While the San Jose Sharks got a much-needed boost with the recent return of Patrick Marleau, this is the best they should feel about their team this season. The Sharks looked great in almost every facet of the game, matched up against a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. As indicated by the final score, the Sharks offense was lethal, tallying 5 goals, and on the back of an excellent performance in net by Martin Jones, held a potent Hurricanes offense – spearheaded by young phenom Sebastian Aho – to only 2. Evander Kane absolutely buried the Hurricanes in the first period, opening the scoring for San Jose, then striking twice on the power play to complete the first opening period hat trick in Sharks history. Tomas Hertl was absolutely flying, and seemed to be involved in more scoring opportunities than his already solid stat line (1 goal, 2 assists) would imply, and Barclay Goodrow looked very impressive in an elevated role, capping off a great night with a slick goal.
Steal ➡️ Score
Barclay Goodrow pic.twitter.com/x5NrBA1ty7
— Sharks on NBCS (@NBCSSharks) October 17, 2019
Martin Jones posted a .947 save percentage, and looked fantastic all night. Simply put, he put on a clinic, reinforcing his reputation as a ‘boom-or-bust’ goaltender and reminding fans that when he’s at his best, he can stop nearly anything. Logan Couture had a quieter night, but was still a force on the ice, dominating in the face-off circle, winning 78% of his draws, and logging almost twenty minutes of ice time – the most among Sharks forwards. Young players Mario Ferraro and Dylan Gambrell had strong games as well, with Gambrell coming oh, so close to his first regulation NHL goal, as he tipped a puck past James Reimer that ended up (questionably) waived off due to a high touch.
The game featured a plethora of opportunities on special teams, and the Sharks happily capitalized, converting on two of their four power play opportunities and killing all four of the penalties they took – including a 5-on-3 advantage. The power play success is critically important, as San Jose has missed net-front specialist Joe Pavelski and his knack for re-directing shots on goal; seeing Evander Kane score three times (twice on the power play) from Pavelski’s typical range was a thing of beauty for Sharks fans.
With three straight wins in tow and plenty of reasons to be optimistic, the Sharks should have a certain swagger about them as they head into their next game, and they’ll need it – it’s a tough matchup against a very good Buffalo Sabres team.
First Period
20:00: We’re underway in San Jose! Great to see Sorensen healthy again.
18:52: Great chance for Carolina shut down by Martin Jones. In only a minute or so, both teams have pretty effectively generated offense.
16:23: The Hurricanes getting a ton of offensive pressure early – Jones has looked sharp thus far, making another nice save – this one on Andrei Svechnikov.
13:35: Huge sequence for the Sharks – Tomas Hertl and Kevin Labanc perfectly execute a slick back and forth passing play, which ends up stopped by James Reimer. The rebound sets up a breakaway for Warren Foegele, which is played beautifully and broken up by Marc-Edouard Vlasic. Great start for both teams.
11:24: The Sharks strike first! Evander Kane finds a loose puck a few feet in front of the net, and picks the corner on James Reimer.
9:14: The Hurricanes’ relentless pressure pays off as they tie the game. Crisp, quick passing eventually leads to a prime opportunity for Dougie Hamilton, who fires a wrist shot past Jones. 1-1!
7:43: Dylan Gambrell redirects a Mario Ferraro shot for what should have been his first-ever regular season NHL goal, but it ends up ruled as a high-stick deflection. Since the call on the ice was no-goal, the replay, which made it look really, really close was deemed not conclusive enough to overturn the call on the ice. The game remains tied.
3:35: Tomas Hertl is tripped by Nino Niederreiter, and the Sharks head to the power play! Clear trip.
3:25: Hertl feeds Evander Kane – who was waiting in the slot on the goalie’s glove side – for a one-timer and Reimer makes the save of the game thus far, catching the puck in his glove just over the red line… Everyone but Reimer thought that one was in.
2:41: Kane scores on the power play! He’s looked absolutely unstoppable near the net, as he cashes in from up close, tallying his second goal of the night. Sharks lead 2-1.
:22.4: Svechnikov gets called for a dangerous slew-foot on Erik Karlsson. Sharks heading to the power play for another two minutes, Karlsson visibly wincing on the bench.
:16.7: And the Sharks make them pay! Evander Kane scores almost instantly, redirecting a Brent Burns shot for a first period hat trick, the first Shark in franchise history to record one!
END FIRST: Hurricanes 1, Sharks 3
There were a lot of positives for Sharks fans to take away from the first period, outside of the franchise’s first-ever first period hat trick. Martin Jones has looked solid, Marc-Edouard Vlasic had a vintage sequence, and Tomas Hertl has been involved in a meaningful way; this, of course, bodes well for team teal moving forward – let’s hope that they keep the momentum going into the second period!
Second Period
20:00: The puck has been dropped, and the second period is underway.
17:36: A break-out pass for Barclay Goodrow is just out of reach, but he absolutely bodies Jake Gardiner with a clean, heavy hit before the end of his shift.
14:36: Logan Couture and Patrick Marleau get close on a two-on-one, but it doesn’t end up on net. Couture takes an (incidental) elbow to the head from Carolina’s Joel Edmundson and looks very uncomfortable on the bench.
13:46: Hertl crashes the net and makes a pretty move on a backhanded wrap-around, but ends up being denied by Reimer.
12:52: Jaccob Slavin takes down Barclay Goodrow, and the Sharks are on the man-advantage again. A lack of discipline is killing them tonight – it likely has something to do with this being the second game in a back to back.
10:52: Joe Thornton gets called for holding the stick, and this time it’s the Hurricanes on the power play. Lots of special teams action tonight, but the Sharks have looked great in that area.
5:23: Barclay Goodrow adds to his already stellar night, cashing in on a turnover in the neutral zone and burying a shot past James Reimer! 4-1 Sharks.
4:43: Marleau is called for the hook on Jaccob Slavin, and the Hurricanes will have a chance to get back into this one.
3:28: Goodrow joins Marleau in the penalty box, and the Sharks will be trying to kill a 5-on-3. Hooking again.
2:40: San Jose kills the 5-on-3, but still has another minute-plus of 5-on-4 penalty killing time on their plates.
1:30: The Sharks successfully complete the penalty kill, and the score remains 4-1!
END SECOND: Hurricanes 1, Sharks 4
Third Period
20:00: The puck has been dropped, and the third period is underway!
15:49: Since the beginning of the period, the Sharks have been leaning on a very dialed-in Martin Jones – and he’s delivered for them.
13:30: Niederreiter trips Tomas Hertl and the Sharks will have another power play.
12:20: Not a ton of energy on the man advantage for San Jose.
9:20: Carolina looking a little lethargic, understandably so, considering they’re playing a back to back. Sharks aggressively pinching whenever the Hurricanes try to enter the zone.
7:48: Kevin Labanc gets caught holding, and Carolina’s power play unit heads back onto the ice.
4:27: Brock McGinn gets the best chance of the period so far, but Jones comes up with a big denial.
4:19: A great shift from the Hurricanes in the Sharks’ zone culminates in Erik Haula deflecting a shot past Martin Jones, cutting San Jose’s lead to 4-2.
2:15: Reimer is on the bench, pulled for the extra skater, and with a face-off coming in the Sharks zone, the Hurricanes call a timeout.
1:53: Brendan Dillon takes a shot down the length of the ice, just missing the empty net, resulting in an icing. You have to feel for him on that one, knowing he doesn’t get many chances to put pucks in the net with his style of play.
:52.1: Evander Kane feeds Tomas Hertl, who scores on the empty net! 5-2 Sharks.
FINAL SCORE: Hurricanes 2, Sharks 5
Pregame
The high-flying, Metropolitan Division leading Carolina Hurricanes come to the SAP Center armed with a distinctly new look since their last meeting with the San Jose Sharks. Gone is the all-too-familiar Justin Williams, as well as power play specialist Justin Faulk. Instead, the Sharks will be facing off against the likes of newcomers like Jake Gardiner, Erik Haula and Ryan Dzingel, in addition to returning talents like the electric Sebastian Aho and Nino Niederreiter.
On the backs of these talents, the Hurricanes have gotten off to a red-hot (best in franchise history) start, losing only once in their first seven games. Their game tonight is the second they’ve played in two days, winning 2-0 against the Kings last night in Los Angeles. The Hurricanes are a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference, upsetting the defending champion Washington Capitals in last year’s postseason, and only improving their roster since then. Needless to say, the Sharks have a real test ahead of them.
San Jose is enjoying their first win streak of the season, and will look to ensure their rough start is firmly behind them, coming off of a 3-1 victory against their division rival, the Calgary Flames. The Sharks haven’t lost (I know, I know, sample size) since re-uniting with beloved franchise icon Patrick Marleau, and will look to carry some confidence into tonight’s matchup.
This is the first of two meetings between the clubs this season. Last season, the two teams split their season series 1-1, with the Sharks earning a lopsided 5-1 win following a 4-3 shootout loss to the Hurricanes. Carolina is missing forward Jordan Martinook with a core muscle injury, as well as defensemen Trevor van Riemsdyk, who’s dealing with a shoulder issue. The Sharks are still without Radim Simek, as well as Dalton Prout and Jacob Middleton, as they deal with knee, upper body, and shoulder issues, respectively.
Lines
Sharks
Sorensen looks like he will be back as the #SJSharks take on a bunch of jerks. pic.twitter.com/8aXErU0Pbh
— Fear the Patty (@fearthefin) October 16, 2019
Expected scratches: Trevor Carrick, Danil Yurtaykin, Lean Bergmann (healthy)
Injured reserve: Jacob Middleton (shoulder), Dalton Prout (upper body), Radim Simek (knee)
Hurricanes
Andrei Svechnikov — Jordan Staal — Brock McGinn
Nino Niederreiter — Sebastian Aho — Teuvo Teravainen
Ryan Dzingel — Erik Haula — Martin Necas
Warren Foegele — Lucas Wallmark — Brian Gibbons
Jaccob Slavin — Dougie Hamilton
Joel Edmundson — Brett Pesce
Jake Gardiner — Haydn Fleury
James Reimer
Petr Mrazek
Scratches: Trevor van Riemsdyk (day-to-day, shoulder)
Injured reserve: Jordan Martinook (core muscle)
Where to Watch
Tonight’s action from the SAP Center starts at 7:30 p.m. Pacific on NSCA in the Bay Area and FSCR in the Carolina market. Online streaming available at NHL.tv and ESPN+. Radio streaming will be available on 98.5 KFOX and the Sharks + SAP Center app.
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