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The San Jose Sharks are on a two-game winning streak, after ending their homestand with a 3-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers last night.
The win also marked Calen Addison’s first game with the Sharks after being acquired from the Minnesota Wild, taking Ty Emberson’s spot in the lineup.
The Sharks actually looked good early on, with Mikael Granlund getting a point-blank chance in front, then William Eklund stripping the puck off Connor McDavid for a shorthanded breakaway, but neither player was able to convert.
But despite the Oilers having a few power play opportunities and outshooting San Jose 14-6 in the opening frame, Tomas Hertl found Fabian Zetterlund in front of the net late in the period, and Zetterlund beat Stuart Skinner with a one-timer to make it a 1-0 game.
Early in the second period though, the Sharks got caught up ice, and Darnell Nurse came down on a 2-on-1 and beat Mackenzie Blackwood to tie the game. However, later in the period, Nikita Okhotiuk just threw a shot on goal and it took a bounce off Zetterlund and landed right on Hertl’s stick, for Hertl to put the Sharks back ahead. The Oilers had several good chances to tie it once again late in the period, but Blackwood came up with some big saves to preserve the lead.
Then only a couple minutes into the third period, the Sharks came down ice on a 2-on-1, and Nico Sturm fed a pass over to Filip Zadina, who beat Skinner to make it a 3-1 game.
The Oilers did throw a lot of shots at Blackwood from there, outshooting San Jose 17-4 in the frame, and cutting the lead to one off a goal from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins late in the third period.
Mikael Granlund then took a tripping penalty, giving the Oilers a golden opportunity to tie the game on a 6-on-4 with the goalie pulled. However, the Sharks managed to hang on, earning the 3-2 win.
With the victory, the Sharks earn their second win of the season, tying the Oilers in points within the Pacific Division.
I talked before about how the Sharks just didn’t have any lines that were really working for them, but that may have just changed with the Eklund-Hertl-Zetterlund line. The trio combined for two goals last night, but have also been the line creating the most chances. They've outshot opponents 12-7 at 5-on-5 while on the ice together over the last two games (according to NaturalStatTrick.com). Considering Eklund and Zetterlund are two of the young forwards the Sharks will really want to develop into long-term assets, it’s a good sign.
Meanwhile, Mackenzie Blackwood continues to be one of the NHL’s most confusing goalies. At times, he looks elite, and there’s no doubt he’s been the team’s MVP over their two wins, allowing just three goals on a combined 80 shots. There have been other games where he gives up multiple soft goals, and even if the Sharks were a better team, he wouldn't be giving them a chance to win. Regardless, Blackwood has been key in the two victories, and we know how good he can be at his best.
The Sharks also weren’t shy about using Calen Addison in his first game with the team, with Addison playing the third-most minutes at even strength of any defender on the team.
So despite San Jose being outshot 80-37 over the last two games, they find themselves on a bit of a win streak. The bar was extraordinarily low, but this is clearly the peak of the season so far.
The Sharks are back in action tonight, as they face the Vegas Golden Knights.
OTHER ARTICLES FROM NOVEMBER
- Sharks remain winless after allowing 10 goals in second straight game
- Sharks earn first win of season, acquire Calen Addison from Wild 
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