Quick bites: Tanking and tacos

The final two dozen or so games of the season will not be easy for San Jose Sharks fans. The product on the ice is only going to get worse as the team trades away the few assets it has with the hopes of preparing for…2025-26? Still, if the Sharks can manage to balance tanking with tacos, maybe things will be okay. On Thursday night, the sting of a 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks went down a little easier as everyone in the stands knew they could walk into Taco Bell tomorrow and get free tacos. That’s right, the Sharks reached the four-goal marker to send fans home with a small victory.

The start of the game was chaotic. Before the puck dropped, the Ducks made a last-minute change to the lineup. Anaheim pulled defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin and mid-game confirmed that it had traded him and the rights to unsigned Kirill Slepets to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Ducks retained 50% of Lyubushkin’s contract and received a 2025 third-round pick in return. The Carolina Hurricanes received a 2024 sixth-round pick for retaining 50% of the remaining contract. The Maple Leafs walk away with a $687,500 contract for a rental defenseman with grit.

Once again, you have to wonder what this says for the trade market, especially as it pertains to the San Jose Sharks, as the calendar turns to March.

Then there was the in-game stuff. Cam Fowler left the game less than a minute in after taking a puck up high. Fowler didn’t return; considering the amount of blood that landed on the ice and the way he quickly skated off, it’s understandable. Later in the period, the Sharks lost defenseman Ty Emberson. Head Coach David Quinn isn’t sure if Emberson will join the team on the upcoming road trip.

All that to say, it was a goal-filled affair with the kind of play you would expect from two teams who are in the basement of the league and each playing down a defenseman.

Kahkonen did not bring his A-game

Before the game, Fear the Fin tweeted out a suggestion that this might be a good game to get Magnus Chrona a start before the weekend gauntlet of the Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars. Turns out Quinn missed the tweet and started Kaapo Kahkonen instead.

Kahkonen, who has been a stalwart in net for the Sharks most of the season, showed some warts in this game. He allowed 5 goals in 29 shots and 3 of those goals came on the first 10 shots of the game. That third goal, in particular, was brutal.

🚨 Killer🚨

We lead 3-1! #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/YO2JM2ruFM

— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) March 1, 2024

Everyone’s allowed a bad night, including the goaltender, but Kahkonen has been trending down as the trade deadline approaches. As potentially the best asset that the Sharks have at the deadline, this could not come at a worse time.

Special teams were very good…or very bad

Depending on how you look at it, this was an excellent game to highlight the special teams aspect of it all or a very bad one.

The Sharks had six power plays, including a rare 4-on-3 thanks to William Eklund getting spicy with Anaheim’s Urho Vaakanainen, and scored on three of them. Meanwhile, the Ducks had five power plays and scored on two of them.

It was nice to see the Sharks getting some calls. The team hasn’t always received the benefit of the doubt, particularly against some of the more popular teams in the league. However, it’s hard to say if fans should be happy that the power play started clicking or worried that the penalty kill is starting to fall off.

One should also mention that the Ducks scored a short-handed goal on one of those Sharks’ power plays, so it was really more of 3-3 in the special teams battle.

Breaking scoreless droughts

Thanks to those power play chances, power play specialist Mike Hoffman was allowed to go to work. Hoffman broke a 28-game scoreless drought to make the score 3-2 in the second period. He hadn’t scored since Dec. 10, 2023. That’s marker number nine on the season for Hoffman.

William Eklund also broke a scoring drought. He scored on a power play in the third period to make it 3-3. Eklund hadn’t scored in ten games prior to last night.

While not dealing with a scoring drought, Anthony Duclair was able to showcase his skills last night. The forward opened the scoring early in the first period to put the Sharks up 1-0 (back when the Sharks looked like they had control of things). Then in the third period, Duclair added another tally to pull the Sharks within one goal of tying the game. Duclair also had an assist for a three-point night.

Highlights of the night: Anaheim Ducks at San Jose Sharks Feb. 29, 2024

We’re covering a pair of highlights today, both involving young Eklund. He didn’t like the way Vaakanainen came into a scrum on the boards, and then he put Vaakanainen on the ice.

Many #SJSharks fans don't know this, but William Eklund's nickname is Spicy Pete pic.twitter.com/CWphYLQVoB

— JD Young (@MyFryHole) March 1, 2024

The two players got into some pushing and shoving after the back and forth and both were sent to the box to think about what they did.

A bit later in the game, Eklund was still fired up and fired home a goal on the power play.

EKLUND TIES THE GAME UP ON THE POWER PLAY 🚨 pic.twitter.com/yucx1st9Fx

— Sharks on NBCS (@NBCSSharks) March 1, 2024