The San Jose Sharks dropped a 3-1 decision to the Edmonton
Oilers Wednesday at sold-out HP Pavilion to snap a three-game
winning streak.
San Jose – The San Jose Sharks dropped a 3-1 decision to the Edmonton Oilers Wednesday at sold-out HP Pavilion to snap a three-game winning streak.
The loss left the Sharks nine points behind the Anaheim Ducks in the Pacific Division. The Oilers, in town for the first time since rallying past the Sharks in the second round of last season’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, moved into the eighth spot in the Western Conference with 46 points with the victory.
San Jose embarks on a two-game road trip tonight at Los Angeles against the Kings. After playing Saturday at Phoenix, the Sharks return home Monday to face the Colorado Avalanche.
The Oilers needed just 27 seconds of power play time to open the scoring.
Jonathan Cheechoo earned a tripping penalty at 1:08 of the first period to give Edmonton the man-advantage. The visitors won a face-off at center ice, then set up in the San Jose zone. Alex Hemsky’s low pass from the left boards to Marc-Andre Bergeron turned into a one-timer deposited into the top right corner of the net at 1:35.
Edmonton earned a face-off in San Jose’s zone on a Shark icing at the 10:37 mark. Six seconds were used by Edmonton to make it 2-0. Jarret Stoll won the face-off to Oiler teammate Mathieu Roy at the right point. Roy’s slapshot lined past four skaters and goalie Evgeni Nabokov for the rookie’s first NHL goal in the second game of his career.
Making the most of six shots on net in the first period, Edmonton parlayed just seven seconds of power play time into a 3-0 cushion.
After Shark defenseman Douglas Murray was whistled for holding at 11:12, Stoll turned passes from Hemsky and Bergeron into a 20-footer past Nabokov.
San Jose hit the scoreboard with a Marcel Goc goal at 12:44 of the first period. Defenseman Christian Ehrhoff whipped the puck behind the Oiler net. Goc collected the loose puck and chipped it off the back of goalie Dwayne Roloson and across the line for Goc’s fourth goal of the season.
San Jose registered an 8-3 edge in shots on net in the scoreless second period. The Oilers stalled on three power-play opportunities, San Jose one.
Cheechoo, held without a shot on net through two periods, scored a power-play goal 2:41 into the third period to cut the deficit to one.
As Oiler captain Jason Smith sat in the penalty box after holding at 2:13, Cheechoo’s chip-in off a long rebound of a Joe Pavelski shot found the back of the net. Cheechoo, voted to start for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game on Jan. 24, has 14 goals and 14 assists.
