
Power Play Conversion
BOS 0 of 1
SJ 0 of 3
3 Stars of the Game
Linus Ullmark
David Pastrnak
Brad Marchand
Attendance
SAP Center - 12,501
Officials
Referees: #3 Chris Schlenker, #40 Steve Kozari . Linesmen: #77 Caleb Apperson, #61 James Tobias.





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