The San Jose Sharks came up short in their home opener against the St. Louis Blues last night, falling 5-4 in overtime.
San Jose’s lineup was as follows:
William Eklund - Macklin Celebrini - Tyler Toffoli
Mikael Granlund - Will Smith - Fabian Zetterlund
Barclay Goodrow- Alexander Wennberg - Luke Kunin
Danil Gushchin - Nico Sturm - Ty Dellandrea
Jake Walman - Cody Ceci
Mario Ferraro - Jan Rutta
Henry Thrun - Matt Benning
Mackenzie Blackwood
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The Blues drove the play early in the first period, outshooting San Jose by about a 7-1 margin in the first six minutes, and Mackenzie Blackwood had to be sharp, including a nice save on Robert Thomas in-close.
However, on the Sharks’ second shot of the game, Macklin Celebrini spun and threw the puck to the front of the net, and it went in off Matthew Kessel and in, giving the Sharks the lead, and giving Celebrini his first NHL goal just seven minutes into his NHL career.
However, just a minute later, the Sharks got caught up ice and with a 2-on-1 the other way, Pavel Buchnevich put a pass off Jan Rutta and in, quickly tying the game back up.
The Blues were all over San Jose from there continued to outshoot the Sharks by a wide margin. However, with under three minutes to go, Celebrini got to the puck behind the Blues net and fed a pass out front to Tyler Toffoli who beat Joel Hofer, putting the Sharks back ahead.
Pavel Buchenvich did have a chance to tie the game back up shortly after and rang a shot off the post, but despite being outshot 22-9 in the frame, the Sharks got to intermission up 2-1 (largely off a good period from Blackwood).
The Sharks did come out better in the second frame though, holding the Blues without a shot for nearly the first eight minutes of the period. Then on a power play around the midway mark of the period, Mikael Granlund put a great backdoor pass to Fabian Zetterlund for a tap-in, making it a 3-1 game.
San Jose then had a chance to blow the game open on another power play courtesy of a Kasperi Kapanen slash, and while Luke Kunin put a shot off the post, the Sharks couldn’t convert. However, with St. Louis on a power play of their own later, Robert Thomas turned the puck over, and Barclay Goodrow went down ice on a shorthanded rush, eventually banking the puck in off Hofer to put San Jose up 4-1 heading into the second intermission.
It was a much, much better second period for the Sharks, outshooting St. Louis 17-7 and really limiting chances for the Blues at even strength.
St. Louis did get one back early in the third period though, with Radek Faksa’s wraparound ramping off Cody Ceci’s stick and in. Then only a little later, Ryan Suter took a pass in the slot following a turnover from Henry Thrun, and he beat Blackwood as well, quickly cutting the lead to one only six minutes into the frame.
At about the midway mark of the frame, Danil Gushchin took a high-sticking penalty, sending the Blues to the man advantage with a chance to tie it, but San Jose managed to survive. The Sharks were playing on their heels for a lot of the frame from there though, and ended up managing just three shots in the period.
While it looked like they may be able to hold off the Blues on their late push, with just 47 seconds to go, Justin Faulk sent the puck on net to beat Blackwood, tying the game and sending it to overtime.
Then in the extra frame, St. Louis took possession and only 45 seconds in, Brayden Schenn came down the wing and ripped a shot past Blackwood, giving the Blues the win.
It’s a tough loss for the Sharks, blowing a three-goal lead in their home opener. They were outshot and badly outplayed in the first and third periods, and counted on Mackenzie Blackwood to keep them in the game early.
At the same time, I think there’s also a lot to like. The Sharks’ offense looked more dangerous already, and Celebrini scoring the first goal of the season (and assisting on another) was a nice touch. Will Smith was maybe a little quieter, but there was still just a lot more energy and reason for excitement in this season opener as opposed to last year.
The defense group is far from elite, but San Jose did look better in terms of giving up less offense off the rush. The bar was low, but still, it’s a positive. Then up front, aside from the additions of Celebrini and Toffoli in the top-six, the bottom-six also looked a lot more capable, following a lot of turnover this offseason.
At the end of the day, this season is all about the development of young talent. Celebrini already looked great, and William Eklund also seems like he’s poised to take another step. While it's obviously tough to blow that kind of lead, this year really doesn't hinge on wins and losses for a rebuilding team like the Sharks. You just want to see the team be more competitive, and for the young talent to make an impact. At least through the opener, both those things were accomplished.
San Jose will be back in action tomorrow, when they face the Anaheim Ducks.
OTHER ARTICLES FROM OCTOBER
- Sharks poised for a more exciting season despite rebuild
- Sharks set season-opening roster
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