Donskoi injury puts damper on clutch win
EDMONTON, ALBERTA >> Tomas Hertl secured two points for the Sharks with his second goal of the game, but the Sharks may have lost Joonas Donskoi in the process.
Hertl clinched a 4-3 overtime win over the Edmonton Oilers at 3:40 of the extra session Wednesday, firing a pass from Logan Couture inside the far post.
Donskoi left the game with an apparent shoulder injury late in the third period, slamming his stick before hewent up the tunnel after being driven into the boards by defenseman Ethan Bear. The Finnish forward recorded just 17 points in 61 games last season while fighting through a pair of shoulder injuries. He experienced a resurgence after the Sharks acquired Evander Kane last month, scoring six points in seven games since the trade.
Despite Donskoi’s injury, the Sharks gained a three-point lead over the Los Angeles Kings for second place in the Pacific Division with the win.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins gave the Oilers a 3-2 lead at 1:26 of the third, redirecting an Oscar Klefbom blast from the point in the
siliency must be in this Sharks team’s DNA. The Sharks rank fifth in wins ( 15) when surrendering the opening goal, second in wins when trailing after the opening period (8) and sixth in wins (5) when trailing after two periods. They’ve also fought through key injuries, producing a 3-1 record without Logan Couture in December, going 2-1-1 without Martin Jones in January and compiling a 12- 9-2 mark since Joe Thornton suffered a right-knee injury on Jan. 23.
On Wednesday, the Sharks battled back from 1- 0, 2-1 and 3-2 deficits.
After Drake Caggiula opened the scoring at 2:39 of the first, Hertl tied it up by converting a 3 on 1 chance at 8:03 of the opening frame. Oscar Klefbom put the Oilers ahead 2-1 at 7:44 and Couture tied it with the Sharks third power play goal in four games 2:15 later.
Brenden Dillon scored the game- tying goal by finding the top-left corner on a shot from the point at 9:05 of the third, negating Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ goahead goal just 86 seconds into the final stanza.
Hertl, who got demoted to the third line in the Sharks’ 4-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 4, made a hard play in overtime to take the puck away from Leon Draisaitl before he clinched the win with his third goal in four games since he received the wrist slap from his coach.
“It was a grind out there,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “We kept battling and found a way. That’s been the story of our group all year.”
2. THE TIMING OF DON SKOI’S INJURY COULDN’ T BE WORSE >> There isn’t a right time to suffer a major injury. That said, the timing of some injuries are worse than others. How bad is the timing of the apparent shoulder injury that Donskoi suffered Wednesday?
The sight of Donskoi slamming of his stick onto the ice as he skated toward the tunnel said more than 1,000 words.
Donskoi appeared to injure his left shoulder as defenseman Ethan Bear drove him into the boards at 13:16 of the third period, potentially derailing the hot streak he’d put together since the Sharks acquired Evander Kane at the trade deadline. After recording just four goals and 12 points in 32 games, Donskoi caught fire once his line with Kane and Joe Pavelski was formed on Feb. 27. Donskoi recorded six points in seven games, triggering flashbacks of his performance during the Sharks run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2016 when he made a name for himself on the national stage
by compiling 12 points in 24 games.
The 25-year- old Finn struggled through a sophomore slump last season, earning just 17points in61 games while fighting through a pair of shoulder ailments, making Wednesday’s injury even more worrisome.
“It’s tough,” Couture said. “It looked like it was possibly the same thing he hurt before. I haven’t seen him yet. You hope that he’s back sooner than later.”
Kane also left the game for two shifts in the first period. DeBoer said that both players were being evaluated after the game.
“We’ll see,” DeBoer said. “I’m not going to make any speculation on what it’s going to be. Cross our fingers, and if he’s out, it’s next man up.”
3. COUTURE CEMENTS HIS PLACE IN SHARKS HISTORY >> With his team-leading 28th goal in the second period, Couture moved into fourth place on the Sharks’ all-time goals list, passing Owen Nolan with his 207th career tally.
The four players above him on the list, Patrick Marleau (508), Pavelski (313) and Thornton (228), form a near Mount Rushmore of Sharks hockey, leaving no doubt that Couture is on his way to solidifying the fourth spot on the monument.
“He’s one of those guys, that when you think of the Sharks organization, that’s who you think of,” Pavelski said. “You think of Patty and Joe, and you think of Cooch, he’s right there.
“He’s meant everything to this team and he’s carried it for us a lot of the season.”