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Sharks draw even in series with another one goal win

May 22, 2013, 2:54 AM ET [47 Comments]
Cam Gore
San Jose Sharks Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The San Jose Sharks carried the play for the first two periods and held on for the third to come out ahead 2-1 in game four to even the series at 2 apiece with the LA Kings.

Like during the regular season the home team is yet to lose in the battle of LA versus San Jose. The Sharks are going to have to figure out a way to win at the Staples center while holding court at the Shark Tank if they want to advance to the next round.

“We were happy with the way we played game two” stated Logan Couture afterwards when asked what it would take to win in LA.
“We were happy with our effort. Obviously we lost, but I think we can build off that going into their rink and play the same way in game five hopefully we can win.”

Joe Thornton played the way a team captain is supposed to play in the playoffs. He had his legs going and his confidence with the puck showed throughout the night the way he handled it in the offensive zone. It was like he had a homing device on his stick because the puck kept coming back to him.

“I’ve been feeling good” commented Thornton.
“Coach has given us lots of rest and once game time comes a lot of guys are feeling good and have lots of energy.”

The Sharks came out in the first period dominating the Kings in every way possible except for the power play which had two opportunities that they were unable to capitalize on. The shot totals read 15-3 in favor of the Sharks.

The top two lines created so many quality scoring chances that LA were lucky to escape the opening period down just 1-0.

Brent Burns lit the lamp for his second of the playoffs by wiring a one-timer past Jonathan Quick. Burns goal was a result of an aggressive fore check by Joe Thornton who feathered a pass through the slot to a waiting Burns.



The Sharks power play has been a threat all season long but in the playoffs on home ice they have ramped it up to an efficient 40% and it was with the man advantage that San Jose took a two goal lead.

Dan Boyle was given enough time to order coffee from the middle of the ice just inside the blue line before he let loose a slap shot that was deflected in by Logan Couture.

“You don’t get those looks too often” stated Boyle
“The penalty killers are usually in the lane. I had an open lane. I was trying to get it to the net and it goes off our guy. We get a good lucky bounce and it ends up being the game winner.”



The middle frame saw the Kings bring life to the game with some sustained pressure and they were able to double their shots finishing with 6. They had two opportunities on the power play which were killed by the Sharks but not without a couple of good scoring chances.

As expected the Kings came with a push in the last twenty minutes and dominated play outshooting the San Jose 14-2. When it was all said and done the shots were even at 23 each.

The Sharks played a great forty minutes versus the Kings twenty and deserved to come away with the win, however they were fortunate on a quick whistle that negated a goal for the Kings which could have turned the tables on the Sharks and swung momentum the other way.

Scoring details

1st period

SJ – 6:09 –EV – 88 B.Burns(2) – assists – 19 J.Thornton(8), 21 T.Galiardi(1)

2nd period

SJ – 3:55 –PP – 39 L.Couture(5) – assists - 22 D.Boyle(4), 8 J.Pavelski(6)

3rd period

LA – 9:46 –PP – 10 M.Richards(2) – assists – 77 J.Carter(3), 11 A.Kopitar(4)

Turning point

The turning point in this game came late in the third period when the Sharks were unable to get the Gomez line off the ice due to consecutive icing calls. Head coach Todd McLellan used his time-out after the first one and then they iced the puck again. Even though the Sharks lost the following draw they managed to bounce the puck off a skate into the neutral zone and get fresh legs on the ice to hold off the final charge from the Kings who pulled their goalie for the extra attacker.

Contenders & Pretenders

Contenders

Joe Thornton – was a stud for the Sharks tonight and got his team rolling.
“I thought they were very good early” said Todd McLellan when asked about Jumbo and his line.
“They established a relentless fore check and used their size to an advantage and obviously got us the first goal. The momentum they created ran throughout the rest of the lines and everybody jumped on board.”
If Joe can keep up this pace the Sharks will be hard to stop no matter where they take the ice. He

Logan Couture – scored the game winner which is always a recipe for the Contender’s list, but he also blocked three shots Tuesday night none bigger than the one he got in front of on the penalty kill. The kid took a beating out there tonight as he has the whole series but he keeps on coming back.

The fourth line - made the list for outplaying LA’s fourth unit. They didn’t play a lot, but when they did they were usually in the offensive zone and they came close to lighting the lamp. What was even more impressive was that Bracken Kearns and Tim Kennedy who played the wings have hardly any playoff experience. Along with Andrew Desjardins in the middle that unit stepped up and played some quality minutes for the Sharks.

Doug Wilson – makes the list for backing up his player Raffi Torres. Wilson issued a statement regarding how he felt about the series suspension given to Torres for the hit on Jarrett Stoll in game one. He caught the NHL contradicting themselves on the rule and even though he knew he would get fined for it he had the kahunas to go ahead with it anyway.

This is the kind of thing that players like to hear about and even though he is $100,000 lighter in the pocket GM Wilson going to bat for his players is something that will help draw UFA’s to the Sharks organization. It sends a message to his players that we have your back no matter what the situation is. Money well spent Doug and you no doubt gained a lot of respect around the league in the process.

The Sharks rallied the last two games here in San Jose and you could even say they rallied in game two even though they lost. The Wilson statement was definitely a motivating factor for the guys who were able to suit up.

Pretenders

Jeff Carter – makes the list because I had to check the stats sheet to see if he was actually suited up for LA. He has been such a force for the Kings all year long and in the first series that his lack of production really stood out. He got schooled in the face-off circle and aside from an assist it looks as though he is off his game. It makes me wonder what injuries he is playing through, if any.

Dustin Brown – is on the list for his open ice cheap shot on Couture which he made look like coincidental contact. You’re better than that Dustin.

“He saw me” commented Couture in the post-game presser.
“He saw me and hit me, then dove after the hit to make it look like he ran into me. That’s the way he plays.”

Slava Voynov – makes the list for over skating the puck which led to the first goal of the game for San Jose. He heard footsteps coming from Jumbo Thornton and wanted nothing to do with the big center man.

The Sharks and Kings face-off again on Thursday night in LA at 7:30 pm for the pivotal game five.

Keep your sticks on the ice,
Cam Gore
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