Kane scores first goal as a Shark, but S.J. falls to Columbus.
Kane opens Sharks’ account, but team unable to overcome 3-0 deficit
The Sharks came to life a tad too late Sunday night as they suffered their first loss since they acquired Evander Kane at the NHL’s trade deadline.
Kane and Joonas Donskoi both scored at even strength, but the Sharks got nothing from their power play for the 12th straight game and could not make up for a lackluster opening 20 minutes in a 4-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets at SAP Center.
The Sharks trailed 3-0 by the 5:32 mark of the second period on three even-strength goals by Columbus, and never fully recovered despite some improved play as the game progressed.
Blue Jackets goalie Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 33 saves, including 14 in the third period.
“There was never a moment where we felt out of the game,” Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said. “It never felt like it was out of reach. The guys in our group showed it and came back and gave ourselves a chance. Definitely, down 3-0, and at the end
of the night, that was what cost us.”
Sharks goalie Martin Jones was pulled after he allowed three goals on 13 shots, although he had almost no chance on at least two of them.
Still, after Artemi Panarin’s goal gave the Blue Jackets a three-goal cushion, Jones was removed in favor of Aaron Dell as Sharks coach Pete DeBoer searched for anything to light a fire under his team.
“That’s one way to grab their attention or settle ourselves down,” DeBoer said. “Unfortunately for (Jones), he was the victim of that tonight. It wasn’t anything that he did in the net.”
The Sharks didn’t create much until the final two minutes of the second, when Dylan DeMelo’s shot from just inside the blue line was redirected by Donskoi past Bobrovsky at the 18:22 mark to cut Columbus’ lead to 3-1.
“I don’t think we had the same level of urgency as they did,”
Kane said. “The last five minutes of the second was when we really started to get into the game, (Donskoi) getting a big one there and I thought it carried over well into the third period. But anytime you get down three goals, it’s tough.”
Kane scored his first goal with the Sharks and his 21st of the season at the 10:04 mark of the third, taking a pass from Pavelski and beating Bobrovsky with a wrist shot that squeezed through his pads.
The Sharks pressed for the equalizer, but Panarin sealed the win with an empty net goal in the final minute of regulation time.
Kane also assisted on Donskoi’s goal, as that line with Donskoi and Pavelski now has a combined 16 points in three games since Kane was brought
over from the Buffalo Sabres on Feb. 26.
“There’s been a lot of space, there’s been a lot entries where we’re coming in together,” Pavelski said of his line. “We’ve just been in synch. It’s not been one guy leading it. It’s been (Donskoi) driving it in with (Kane). We’ve been taking the puck to the net, haven’t been messing around with it too much.”
The Sharks didn’t have a problem getting past Edmonton and Chicago to start their homestand. While the power play continued to struggle, evenstrength goals were coming by the bushel.
With less room to skate against a defensive-minded Blue Jackets team, the 5-on-5 scoring could only do so much Sunday, and the Sharks’ power play futility continues to set team records.
The power play looked dangerous at times, and Bobrovsky made eight saves when the Blue Jackets were down a man.
Still, the Sharks’ four misfires against Columbus extended their goalless streak with the manadvantage to a franchiserecord 12 games, going 0 for 28 in that time. San Jose’s last power play goal came Feb. 8 against the Vegas Golden Knights.
“You’ve got to give the goalie on the other team some credit,” DeBoer said. “I’ll be the first guy to stand here if we can’t get into the zone or we can’t get set up. You’ve got to look at it realistically. We generated some real quality looks. We missed the net on some and he made some saves on some.”
“We understand that we have to keep going and find ways to get it back,” Pavelski said of the power play.
The worst part for the Sharks was that Columbus scored quickly after two first period power plays fizzled out.
Nick Foligno scored at the 9:12 mark of the first, 10 seconds after his hooking penalty expired. Then Panarin scored 54 seconds after Zach Werenski left the box on another hooking call.
The Sharks entered Sunday’s game 10 points back of Vegas for first place in the Pacific Division, and are now one point ahead of Anaheim for second place. The Sharks’ homestand continues Thursday against St. Louis.