Suffice to say, the Sharks left a lot to be desired in their season-series finale against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Just a couple days after shutting out the Penguins 4-0, San Jose found itself on the losing side of a 4-0 shutout.
Here are three takeaways from Saturday’s game:
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
You have to give Columbus some credit
This wasn’t one of those games where the Sharks were playing down to a lesser team. The Blue Jackets have sturdy all season, and they can dictate the pace of play if given enough room. Despite traveling home and playing on the tail end of a back-to-back and, Columbus had its legs early in the game and didn’t let up.
Netminder Sergei Bobrovsky was especially lethal, putting on a show while keeping San Jose off the board. He robbed Sharks forward Tomas Hertl on two occasions in the second period that easily could’ve swung some of the momentum in San Jose's favor.
On the other side of the ice …
San Jose Sharks
San Jose never really got any jump
It’s not entirely clear what was going on with the Sharks on Saturday. They were coming off the win over the Penguins, and were well-rested. They had an opportunity to jump on the Blue Jackets, who weren't rested and struggle at home.
Instead, San Jose spent a good amount of time hemmed in its own zone, and had trouble holding onto the puck through the neutral zone. The Sharks' defensive play wasn’t particularly solid either, which made goaltender Martin Jones’ job more difficult. To add to it, they couldn’t get anything going on the power play – the polar opposite of how they looked on the man advantage in their previous contest.
[RELATED: What Matt Duchene trade means for Sharks ahead of deadline]
Is a rebound on the horizon?
In all but one instance this season, the Sharks won the game immediately after they were shut out. With a game in Detroit against the Red Wings coming up in fewer than 24 hours, San Jose will have an immediate opportunity to get back in the win column.
There is no doubt some concern though, given the Sharks’ bench got a bit shorter as Saturday’s game went on. Defenseman Erik Karlsson last skated 7:35 into the second period, and coach Peter DeBoer revealed after the game that Karlsson aggravated his groin injury. Then, forward Marcus Sorensen was sent to the dressing room after taking a deflected puck to the face.
The Sharks might have a quick turnaround, their starting lineup could look a little different at puck drop on Sunday.