Lineup tweaks help Sharks get back into high gear
Ryan, Donskoi chip in as San Jose pulls even
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Sharks coach Pete Deboer decided to call in reinforcements for Game 4 with his team facing a dire situation Wednesday night against the Golden Knights.
Joakim Ryan and Joonas Donskoi led the charge and helped secure a 4-0 win at SAP Center that tied the Western Conference semifinals at two games apiece.
Ryan, who was named San Jose’s rookie of the year, had been paired with defenseman Brent Burns for most of the season before an upper-body injury forced him out of action in mid-march.
He was eager to return, but Deboer stayed with veteran Paul Martin, though the decision became easier after Martin’s lack of speed was exposed on William Karlsson’s game-winner Monday night.
“I felt pretty good, considering how long I was out,” Ryan said.
“I just tried to keep it simple. I wouldn’t say there was a moment I really felt like I was really back, I just kind of felt good all night.”
He helped contribute to a stout defensive effort that kept the Knights off the scoreboard for the first time in the series.
“That was our most complete game of the series, I thought,” goaltender Martin Jones said. “I thought we played really well, and (Ryan) was great right from the start. It’s not an easy spot missing the time he had and jumping into a spot like this, but he was great right from the start. He had some huge plays for us.”
Ryan, who was a plus-12 in the regular season, made his presence felt early on a perfectly-timed poke check on William Carrier in the first period to prevent a possible scoring opportunity.
The Sharks grabbed the lead soon after and poured it on from there.
“He did a good job for us,” Deboer said of the rookie. “We didn’t win because of Joakim Ryan, just like we didn’t lose last game because of Paul Martin. Our team game has been really good the last three games, but I thought Joakim came in and did a great job.”
Donskoi also got the nod Wednesday after he was limited in Game 2 and missed Game 3 with a lower body injury. He notched his first point since Game 3 of the Anaheim series when he went end-to-end and beat Marc-andre Fleury high with a blast from the blue line with just five seconds remaining in the first period.
“It was a big goal, but I thought even nicer than the goal was just having him back,” Deboer said. “You already have (Joe Thornton) out of the lineup, so when you take another top line guy out, you start writing down combinations and it starts to get thin pretty quickly. It’s nice to have him back.”
Thornton could be ready for Game 5. He has been teasing about a return from a knee injury that has kept him out since January, so even more help could be on the way for the Sharks.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@ reviewjournal.com or 702-277-8028. Follow @Adamhilllvrj on Twitter.