This has been a disastrous season for the San Jose Sharks. The latest blow came on Friday when Erik Karlsson suffered a season-ending thumb injury. He joined Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl on the sidelines while Evander Kane was also unable to play on Saturday because he’s been suspended.
So the Sharks entered Saturday’s contest against Minnesota missing a top pairing defenseman and three of their four best forwards. They needed someone else to step up and for one night, it was Martin Jones. Their goaltender made 39 saves to earn his first shutout of the season. He’s struggled this season – in fact, he’s part of the reason the Sharks have underperformed even when healthy – but he was the hero Saturday.
Even with that win, the Sharks’ playoff hopes are still bleak. They have a 26-28-4 record and are 10 points out of a postseason spot. Unlike most teams though, conceding the season and embracing the tank is not an option. The Sharks’ first round pick is with the Senators, incidentally as part of Erik Karlsson trade. With that in mind, San Jose might as well continue to try to make the postseason even if there’s next to no hope left.
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BOSTON 4 DETROIT 1
The Red Wings’ lone goal was scored by Darren Helm. It was his ninth marker and 15th point in 57 games.
Charlie McAvoy contributed a goal and an assist for Boston. He has two goals and 23 points in 56 contests.
Patrice Bergeron netted the game-winning goal. He’s up to 25 goals and 49 points in 50 games.
Tuukka Rask stopped 25 of 26 Red Wings shots. He has surrendered a mere seven goals over his last six contests.
At the other end of the ice, Jonathan Bernier saved 37 of 41 shots. He stopped a staggering 18 shots in the first period, but surrendered three goals on 12 shots in the second and was beaten one more time in the final frame.
NASHVILLE 4 ST. LOUIS 3
Kyle Turris led the charge for Nashville with a goal and two assists. He has eight goals and 27 points in 50 contests.
Mikael Granlund scored the game-winning goal and registered an assist. He’s up to 14 goals and 24 points in 51 games.
Juuse Saros stopped 23 of 26 shots on Saturday. All three of the goals he allowed were scored on 10 shots in the second period.
Jake Allen kicked out 23 of 27 Predators shots. He has lost his last three starts, though this was also his first game since Jan. 31st.
Jaden Schwartz scored a power-play goal for St. Louis. It was his 18th marker and 45th point in 58 games.
TAMPA BAY 5 PHILADELPHIA 3
Ivan Provorov scored a goal and registered an assist. He has 11 goals and 30 points in 59 contests.
Carter Hart stopped 19 of 23 Lightning shots. He has a 17-12-3 record, 2.59 GAA, and .906 save percentage in 35 contests.
Nikita Kucherov scored a goal and registered an assist. He’s up to 28 goals and 72 points in 57 games.
Brayden Point scored the game-winning goal. It was his 21st goal and 56th point in 56 contests.
Andrei Vasilevskiy surrendered three goals on 33 shots. He has a 32-9-3 record, 2.42 GAA, and .921 save percentage in 44 starts.
EDMONTON 4 FLORIDA 1
Kailer Yamamoto scored a goal and registered two assists for the Oilers. He’s up to eight goals and 17 points in 17 games.
Leon Draisaitl found the back of the net and recorded an assist. The Oilers forward has 33 goals and 92 points in 58 contests.
Florida’s only goal was scored by Jonathan Huberdeau. It was his 21st marker and 70th point in 58 games.
Mikko Koskinen stopped 33 of 34 Panthers shots. He has a 16-11-2 record, 2.85 GAA, and .911 save percentage in 32 contests.
Sam Montembeault kicked out 25 of 27 shots last night. He’s 5-3-1 with a 3.30 GAA and .890 save percentage in 12 contests.
SAN JOSE 2 MINNESOTA 0
Martin Jones stopped all 39 Wild shots. It was his first perfect game of the season and the 23rd of his career. He’s 14-17-2 with a 3.15 GAA and .894 save percentage in 34 contests.
Joel Eriksson Ek fired a team-high five shots on Jones. He has seven goals on 83 shots this season, which translates to a 8.4% success rate.
Dylan Gambrell scored the game-winning goal. It was his third marker and ninth point in 38 games.
San Jose’s other goal was scored by Melker Karlsson. He has five goals and 10 points in 54 contests.
Alex Stalock saved 19 of 20 Sharks shots. He didn’t allow a goal until 3:08 of the third period.
DALLAS 4 MONTREAL 3 (OT)
Tyler Seguin scored two goals, including the overtime winner. That gives him 14 goals and 44 points in 58 contests.
Blake Comeau found the back of the net for the Stars. He’s up to eight goals and 16 points in 44 games.
Joel Armia netted a goal for Montreal. It was his 15th goal and 28th point in 48 contests.
Carey Price stopped 22 of 26 Stars shots. Montreal jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but the Stars first beat Price at 9:05 of the second period and it was downhill from there.
Ben Bishop saved 29 of 32 shots on Saturday. He has a 20-12-4 record, 2.38 GAA, and .924 save percentage in 39 contests.
TORONTO 4 OTTAWA 2
Marcus Hogberg stopped 13 of 16 shots before being pulled halfway through the game. Craig Anderson stepped in and saved 14 shots the rest of the way.
Connor Brown scored a goal for the Senators. He has 11 goals and 36 points in 58 contests.
Auston Matthews scored a goal and registered an assist. The Maple Leafs forward is up to 42 goals and 71 points in 59 games.
William Nylander accounted for the game-winning goal. It was his 26th goal and 51st point in 57 contests.
Jack Campbell stopped 25 of 27 Senators shots. He improved to 3-0-1 with a 2.85 GAA and .919 save percentage in four starts since joining Toronto.
LOS ANGELES 3 COLORADO 1
Tyler Toffoli led the Kings with a hat trick. He’s up to 18 goals and 34 points in 58 games.
Anze Kopitar assisted on two of Los Angeles’ three goals. That gives him 17 goals and 51 points in 59 contests.
Samuel Girard stopped 14 of 15 shots before sustaining a lower-body injury that forced him to leave the game early in the third period. Pavel Francouz entered the contest and saved six of seven shots.
Samuel Girard netted Colorado’s lone goal. He has three goals and 29 points in 57 games.
Jonathan Quick saved 32 of 33 Avalanche shots. That ended his eight-game losing streak.
CHICAGO 8 CALGARY 4
Jonathan Toews got the scoring started for the Blackhawks just 30 seconds into the contest. He also registered two assists. He’s up to16 goals and 49 points in 58 games.
Patrick Kane also had a goal and two assists for Chicago. He has 26 goals and 72 points in 58 contests.
Alex Nylander accounted for two of Chicago’s goals. That gives him eight goals and 19 points in 53 games.
Robin Lehner stopped 38 of 42 Flames shots. He’s 16-9-5 with a 2.91 GAA and .921 save percentage in 32 games.
David Rittich surrendered four goals on 15 shots before being yanked early in the first period. Cam Talbot couldn’t do any better though in relief, stopping nine of 13 shots.
Elias Lindholm scored a pair of goals for the Flames. He has 27 goals and 48 points in 60 games.
ARIZONA 3 WASHINGTON 1
Washington’s lone goal was scored by Carl Hagelin. It was his fifth marker and 18th point in 47 games.
Braden Holtby saved 27 of 29 Coyotes shots. He has a 21-12-4 record, 3.11 GAA, and .897 save percentage in 40 contests this season.
Phil Kessel scored the game-winning goal. He’s up to 13 goals and 34 points in 61 contests.
Lawson Crouse netted a goal for the Coyotes. That gives him 14 goals and 23 points in 57 games.
Antti Raanta stopped 36 of 37 shots on Saturday. This has been an inconsistent season for him, but he’s surrendered just six goals over his last three starts.
VEGAS 1 NY ISLANDERS 0
Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 19 shots to earn the shutout. The most shots he faced was nine and that came in the third period.
Semyon Varlamov was far busier at the other end of the ice, saving 42 of 43 shots. The Islanders were outshot 20-4 in the second period and that’s also when Varlamov allowed the game’s lone goal.
Reilly Smith accounted for the contest’s only marker. It was his 22nd goal and 45th point in 60 games.
Jonathan Marchessault assisted on Smith’s goal. Marchessault has 20 goals and 41 points in 55 contests.
Jordan Eberle fired four shots against Fleury. He has 10 goals on 103 shots this season, which is a 9.7% success rate.
