On Tuesday the San Jose Sharks edged out the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets with a 2-1 overtime win.
After a scoreless first period, Jack Thompson scored his first NHL goal with assists from Will Smith and Fabian Zetterlund.
The Sharks maintained their lead until 9:17 in the third. Damon Severson’s rebound set up Kirill Marchenko to tie it 1-1. Severson and Yegor Chinakhov picked up assists.
In overtime, Alex Wennberg scored the game-winning goal for San Jose, with Zetterlund and Vitek Vanecek assisting.
Vitek Vanecek’s world-class goaltending, with a career-high 49 saves, highlighted the Sharks’ game. Posting a .980 save percentage, Vanecek earned first star of the game.
Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said to the press after the game, “He was outstanding. He was our best player. Without him, we don’t get two points.”
Wennberg’s game-winner goal earned him second star, finishing with one shot, a +1 rating, and 17:13 of ice time.
In Thompson’s previous four matchups, he logged steady minutes but went scoreless. The 22-year-old defenseman posted a +1 rating and logged 17:38 of ice time. His goal and performance in Tuesday’s matchup earned him the third star of the game.
Zetterlund capitalized effectively, assisting on each of the Sharks’ goals. While Zetterlund has a lower average ice time of 16:48, he has 10 points in 14 games. The 25-year-old forward has a +4 rating and a high shooting percentage of 20.7%.
Forward Macklin Celebrini also made his return after a hip injury to earn his first NHL win.
The rookie contributed 17:06 of ice time, taking three shots, and serving two penalty minutes in the game.
Top Sharks’ defenseman Jake Walman was a healthy scratch from Tuesday’s game, a surprising move given his usual impact. Walman has contributed 9 points (1 goal, 8 assists) in 13 games. The two-way d-man has a +2 rating and averages 22:42 of ice time.
Team Teal was outshot almost doubly at 50-27, highlighting issues in their defensive structure. Reducing the number of high-quality scoring chances against would relieve pressure on the goaltenders.
One of Walman’s strengths is moving the puck out of the defensive zone and supporting the offense. Without him, the Sharks might have had more difficulty transitioning from defense to offense.
Team Teal also suffered on the power play, with four opportunities where they failed to score on any of them.
San Jose has one more game in their homestand against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday. Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports Walman (coach’s decision) will return to face Minnesota on Thursday.
Then it’s to the East Coast for matchups against New Jersey, Philadelphia, New York, and Pittsburgh.
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Featured image courtesy of NHL on NHL.com
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