The one o’clock start on a Friday was a tough one, but luckily, the San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings rookies held off on the scoring until I could sit myself down in front of my computer.
This is game one of three that the Sharks rookies will play through Monday, helping San Jose’s management get a better idea of where the players are in their development before they’re sent off to their respective teams in the WHL, CHL, OHL and more.
San Jose decided to go with a single goaltender in net for the game, tapping newcomer Georgi Romanov with the start. Romanov held the Kings scoreless through the first 30 minutes of play until a botched pass at the blueline by Henry Thrun allowed the Kings to go the other way and ultimately score the first goal of the game.
From the rookie game: Henry Thrun tried to sneak a pass by on the power play alive but the Kings turned the play the other way for a shorty. pic.twitter.com/JMYwvMjxXl
— Fear the Fin (@fearthefin) September 16, 2023
The Sharks were on the power play when Thrun chased down a puck at the point. He tried to finesse a pass to his teammate along the boards but Francesco Pinelli was ready for it. Pinelli got a stick on the puck and turned the play the other way. Thrun tried to recover and disrupt the entry, but it didn’t work, and the Kings scored.
San Jose had a response later in the second. Artem Guryev didn’t like a hit he took behind the Kings’ net, so he let the Kings know it. Guryev dropped the gloves with LA’s Samuel Helenius in a bout that featured both guys throwing bombs.
A few minutes later, Tristen Robins answered the call with a goal to tie things up. William Eklund entered the Kings’ zone with Robins trailing. Eklund gained the blueline, did a little fancy stickwork and then left the puck behind while he drove to the net. Robins picked up the puck and sent it past Kings’ goaltending prospect Eric Portillo to bring things even at one.
LA would not give up the lead easily. Less than a minute later, the Kings scored to make it 2-1.
In the third, it was Bradley Marek’s turn to tie things up. The undrafted Marek signed a deal with San Jose Barracuda in the summer and is now making his presence known. (Lizz Child has a great feature on Marek on the Barracuda website.) Marek rifled a shot past Portillo to make it 2-2.
San Jose finally took its first lead in the game a few minutes later, when Gannon Laroque shot a puck through traffic. It seemed like Portillo didn’t even see that one coming.
Laroque’s goal gave the Sharks the lead with just over 15 minutes left in the period. Fans should take note of Laroque’s play in this game. The 2021 draft pick missed almost all of last season while recovering from hip injuries. While it’s clear there’s some rust, he played well in one of his first games back from injury.
Meanwhile, Romanov had some good saves in net to help keep the Sharks in the lead until the waning minutes of the game.
ICYMI: Georgi Romanov got the nod in net for the first rookie faceoff game. He let in three but had some excellent saves along the way. Sharks won 4-3 in the shootout. pic.twitter.com/V4AvyH7LSS
— Fear the Fin (@fearthefin) September 16, 2023
Unfortunately, a lapse defensively allowed LA to score with less than two minutes left in the game and it was on to overtime. Neither team managed to score in the five minutes of overtime, despite each side having an opportunity on the 4-on-3 man advantage.
In the shootout, Daniil Gushchin scored first for the Sharks, using his quick hands to do just enough to fool Portillo. On the other end of the ice, Romanov stopped Helenius who tried to make a move to pull Romanov out of position. Romanov stuck with the puck and prevented the goal.
Eklund was up next. Similar to Gushchin, he used his quick hands to put the puck past Portillo. The Kings second shooter shot the puck wide and the Sharks won the shootout.
San Jose plays against the Vegas Golden Knights’ rookies tonight at 7 p.m. That game is in Henderson, Nev. The final game of the rookie tournament for the Sharks is Monday at 10 a.m. back in Vegas. San Jose plays the Arizona Coyotes to wrap things up.
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