The Sharks entered play on Thursday night
having lost 7 straight games. They played the New York Islanders like a team
that had lost 7 straight, but James Reimer wouldn't allow it. The Sharks
goaltender made 44 saves, then stopped all three shots he faced in the shootout
to help San Jose scratch out a 4-3 victory at SAP Center.
Reimer had
to play his best hockey in the 3rd period and overtime, when the Islanders
pressed to out-shoot the Sharks 18-5 over the final 25 minutes. He did exactly
that, shutting out New York over the last 28:10 of the game. His stops on
Anthony Beauvillier, Mathew Barzal, and Brock Nelson in the shootout were
simply clutch. Nelson opened the game's scoring by redirecting a Scott Mayfield
shot 14:56 into the game. The Isles forward was fighting off a defender as he
lurked in the low slot, then getting a stick on Mayfield's shot which
originated from the right point.
The Sharks special teams actually
made a significant difference in the opening period. San Jose killed a pair of
minors early in the frame, then they capitalized on an Adam Pelach interference
penalty.
Alexander Barabanov gathered a Brent Burns feed as he skated
from the top of the left circle. The Russian winger snapped a shot that beat
Ilya Sorokin for his 8th goal of the season.
The Sharks were rewarded
for keeping things simple less than 2 minutes later when Jasper Weatherby ran
out of options with the puck as he skated around the right wing boards. The
Sharks forward had nobody to dish the puck to so he whipped it on net. That
decision paid off when the puck eluded Sorokin as it traversed through traffic
and found the back of the net for Weatherby's 4th of the season.
Zach
Parise scored his 400th career goal 12:48 into the 2nd period on a shot from
the left dot. The Islanders forward parked himself at the spot before Sebastien
Aho fed hm the puck from the slot.
Matt Nieto created an opportunity
for the Sharks when he leveled Cal Clutterbuck with a check along the boards in
the Islanders zone, which prompted a response from Jean-Gabriel Pageau that
netted the Sharks a power play. Both Pageau and Nieto were assessed fighting
majors, but the Islanders centerman earned an extra 2 minutes for roughing.
Logan Couture took advantage of the man advantage by rifling home his
18th goal of the season at 16:31 of the period. The Sharks captain unleashed a
shot from the top of the left circle, that beat Sorokin low to the stick side.
The new found lead would be short lived however.
Pelach
answered 19 seconds later by blasting a shot from the high slot that slipped
between Reimer's pads to tie the game at 3-3.
Neither team would score in the 3rd period, but
there was no doubt who the better team was in the period. New York out-shot San
Jose 13-4 in the frame with the Sharks not recording their first shot on goal
15 minutes in.
In the overtime period Brock Nelson had the Sharks dead
to rights after carrying the puck to the front of the net from the end boards,
but Reimer made a spectacular glove save. Ryan Pulock missed on a chance in
tight when he rank a shot off the crossbar.
Reimer's stop on Nelson in
the shootout was punctuated by the goaltender pumping his stick in the air,
celebrating the end of the losing streak.
Game Notes: *
Zdeno Chara passed Chris Chelios in the record books for most games played by
an NHL defenseman. Jeffrey Viel tried to congratulate Chara with his fists as
the two danced early in the 2nd period.
* Nicolas Meloche sustained an
injury early in the 2nd period and did not return.
* Special teams was
exactly that. The Sharks scored on both power play opportunities, and they
stopped all three chances on the penalty kill. The stops extended the Sharks
streak to 18 consecutive penalty kills.
* Ryan Pulock was the only
Islanders skater who did not register a shot on goal. Adam Pelach, Noah Dobson
and Brock Nelson had 5 shots each.
* Tomas Hertl had two assists in
the game to give him 42 points this season.
