After a rough two-game road trip, the San Jose Sharks were able to start their homestand off on the right foot with a 3-1 win over the Calgary Flames.
It didn’t take the Sharks too long to find the back of the net as Evander Kane beat Mike Smith less than a minute into the first period. Although the Flames didn’t score in the opening period, it was a fairly even match, with both sharing a 50 percent Corsi for and generating a similar amount of scoring chances.
During the second period, the Sharks were able to extend their lead to two courtesy of a Joonas Donskoi goal. It was a period in which they could’ve blown the game wide open, but Mike Smith stood on his head, denying 14 out of 15 scoring chances the Sharks generated in that period. Meanwhile, the Flames were only able to muster three scoring opportunities, but one would get by Martin Jones via a Sean Monahan snapshot to cut the deficit to one.
After the Sharks controlled possession in the second with a Corsi for percentage of 59, it was the Flames who took control of the puck in the third period. Having a CF%of 69 allowed for the Flames to generate eight scoring chances, but it was Jones who was a wall to deny them all to preserve a win for the Sharks.
A note to pass along, Randy Hahn mentioned on the broadcast that Logan Couture left the bench in the third period and didn’t return, as Melker Karlsson took his place between Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl, who was making his own return to the lineup after injury. Head Coach Peter DeBoer should provide a quick update, but it could take a few days to see as to whether or not Couture will miss anytime.
Pregame
The two-game road trip through Dallas and St. Louis didn’t go as planned for the San Jose Sharks. Now it’s back to the Shark Tank, where they’ll welcome the Calgary Flames, who are currently in second place and two points ahead of the Sharks in the Pacific Division.
After losing a close one to the Dallas Stars, the Sharks had arguably their worst game of the season against the St. Louis Blues. Despite controlling the puck and having a significant amount of scoring chances, the Sharks were unable to get a goal as they fell 4-0.
On the other side of the ice are the Flames who are looking to go 2-1 on their swing through California. Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk are leading the offensive charge with 19 points on the season through 17 games played, but Sean Monahan and Elias Lindholm are right behind them, as both have 18 points.
The Sharks will hope to combat the Flames top-heavy line of Gaudreau, Monahan and Lindholm with their offensive trio of Timo Meier, Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl. The 24-year-old Hertl has missed the last three games with a head injury, but the Sharks are hopeful that he can return to their lineup and the trio can pick up where they left off as one of the hottest lines in the National Hockey League.
Lines
Hertl is back 👏👏👏👏#SJSharks pic.twitter.com/ILANbusSTx
— Fear the Fin (@fearthefin) November 12, 2018
As for the Flames, NHL.com projects their lines to look like this:
Johnny Gaudreau — Sean Monahan — Elias Lindholm
Matthew Tkachuk — Mikael Backlund — James Neal
Sam Bennett — Derek Ryan — Michael Frolik
Garnet Hathaway — Mark Jankowski — Austin Czarnik
Mark Giordano — TJ Brodie
Noah Hanifin — Travis Hamonic
Juuso Valimaki — Michael Stone
Mike Smith
David Rittich
In net, it looks like Martin Jones will get the nod in net and will hope to rebound from his performance in Dallas, where he gave up four goals. For Calgary, it appears as though Mike Smith will start and the Sharks’ offense should look forward to facing the veteran netminder.
With 11 starts this season, Smith has a woeful .872 save percentage, 3.66 goals against average, a quality start percentage of .273 and a goals saved above average of -10.62. After going goalless in St. Louis, the Sharks should look to feast on Smith while in net, as they could have a solid night offensively.
Finally, here’s how both teams stack up head-to-head statistically before tonight’s match:
The 🔢 to know ahead of tonight’s 6PM game.
🗒: https://t.co/Vdi1scvHad pic.twitter.com/fg8vJmcy91
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) November 11, 2018
Where to Watch
Tonight’s game will be broadcast on NBCS-CA and the radio call will be on 98.5 KFOX. You can also stream for free on NHL TV, who have made the service free to all today in honor of Veteran’s Day. Puck drop is at 6 p.m. PT / 9 p.m. ET
Check back then for live reactions and commentary.
Hey everyone, Eddie here with you tonight as the Sharks return home to the Shark Tank as they look to not only end their two-game losing streak, but gain some ground in the Pacific Division.
First Period
20:00: Patiently waiting until puck-drop here!
19:05: I had to wait until the ticker stopped showing the defensive lineups and the reply to get the time stamp but Sharks GOAL!!! Evander Kane opens up the scoring with a quick goal
13:47: Jonas Donskoi throws it to the net and it was close to being 2-0 Sharks
11:53: Kevin Lebanc that latest to nearly beat Mike Smith, Sharks are generating a lot of shots towards the Flames net
10:53: Martin Jones keeps the Flames off the scoresheet with a save on Mark Jankowski
3:41: Jones again keeps the Flames fourth line off the scoreboard
1:53: The Sharks get the first power play of the night as the Flames are penalized for tripping
End of the First Period
It’s an even match thus far, both teams have a 50% Corsi For and a similar amount of shots for and scoring chances but it’s the Sharks who lead after an early first period goal by Evander Kane.
Second Period
18:32: GOAL! Donskoi makes it 2-0 after he’s setup by Kane
16:23: *CUE JAWS MUSIC* Sharks will get another power play as the Flames are penalized for tripping
14:22: Flames kill the penalty and the Sharks are 0 for 2 on the power play
13:58: Goal. Monahan cuts the Sharks lead to one
8:45: Joe Thornton comes close to batting it the puck from mid-air
5:47: Marcus Sorensen gets behind the defense but is unable to beat Smith
5:07: Sharks had a 2-on-1 but Smith again denies them a scoring opportunity
2:45: Another Sharks 2-on-1 and once again Smith denies them
End of the Second Period
It was the Mike Smith show in the second period, the Flame goaltender stop not one, but two clear scoring chances the Sharks had via two-on-one breakaways. The Sharks also dominated the puck possession battle with a CF% of 59 which resulted in 14 scoring chances but Smith was a brick wall in that period only allowing one goal courtesy of Jonas Donskoi. As for the Flames, they could only muster three scoring chances in the second put one would get by Martin Jones as Sean Monahan got them on the scoresheet to cut the Sharks led to one.
Third Period
17:48: Gaudreau had an open side of the net but the puck doesn’t go in!
16:43: Off-setting penalties as the Flames are called for tripping while the Sharks are penalized for embellishing
16:42: Four-on-four for two minutes, should be fun!
14:40: Even with no stick Smith is able to deny the Sharks
13:23: Kane draws the penalty and the Sharks are headed to their third power play of the night
11:20: Third time isn’t the charm as the Flames are able to kill the Sharks power play
9:09: The gathering of the minds as the Sharks and Flames exchange displeasure with one another
7:38: It looks like a penalty shot for the Flames
7:38: Jones is able to deny Bennett on the penalty shot, so no harm done
6:35: Jones! He denies Jankowski
2:19: Flames use their timeout and are likely pulling Smith
1:41: Empty net for the Flames
1:05: Sharks catch a break with game delay penalty
:51: Joe Pavelski scores the empty-netter to ice the game
Final Score: Sharks 3, Flames 1
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