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Sharks checkout early to
Blues
St Louis shuts out Sharks 4-0
The Sharks got an early jump on their weekend by
checking out of the office early on Friday. San Jose wrapped up their quick
2-game road trip with an absentee performance at the Enterprise Center in St
Louis, dropping a pitiful 4-0 decision to the Blues. San Jose was outplayed in
all three periods, exuding no fight or energy in one of their poorest
performances of the season.
San Jose might lean on the fatigue excuse
after they droped a 4-3 decision to the Dallas Stars less than 24 hours
earlier. But this is the NHL and these are professional athletes. If one guy is
tired, then head coach Peter DeBoer needs to shuffle more ice time to the guys
who aren't seeing the ice in Dallas.
That wasn't the approach of
course. DeBoer rolled out uninspired line after line all night long. Defensive
lapses were the norm in both games and fight out of the gate was non-existent.
The Sharks didn't record a shot on goal for the first 8 minutes of the
game. St Louis hadn't played since last Tuesday and were well rested. They took
advantage.
Alex Pietrangelo was granted a gift by the referees and he
responded by putting the Blues up 1-0 14:50 into the game. The Blues forward
should have been sitting in the penalty box for 4 minutes after he cut Barclay
Goodrow with a high stick, but referees Justin St Pierre and Garrett Rank were
out to lunch. Instead, Pietrangelo took advantage by snapping a shot from 12
feet out while the two teams were skating 4-on-4. Erik Karlsson missed his
assignment, spinning away from Pietrangelo, allowing for the forward to cherry
pick his shot.
Melker Karlsson made an appearance on the score sheet
by taking a slashing penalty with three minutes left in the period, but the
Sharks withstood the threat. Robert Thomas reciprocated with an interference
penalty with 50 seconds left in the period, which split the penalty, carrying
over 70 seconds to the 2nd period.
The opening period may have been
the best of the night for San Jose. St Louis would add a pair of goals in the
middle frame to grab a 3-0 lead.
Ryan O'Reilly scored his 8th goal of
the season 5:28 into the period, lifting a Vladimir Tarasenko feed from just
outside the right post. The Sharks defense made a half-hearted attempt to chase
down a dump in, which allowed the Blues to gain control of the puck. The
defense then left O'Reilly unattended on the right side, which made his shot
attempt simple.
Jaden Schwartz added his 2nd goal of the season 8
minutes later, tapping home a Tyler Bozak feed from the doorstep. Melker
Karlsson tried to slash Schwartz stick rather than take the body, but his stick
shattered, allowing Schwartz to get the shot off. It was the perfect metaphor
for the game. Karlsson, like his team, tried to take the easy path and ended up
getting burned for it.
Alexander Steen capped the game's scoring with
his 5th of the season midway through the 3rd period. Steen found himself with
the puck in front of the net after Erik Karlsson vacated the front of the net
as the Blues were attacking. It was a bewildering move for a defenseman.
Karlsson's offensive failings aside, he had to anticipate that the puck was
coming, but he elected to cover open ice away from the puck instead.
The only positive you can take away from this disaster was the Sharks penalty
kill, which stopped all 4 chances against St Louis, ending the Blues 6-game
power play goal scoring streak.
Game Notes:
* Tim Heed
made his season debut for the Sharks. The defenseman played in 29 games for San
Jose last season. his game highlight was coughing up the puck at the Blues
blueline while on the power play, surrendering a short-handed breakaway chance.
* The Sharks have now lost more than they've won this season. Their
8-6-3 record still places them near the top of the Pacific Division, but they
have dropped to 7th in the conference.
* With his -2 game, Erik
Karlsson is on pace to finish the season with -52 plus/minus. To say that his
defensive holes have been gaping this season would be an understatement.
* Logan Couture expressed a frank view of the team's disappointing
play after the game, but he may was to replay that in front of a mirror. The
forward was a -2, had 2 shots on goal, no scoring chances, and was a dismal
2-for-12 in the faceoff circle.
* The Sharks return home to start a
6-game homestand, beginning Sunday night with a 6pm start against the Calgary
Flames.
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Feeder Forums |
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1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| SJ |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| STL |
1 |
2 |
1 |
4 |
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| 1st period - 1, STL,
Pietrangelo 2 (Tarasenko), 14:50. |
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| 2nd period - 2, STL,
O'Reilly 8 (Schwartz), 5:28. 3, STL, Schwartz 2 (Bozak, Steen), 13:57. |
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| 3rd period - 4, STL,
Steen 5 (Bozak, Parayko), 12:45. |
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| 1st period - Pavelski,
SJ (slashing), 14:15; Dunn, STL (slashing), 14:15; M. Karlsson, SJ (slashing),
17:05; Thomas, STL (interference), 19:10. |
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| 2nd period - Thornton,
SJ (tripping), 2:21; Bozak, STL (tripping), 16:56; E. Karlsson, SJ (slashing),
19:06. |
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| 3rd period - Edmundson,
STL (cross checking), 8:11; Burns, SJ (tripping), 12:52; Bench, STL (too many
men), 19:08. |
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Shots |
Saves |
| SJ - Dell |
30 |
26 |
| STL - Johnson |
31 |
31 |
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1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
| SJ |
6 |
13 |
12 |
31 |
| STL |
9 |
13 |
8 |
30 |
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| Enterprise Center -
17,032 |
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| Referees: StPierre,
Rank. Linesmen: Amell, Cormier. |
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