SAN JOSE – Few NHL groups want a while away from the rink greater than the San Jose Sharks.
Of their final sport earlier than the league pauses its schedule to carry the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Sharks gave up three objectives in a lopsided first interval. They by no means totally recovered in an 8-3 loss to the playoff-bound Dallas Stars on Saturday earlier than an introduced sellout crowd of 17,435 at SAP Middle.
After taking a 2-1 lead on objectives by William Eklund and Fabian Zetterlund, the Sharks allowed objectives to Jason Robertson and Mason Marchment 3:16 aside to fall behind for good, as they went on to lose for the tenth time within the final 11 video games.
Sharks goalie Vitek Vanecek was underneath siege early on as he confronted 16 pictures within the first interval. In his second NHL begin since sustaining a fractured cheekbone in mid-December, Vanecek allowed eight objectives on the primary 31 pictures he confronted as his report this season fell to 3-9-2.
The eight objectives the Sharks allowed had been probably the most they’ve given up in a house sport this season.
The sport marked the primary for Mikael Granlund and Cody Ceci again in San Jose because the Sharks traded them to the Stars on Feb. 1. Granlund and Ceci, each pending unrestricted free brokers, had been traded by the Sharks to the Stars on Feb. 1 for 2 2025 draft picks, together with a first-rounder.
In three video games with the Stars earlier than Saturday, Granlund had two assists and was averaging 18:11 in ice time, and Ceci, filling in for the injured Miro Heiskanen, had one help and was averaging 21:36 in ice time.
Saturday, Granlund had two assists within the first interval, with one on Duchene’s first purpose on the 3:02 mark and Marchment’s purpose on the 13:24 mark, giving the Stars a 3-2 lead.
Dallas is now 2-1-1 because the commerce, and the Sharks are 0-2-1. The Stars, who superior to the Western Convention Finals every of the final two seasons, entered Saturday in second place within the Central Division standings.
“Just go out there and play. No time to think about anything,” Granlund stated of leaping into Stars’ lineup instantly. “So it’s been good. It’s a really good group, really good team that’s had some success lately. It’s obviously easy to jump into a really good team. … It’s been a pretty easy transition so far.”
Earlier than Saturday’s sport, Ceci stated he deliberate to hitch some Sharks gamers on a visit to Hawaii.
“My whole break is planned with the other side,” Ceci stated in regards to the journey, which was deliberate nicely prematurely.
“It is quick to turn around and play your old team. But I’ve been on a number of teams now, and that just kind of happens in the game. So you just try and stay focused and focus on your own game.”
The Sharks aren’t scheduled to apply once more till Feb. 18. Their subsequent sport is Feb. 23 in opposition to the Calgary Flames, the opener of a seven-game highway journey that lasts till March 6, the day earlier than the NHL commerce deadline.
