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Sharks come from behind to win twice against the Flames |
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The San Jose Sharks erased a 1-0 deficit and came from behind to beat the Calgary Flames 2-1 in overtime, but after a missed call by the officials they had to do it again in the shootout.
Justin Braun wired a shot from Captain Joe Thornton to the top shelf in the overtime period and the HP Pavilion erupted. The party was short lived though, because the officials claimed that there was goalie interference on the play. The video replay showed that there was interference, but it came from the Flames Olli Jokinen.
I asked Coach McLellan if he was disappointed by having to win that game twice “Yes I am disappointed. First of all they have a tough job to do. After that you have to make sure that if you are going to make that call you have to be a hundred percent sure. What I don’t understand is the positioning of it. The referee that’s 90 feet away makes the call when one is only fifteen away. What it comes down to right now is regulation and overtime wins mean a lot more than shootout wins and we don’t have one in the bank when we probably should have.”
What the coach means by this is that regulation and overtime wins can be used to break a tie in the standings but shootout wins cannot.
Even more disappointing was that Joe Thornton said that the ref came to the bench and was a hundred percent sure that it was the right call.
Scoring chances came in bunches for both teams tonight. The Sharks hit iron twice in the first period and again in the second. The game opened up at times and then was tight for spells. The number of scoring opportunities didn’t reflect on the number of shots on net through the first two periods.
The opening goal of the game was a shot that looked as though it fooled Niemi. Butler one timed the puck from the point and caught Niemi off guard. Couture inadvertently screened his goalie, but he was the only player in front and he was a long ways from the crease. This was one that the Sharks goalie will want back.
At the end of the second period the score was 1-0 for the Flames and by the way that Mikka Kiprusof was playing it looked as though the Sharks missed opportunities would be their downfall. That is until Torrey Mitchell back handed in a Michal Handzus rebound to tie the game in the third period and give the sell-out crowd at the Shark Tank something to cheer about.
Tonight’s line-up was different from what we have recently seen for the Sharks. Ryane Clowe was out with what they are calling an upper body injury. From what we can tell the injury occurred against the Wild and was the reason that Clowe wore a face cage in the next two games, he took it off against Chicago.
As a result of Clowe’s absence Coach McLellan moved Patrick Marleau to the second line (Couture’s line) and started Jamie McGinn with Thornton and Pavelski on the first line. It was a move that spread the talent on the team. McGinn was replaced by Tommy Wingels half way through the second period and into the third which proved to be a smart move as it was the third line with McGinn on it that tied the game. Desjardins is still out which made space for Frazer Mclaren on the fourth line with Andrew Murray and Brad Winchester.
Andrew Desjardins is another Shark who was unable to suit up against the Flames after taking a head shot against the Blue Jackets. Dane Byers delivered the hit on Desjardins and was suspended for three games. As of this afternoon Desjardins had yet to take any league required tests that come after receiving a head shot.
This was the first meeting of the year between two teams that have a history together. No matter how you slice it the Sharks and Flames don’t get along, especially from a fans point of view. The biggest hurt for San Jose fans is the 2004 trade of Mikka Kiprusoff to the Flames, who has been one of the league’s most consistent goalies since that time. It didn’t help that the surging Flames ended the Sharks season on their way to the Cup finals that same year. The pain from that trade seems to be dissipating with the play of Ready Eddie who they with the draft pick they received for Kiprusof.
Tonight the rivalry was renewed in the first game of this season between these clubs. For the most part the game was quite docile, until the third period. In the third there were scrums after the whistle, there was some big hits, and tempers on both teams boiled over. There were a couple of squirmishes at the end of the overtime period which will make the next time they play even more exciting.
The Flames have struggled in recent years to make the playoffs and this season they are in the same boat, coming into tonight’s clash they sit four points out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The big news in the NHL was the Mike Cammalleri, Rene Bourque trade. Cammalleri finds himself back in Cow town for his second stint after he was pulled in the middle of a game while he was still part of the Montreal Canadians. His best year for goals and points came as a Flame when he scored 39g 43a in 2008/09.
Scoring details
1st
No scoring
2nd
Cal – 12:07 –EV – 44 C.Butler (2) – assists – 12 J.Iginla (20), 11 M.Backlund (6)
3rd
SJ – 10:44 –EV – 17 T. Mitchell (5) – assists – 26 M.Handzus (14), 88 B. Burns (10)
OT
No scoring
Shootout
SJ 26 M.Handzus
The turning point in this game was the scrum after the whistle in the third period when Blair Jones mixed things up and woke the sleeping bear. After that scrum the Sharks came out with more intensity, something that was missing from their game earlier in the night. After that they scored a blue collar goal and kept the pedal to the metal.
Contenders & Pretenders
Contenders
Brent Burns – is the game’s first contender. He had more jump in his stride tonight compared to the Chicago game and was effective rushing the puck. He assisted on the Mitchell goal and also cemented the win in the shootout by beating Flames goalie Mikka Kiprusof high on the blocker side.
Burns spoke afterwards about the win “Anytime you lose it’s good to come back and play strong. Obviously we didn’t play our best game in Chicago.”
Sharks coaching staff – get the second nod for balancing the skill but also for the McGinn Wingels switch. Jamie McGinn’s game improved along with the whole third line when he was put back on the wing. They scored the goal that sent this game to the extra frame.
Jarome Iginla – was all out tonight, as he is every night. People often talk about his compete level and tonight we saw it firsthand. Iggy has plenty of pop.
Pretenders
The officials – blew a call tonight that could affect the final rankings going into the playoffs. What is more upsetting is that they were so confident in their call. They are the first pretender tonight.
Blair Jones – gets the games second pretender for starting the scrum that turned this game around. You don’t ever poke the sleeping bear, but that is what the Jones did in the third period. Before that the Flames were winning, why did he light the fire under the Sharks behind.
San Jose prepares for the Ottawa Senators who come into the Tank on Thursday night as one of the surprise teams in the east.
Keep your sticks on the ice,
Cam Gore
San Jose Sharks Blogger • 
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