Sharks let golden opportunity slip away

SAN JOSE — After clinching a playoff berth Monday, the Sharks coughed up a golden opportunity put themselves within a point of securing home-ice advantage in the first round Tuesday.

The Sharks allowed 40 minutes of dominant hockey to slip through their fingers, losing their fourth straight game as the Dallas Stars scored twice in the third period to record a stunning 4-2 win at SAP Center.

Jamie Benn scored the game-winning goal with 3:06 left in regulation after Gemel Smith tied the game at 2-2 just 2:11 earlier. Benn completed the hat trick at 19:37 of the third by scoring into an empty net.

The Sharks took their feet off the gas with a lead in the third, getting outshot 12-1 in the frame.

The Sharks held the Stars to just five shots in the first period and six in the second. Despite their 30-11 shot edge after 40 minutes, they went into the second intermission leading by just one goal because Benn put the Stars on the board with 30.2 seconds left in the middle frame, redirecting a pass from John Klingberg at the side of the net.

Journeyman goalie Mike McKenna kept the Stars in the game, making 17 straight saves after he came in at 15:54 of the first to relieve Kari Lehtonen, who suffered an injury on a shot to the collar area. McKenna’s biggest stop came when he made a stick save on a halfbreakaway from Logan Couture, who tried to slip the puck through his legs.