The San Jose Sharks found a groove last night defensively, but it still ultimately ended in a 3-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. The game was physical and tense, which is a step in the right direction for the Sharks.
Jake Walman returned to the SAP Center last night for the first time since being traded to Edmonton on March 6.
The first period started all right. The Sharks players were able to hold their own for about 6 minutes until Connor Brown found a breakaway route and got one past Georgi Romanov, with assists from Jeff Skinner and former Shark Jake Walman.
But the Sharks responded quickly, with a goal by Jack Thompson two minutes later, making it his third NHL point.
The period continued with no further scoring or penalties. Very clean.
Macklin Celebrini won the faceoff against Ryan Nugent Hopkins at the start of the second period, and both teams picked up right where they left off. Then, three minutes into the period, Collin Graf took a penalty for interference. The Oilers were on the power play and scored right away, 30 seconds later. The goal was a slapshot by Viktor Arvidsson from Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard.
The Sharks didn’t break and continued to push for offense for the next seven minutes. Finally, with passes from Mario Ferraro and Celebrini, Tyler Toffoli found the back of the net, and tied the score 2-2.
Romanov faced a slew of shots in the second period (17 in total), making many great saves. Unfortunately, he was unable to stop the tip shot off of Jeff Skinner’s stick that gave Edmonton back the lead.
While the Sharks had a chance to tie it again, when Walman took an interference call shortly after that, the Sharks were unable to capitalize on the power play. The period ended at 2-3 in favor of the Oilers.
The third period was a lot of the same. The Sharks held on, but it was not enough to score again, resulting in a 2-3 Edmonton win.
The Sharks may have lost yet another game this season, but the defense was on fire, and it was a 35 save game for Romanov.
“He was great. I mean, he’s always, always been great. He’s very calm. And I thought he played a great game,” Jack Thompson raved about Romanov’s performance.
Thompson put up his fourth goal of the season last night.
“Yeah, I think Wenny [Alex Wennberg] made a great play coming behind the net there, and I saw a little open space, so I just tried to jump into a little hole there,” said Thompson after the game.
Warsofsky on last night’s stunning defense
Seeing as last night was an incredible defensive effort compared to the last two matchups against the New York Rangers and Anaheim Ducks, something is working.
“I liked our effort we were competing at. I thought we were doing the things that we’ve talked about here lately,” Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky told the media. However, he added, “It just wasn’t enough.”
Warsofsky was also complimentary of Romanovās game.
āI thought Romy was good tonight, he did a really good job. Made some big saves, especially early in the game, he was good,ā said Warsofsky.
He also addressed how he saw the rookies’ game playing out, focusing most on what he would like to see from Cam Lund moving forward.
“Cam just doesn’t get out there quick enough, and it’s a detail that probably you get away with in college, but not this level, so it’s something he’ll learn from,ā said Warsofsky.
The Sharks will return to the SAP Center on Saturday, and face the Seattle Kraken.
Scoring summary Edmonton Oilers at San Jose Sharks April 3, 2025
First Period
6:22 EDM Connor Brown from Jeff Skinner and Jake Walman
8:10 SJS Jack Thompson from Alexander Wennberg and Mario Ferraro
Second Period
2:59 EDM Viktor Arvidsson from Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard on the power play
8:48 SJS Tyler Toffoli from Mario Ferraro and Macklin Celebrini
14:57 EDM Jeff Skinner from Evan Bouchard and Mattias Janmark
Third Period
No Scoring
