Skid at 4 after shootout loss
DETROIT — After losing their final two games before the All-Star Game, the Sharks were hoping to turn things around after the weekend break. So far, so bad. Petr Mrazek made 30 saves through regulation and overtime, then stopped Tomas Hertl in the seventh round of a shootout to lift the Detroit Red Wings to a 2-1 victory over San Jose on Wednesday night.
The result, on the heels of a 5-2 setback in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, gave the Sharks a four-game losing streak that is their longest of the season.
Justin Abdelkader scored in the final shot of the seventh round of the tiebreaker, and Mrazek’s save on Hertl ended the game.
Trevor Daley scored for the Red Wings in the third period before Kevin Labanc responded for San Jose.
In the shootout, Gustav Nyquist, Andreas Athanasiou, Tomas Tatar and Abdelkader scored for Detroit, and Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture and Chris Tierney scored for the Sharks.
The Red Wings had a season-high 44 shots, but San Jose salvaged a point thanks to goalie Martin Jones and Labanc’s goal with 4:59 remaining in regulation.
The Sharks spoiled Mrazek’s bid for a shutout after an extended possession in Detroit’s zone. Labanc’s wrist shot through traffic beat Mrazek high to the glove side.
Jones played in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, allowing one of the goals on a bad giveaway. He was much better against Detroit.
“He looked good and gave us a chance to win a game that we probably didn’t deserve,” Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. “The Red Wings looked fresher than we did and played a smart game. Jonesy gave us a chance, but I think getting one point is a fair result.”
Detroit was playing its first game after the All-Star break. The Red Wings had their chances before Daley opened the scoring. Darren Helm was unable to convert a clean breakaway early in the second, and Martin Frk had an open net on a third-period rebound, but the puck went wide.
San Jose defenseman Justin Braun, who was without a stick at the time, stuck out a skate and appeared to get a piece of Frk’s shot.