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.