Takeaways: Sharks’ Evander Kane embraces distraction of playing hockey
SAN JOSE — The party is being put on hold for a couple more days.
The Nashville Predators spoiled the Sharks chance of clinching a playoff spot for the 14th time in 15 years on Saturday, handing the home team its first set of back-to-back losses at SAP Center this season. In doing so, they also blocked the Sharks from regaining first place in the Western Conference as the Winnipeg Jets knocked off the Calgary Flames earlier in the night.
As a result, the Sharks remain one point behind the Flames for first place in the Pacific Division with just 10 games remaining on the schedule.
“Obviously, we want first place and it’s disappointing when you can’t find a way to win,” goalie Martin Jones said.
Here’s what we learned as the Predators picked up a 4-2 win over the Sharks:
1. The power play is running cold at an inopportune time.
It’s hard to find a lot of fault in the Sharks loss to Nashville on Saturday without opening shop in the nit-picking business.
They lost a hard-fought game to a Stanley Cup contender, finishing the season with a 2-1 mark against the Predators. The Sharks would likely take that record going into Game 4 of a Western Conference Final against Nashville, so the loss needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
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The Sharks spent the night chasing the game, giving up the opening goal just 67 seconds into the first after Timo Meier failed an assignment on a Predators rush, allowing Craig Smith to sneak in on the weak side and set up Colton Sissons’ goal. After Meier tied it up with his 27th at 4:09 of the second, Viktor Arvidsson regained the Predators lead just 24 seconds later.
The Predators eventually won the game on Filip Forsberg’s wraparound goal at 7:02 of the third.
Beyond that, the Sharks only real concern right now is the power play’s sudden lethargy after ranking among the league’s top five for most of the season.
The Sharks went 0 for 3 with the extra man on Saturday, which puts them at 1 for 13 over their last seven games, the team’s longest cold spell since its 1 for 20 from Oct. 28 to Nov. 11. They produced just one shot in three opportunities on Saturday.
One problem is that the Sharks just aren’t drawing a lot of penalties, getting two looks or fewer in five of seven games during the drought. In addition, opponents are starting to find some success in disrupting their drop-pass entries by sending a checker deep into the neutral zone.
But Joe Pavelski said a major issue is that the power play is just getting a “little too cute,” a common illness that creeps into groups loaded with highly-skilled talent.
“That’s the challenge always when you’re going good on the power play is not to look for that perfect play,” the Sharks captain said. “Just stick with the hard and simple part of the power play, shooting the puck and getting around those nets.”
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Head coach Pete DeBoer thinks that injuries and fatigue are also playing a role in the power play’s recent struggles. The Sharks played seven games without Evander Kane and Erik Karlsson, who missed his 18th game with a groin injury. The Sharks also played their sixth game in 10 nights on Saturday, a stretch that included a two-game trip to the central time zone on daylight savings day.
They’ll get a chance to fix the power plays ills on Monday against the Vegas Golden Knights.
2. Kane embraces distraction of playing hockey.
The crowd at SAP Center gave Kane a rousing applause when his name was announced as part of the Sharks starting lineup prior to the game. Sharks territory welcomed the power forward back from a bereavement absence as he continues to mourn the loss of his unborn daughter, Eva, who passed away last weekend.
Kane ended up skating for 19:44 in his first taste of game action since Feb. 26, producing three shots while being on the ice for five high-danger scoring chances (Natural Stat Trick).
“He did a good job considering what he’s been through,” DeBoer said. “The fact he even got out here today, it was very impressive. The fact he played 20 minutes and played hard — he gave us everything he had.”
The 27-year-old forward said it felt good to be back on the ice playing hockey. The game offered him a temporary reprieve from the emotional trauma he’s experiencing.
“Mentally, I felt better as the game went on. I got more into the game,” he said.
Kane called the applause he received prior to opening faceoff a “nice gesture.”
“I definitely really appreciated it,” he said. “It got me going for that first shift there.”
3. The Predators draw out Angry Joe.
Sissons awakened a giant, a Jumbo giant one might say.
The Predators center got an intimate introduction to “Angry Joe” after he cross-checked Thornton in the kidney area in the middle of the second period. The shot inspired Thornton to whack, smack and bark at Sissons as they skated from the Predators net up to center ice, drawing matching minor penalties.
Joe Thornton is Hall of Fame everything: including chirping.#SJSharks pic.twitter.com/6sJcS0WCkw
— Brodie Brazil (@BrodieNBCS) March 17, 2019
Thornton continued to chirp at Sissons once they got into the penalty box, revving up his teammates over on the Sharks bench.
“If you go back to when he was a lot younger, he was a physical guy. A skilled guy, but he didn’t take a lot of crap and he still doesn’t,” Kane said. “He gets on guys and it’s good to see. He has that old-school mentality and he’s not afraid to stick up for himself.”
And usually when Thornton sticks up for himself, the emotion spills over to the scoresheet where he enacts the best type of revenge. The trend continued on Saturday as Thornton scored his 15th of the season by burying a Brent Burns pass in his second shift after the penalty.
Beard bros tie it up! #SJSharks pic.twitter.com/ok2af2S4mE
— Teal Town USA (@TealTownUSA) March 17, 2019
“He’s the heartbeat of the team,” DeBoer said. “He’s into it. He wants to win that game and he’s showing everyone in the building how important it is to him. That’s good stuff for us. We feed off that.”