SAN JOSE
– Patrick Marleau celebrated his 900th NHL game by scoring two
goals as the San Jose Sharks improved their hold on the league lead
with a 5-2 win over the visiting Ottawa Senators.
SAN JOSE – Patrick Marleau celebrated his 900th NHL game by scoring two goals as the San Jose Sharks improved their hold on the league lead with a 5-2 win over the visiting Ottawa Senators.
Former Shark Milan Michalek responded with two goals in a losing effort as the Senators remained in third place in the Northeast Division, two points off pace-setter Buffalo.
The 30-year-old Marleau scored the first goal of each of the first two periods as the Sharks took an early lead and never trailed.
San Jose (19-6-4) is atop the 30-team league with 42 points. Washington and Pittsburgh trail at 38, Calgary fourth with 37.
The Sharks connected on two of their first five shots on net to create a 2-0 lead in the first period.
Marleau began the first scoring play when he stopped a potential clearing by Senator Anton Volchenkov inside the Ottawa blueline. Dany Heatley pounced on the loose puck and dished it along the boards to linemate Joe Thornton. Marleau moved into scoring position in the high slot and one-timed Thornton’s feed at 7:06 past goalie Brian Elliott.
San Jose’s fifth shot, a long slapshot from Jamie McGinn at the 8:01 mark, left the home team up 2-0. Scott Nichol set McGinn up for the breakaway, finding his linemate with a head-man pass. McGinn bolted between defensemen Filip Kuba and Erik Karlsson before delivering his fifth goal of the season.
Michalek produced his team-leading 14th goal of the season 12:03 into the first period. Michalek, who played in 317 games for the Sharks before being traded to the Sens along with Jonathan Cheechoo in the Heatley trade, controlled the puck at the top of the left circle, then attacked the net and pushed a shot off the leg of defenseman Douglar Murray and behind goalie Thomas Greiss.
San Jose came back with the first two goals of the second period for a 4-1 advantage.
Ottawa had killed a penalty four seconds earlier when Marleau struck for his 18th goal of the season at the 11:06 mark. Heatley and Marleau set up at the edges of the crease and took turns whacking the puck at both a Senator defenseman and Elliott. Heatley’s final quick shot kicked off Elliott and in front of Marleau for the point-blank goal.
Ryane Clowe produced his sixth goal of the year at 13:25. Clowe pushed aside a check by Ottawa’s Matt Carkner and whipped a shot inside the near left post behind Elliott.
Michalek completed the period’s scoring with a power play at 15:54. Captain Daniel Alfredsson controlled the puck behind the Sharks net before feeding Michalek at the bottom of the right circle for the chip shot into the far left corner of the net.
Manny Malhotra scored an empty-net goal with 15.6 seconds left to make it 5-2.;
Thornton’s two assists on the Marleau goals pushed him atop the league scoring derby with 39 points. Thornton tops the league with 32 assists, seven more than second place.
NOTES: Thornton was selected as the Sharks Foundation “Player of the Month” for November. Thornton tallied 20 points in November, including a league-leading 16 assists…San Jose picked up defenseman Jay Leach off waivers from Montreal. Leach has 35 career NHL games, including six this season with the Canadiens…The Sharks have sold out each of the team’s first 11 games, 17,562 capacity at HP Pavilion…San Jose hosts St. Louis Thursday at 7:30, then Calgary Saturday at 7pm.
