It’s Couture to the rescue: Sharks shoot down Ducks
Resilient San Jose erases 2-0 deficit, Meier ties it late in the third period to force overtime
ANAHEIM >> Logan Couture provided the third-period heroics and then he scored the clincher in the shootout.
The Sharks (30-18-8) avoided a three-way logjam for second place in the Pacific Division Sunday by erasing a two-goal third period deficit en route to a 3-2 shootout win over the Anaheim Ducks (27-20-10) in Orange County.
Couture scored the Sharks’ first goal, set up the tying goal in the final minute of regulation and iced the game in the shootout after Joe Pavelski scored and goalie Martin Jones stopped Adam Henrique and Rickard Rakell.
Here’s what we learned as the Sharks closed out their season series against the Ducks with a 3-0-1 record.
1. SHARKS ARE RESILIENT
Patrick Marleau skips town to sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
No problem.
Joe Thornton suffers a major knee injury.
Just another bump in the road.
The Sharks fall behind 2-0 in the third period of a crucial division game that would have allowed the Ducks and the Calgary Flames to tie them for second place in the Pacific Division.
Like most teams, the Sharks are loaded with potential flaws that could hinder them down the stretch. They’re overly reliant on the power play for scoring, they lack high-end speed in transition and the fourth line is still a work in progress 56 games into the season.
But the group is overflowing with an ingredient that’s hard to cook up in the coach’s room and the general manager’s office: resiliency.
It doesn’t matter who’s in the lineup or how big the deficit, the Sharks are a tough team to stomp out. They came back from a three-goal deficit in Las Vegas to earn a point on Nov. 24. They did it again against the Winnipeg Jets on Jan. 23, and they nearly climbed out of a 4-0 hole against a red-hot Colorado Avalanche team on Jan. 18, putting
48 shots on net.
Is there a situation the Sharks don’t believe they can come back from right now?
“It doesn’t feel like it on the bench,” Couture said. “There’s really no doubt in our minds that we’re going to come back and give ourselves a chance to win a game.”
Coach Pete DeBoer credited the Sharks leadership group for instilling the team’s youngsters with such a strong belief system.
“There’s no doubt it starts there,” the Sharks coach said. “Those guys never change — Pav (Pavelski), Burnzie (Brent Burns), Logan and (Marc-Edouard) Vlasic — their demeanor doesn’t change whether we’re up, whether we’re down.”
Couture said the Sharks don’t know any better when they fall behind than to believe they’ll come back and win. Are the Sharks too young and stupid to recognize when the deck is stacked against them?
“Possibly,” Couture joked. “We’ve got a few stupid guys on the team. Maybe that’s it.”
2. Couture delivers in clutch, again
Maintaining belief isn’t hard for a young team when its leader continues to deliver in the clutch.
If you aren’t convinced that Couture is taking the torch from Thornton, Marleau and Pavelski, watch how he almost willed the team to victory Sunday.
Couture gave the Sharks a pulse by blasting a loose puck into the top shelf from
the high slot at 10:56 of the third, cutting the Ducks lead to 2-1.
With 56 seconds left in regulation, he fed Timo Meier at the side of the net for his 14th goal of the season to tie it, 2-2.
In the shootout, he kept the Ducks third shooter off the ice, sealing the win by firing a low shot past John Gibson.
Couture’s heroics gave the Sharks a two-point lead over the Calgary Flames and a three-point edge over the Ducks and the Los Angeles Kings.
“He delivered big time today,” DeBoer said. “Biggest game of the year to date and he was the best player on the ice.”
3. Coaching staff deserves an assist
The Sharks coaching staff won’t be found anywhere
on the scoresheet, but they played a key role in the win.
With 18 seconds left in the first, the Ducks appeared to have taken a 2-0 lead on a goal from Corey Perry.
But the Sharks challenged the play and won after video review revealed that Cam Fowler skated offside by a hair before Ryan Kesler entered the zone.
“Dan Darrow in our video room heads that up,” DeBoer said. “That was a great call.
“Critical. That changed the game.”
• With Joel Ward out indefinitely with a shoulder injury, the Sharks recalled Rudolfs Balcers from the AHL Barracuda Sunday to serve as the team’s 13th forward. Balcers got the call up to sit in the press box because Marcus Sorensen suffered an upper-body injury in the Barracuda’s overtime loss to the San Diego Gulls Saturday.