The San Jose Sharks hosted the Washington Capitals on Monday (Nov. 27) following their impressive 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks two days beforehand. The Sharks’ lineup did require some changes though, as Tomas Hertl was out with a middle-body injury that he reportedly suffered at home and Filip Zadina was placed on injured reserve after missing the game against Vancouver. Justin Bailey, the leading scoring of the American Hockey League’s San Jose Barracuda, was signed to a two-way NHL contract earlier in the day and made his Sharks debut in Hertl’s place.
The Capitals got an early power play after Kyle Burroughs went off for hooking 2:25 into the first period. Mackenzie Blackwood made an incredible toe save on a seemingly wide-open net to keep the game scoreless. The Sharks killed off the penalty and got their first opportunity with the man advantage about six minutes later. The first ten minutes of the first period was a goaltending masterclass, as both Blackwood and Washington’s Darcy Kuemper made phenomenal saves. Fabian Zetterlund was able to get one past Kuemper though to give the Sharks an early lead. The first period ended 1-0 in favor of San Jose. Near the end of the second, the Capitals tied it up following a bad bounce in front that gave Blackwood no chance to make the save.
Halfway through the third period, Kevin Labanc took a dangerous hit from Joel Edmundson in the corner which resulted in him leaving the game temporarily. The Capitals got a two-minute penalty for the play but the Sharks were unable to convert. The Sharks finally scored a power play goal when Martin Fehervary was in the box for high-sticking Anthony Duclair. Luke Kunin was able to find the back of the net with just over seven minutes remaining in regulation, giving the Sharks a late 2-1 lead. That ended up being the final score, as the Sharks walked away with a 2-1 win against a top Metropolitan Division team.
Sharks Let Wilson & the Capitals Run Wild
In the first ten minutes of the game, Tom Wilson leveled Calen Addison with a massive hit in the corner, and after the whistle dropped Mikael Granlund. The Sharks didn’t respond to either incident. Wilson kept it up during the second period when he crashed the crease and made some contact with Blackwood. The Sharks still didn’t act on it, however, Wilson did get a little bit of comeuppance when he got knocked down hard by Nikita Ohotiuk but it did result in the Capitals getting a power play for tripping. The Sharks killed it off though to maintain their 1-0 lead.
When players like Wilson are in town, the Sharks need to make sure they’re standing up to him. He was getting away with too much and they never made him answer for it. If you don’t stop that type of behavior quickly, it will snowball and give the opponent a major advantage. It wasn’t just Wilson either. The Capitals were standing right on top of Blackwood when they tied the game at one. The goal was credited to Evgeny Kuznetsov, despite deflecting off of a player in front. Allowing the opposition in your crease will almost always end in disaster, or at the very least, a preventable goal.
Goaltending Showdown
Blackwood and Kuemper put on a show in goal, although Kuemper got beat halfway through the first period, he was making some incredible saves. Blackwood though, was making even more phenomenal saves. With different goaltenders between the pipes, this game could’ve easily been 3-3 by the end of the first period. Instead, it was 1-0 after the first with Kuemper making 10 saves and Blackwood making 13. The second period was more of the same, but a majority of the pressure was on Blackwood. He faced 14 shots in the second and saved 13 of them, however, the goal that was scored was not his fault. Kuemper on the other hand, only faced six shots in the period, saving them all. The third period was more of the same, but eventually something had to give and Kuemper ended up allowing a second goal.
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The Sharks played surprisingly well given the fact that Hertl was out of the lineup. Although Washington maintained more pressure during the second half of the game, San Jose never fell too far behind. They started becoming more and more physical as the game went on, and that ultimately helped them be competitive in a game many expected them to lose. In the end, the Sharks were able to find a way to win and defeat the Capitals 2-1.
