|
|
Sharks fade against the
Canucks
Lots of shots, too little scoring in 3-2
loss
After 5 days off, the Sharks looked to build on
their 3-1 win over the New York Islanders last weekend as they squared off
against the Vancouver Canucks at SAP Center on Thursday night. Mission not
accomplished. San Jose played a 30 minute game that netted them a 3-2 loss. It
was a well-deserved loss for a team that got too cute with the puck and tried
too hard to do all the little things except score goals.
With
opportunities in front of the net, San Jose consistently elected to make the
extra pass or kick it out to an off wing instead of driving to the goal and
scoring.
Vancouver was select with their shots and put three of them
past Antti Niemi to win their 10th game of the season. San Jose on the other
hand continues to wallow between strong performances and mediocre letdowns that
keep everyone guessing as to what this team's identity is supposed to be.
The Sharks made things exciting for their fans, scoring what appeared
to be the game tying goal as time expired, but even that turned out to be one
big tease. Joe Thornton, the poster child of under achievement, swept home a
puck that crossed the goal line a tenth of a second too late.
Game
over, thanks for coming.
Too bad the Sharks didn't skate with the same
urgency on the right side of the 60 minute mark. They held two leads, but
coughed them up twice. In the money period, San Jose did nothing to win this
game. In fact, they played their worse hockey in that final 20 minute span,
allowing the Canucks to get out of town without exerting much energy.
James Sheppard converted on a Canucks turnover 10:26 into the game to stake the
Sharks to the 1-0 lead. Tyler Kennedy picked the puck off the right wing boards
and hit Tomas Hertl with a long pass to the slot where the young Czech was
cutting on net. Hertl held the puck as he worked around a Canucks defender
before sending the puck to the front of the net from the left side. Sheppard
deflected the puck with his skate blade for his 2nd goal of the season.
Daniel Sedin setup an adventurous power play for San Jose less than a
minute after Sheppard's goal. It started with Patrick Marleau coughing up the
puck at his own blueline, setting up a partial breakaway for Vancounver, then
ended with a Joe Thornton shot from the doorstep after he slipped past a
defender and challenged Canucks goaltender Ryan Miller form in tight.
San Jose dominated for most of the period, but a late slip allowed the Canucks
to tie the game with 7.7 seconds before the intermission to wipe away all their
hard work. San Jose was working the puck in the corner of the Canucks zone when
a turnover ended up on Radim Vrbata's stick. The former Coyote skated up ice in
a 2-on-1 break, before snapping a shot past Antti Niemi from the right side.
A Derek Dorsett hooking penalty midway through the 2nd period setup
San Jose's next goal. Logan Couture redirected a Joe Pavelski pass past Miller
from the top of the crease for his 7th goal of the season. Pavelski had an
option to shoot from the high slot, but feathered a pass to his linemate who
was cutting on net from the left side.
San Jose promptly returned the favor when Tyler
Kennedy was sent off for high sticking. Alex Edler wound up on a shot from the
right point that found a hole, beating Niemi with a shot that found the upper
left side of the net.
Former Shark prospect Nick Bonino put the
Canucks up 3-2 with his team leading 7th goal less than 5 minutes later. The
young forward converted on a pass after a series of Sharks blunders. Tomas
Hertl started the keystone cop sequence by breaking his stick on a shot from
the Canucks blueline. The Canucks skated up the ice, where Alex Burrows slid a
pass to Bonino who promptly side stepped a stick-less Hertl before pumping a
shot past Niemi.
The 3rd period was a demonstration in turning over
the puck, as San Jose let the Canucks off the hook by stumbling through the
neutral zone.
San Jose now heads back on the road to kick-off a 7-game
road trip. That may not be a bad thing for the Sharks, who now have a losing
record at home (2-3-0). The Sharks have lost as many games as they've won,
dropping to the 8th spot in the Western Conference.
Game Notes:
* Patrick Marleau and Brent Burns had equally awful performances on
Thursday, combining for 10 turnovers.
* The Sharks optioned Chris
Tierney to Worcester in order to make roster room for Kennedy.
* San
Jose missed the net with 18 shots. Vancouver missed 1 shot.
 |
|
| 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 |
| VAN |
1 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
| SJ |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
|
|
| 1st period - 1, SJ,
Sheppard 2 (Hertl, Kennedy), 10:26. 2, VAN, Vrbata 6 (unassisted), 19:52. |
|
|
| 2nd period - 3, SJ,
Couture 7 (Pavelski, Marleau), 10:43, (pp). 4, VAN, Edler 1 (D. Sedin, H.
Sedin), 12:45, (pp). 5, VAN, Bonino 7 (Burrows), 17:20. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1st period - Dorsett,
VAN (fighting major), 8:20; Desjardins, SJ (fighting major), 8:20; D. Sedin,
VAN (holding), 11:14. |
|
|
| 2nd period - Tanev, VAN
(hooking), 0:54; Dorsett, VAN (hooking), 10:32; Kennedy, SJ (high sticking),
11:20. |
|
|
| 3rd period - Hansen, VAN
(interference), 13:08. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shots |
Saves |
| VAN - Miller |
36 |
34 |
| SJ - Niemi |
19 |
16 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| VAN |
8 |
4 |
7 |
19 |
| SJ |
15 |
7 |
14 |
36 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Referees: Leggo,
Charron. Linesmen: Devorski, Henderson. |
|
|
|
|
|
