Kurashev stays hot, Askarov bounces back in Sharks’ OT win over Avalanche
SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks were confident that forward Philipp Kurashev had more to offer after a harsh ending to his five-year tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks.
They also knew that goalie Yaroslav Askarov was capable of better games after a challenging outing against the Los Angeles Kings earlier this week.
Both Kurashev and Askarov played significant roles in the Sharks’ 3-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche at SAP Center on Saturday. Askarov finished with a season-high 36 saves, and Kurashev scored twice, including the winner at the 1:48 mark of overtime, to lift the Sharks to their fourth win in six games after an 0-4-2 start.
On a rush, Kurashev took a pass from Alexander Wennberg, had time as he entered the Avalanche zone, and beat goalie Mackenzie Blackwood high to the glove side.
“Kind of looked up and tried to hit the spot, and I did,” Kurashev said. “Happy to help us get the win.”
Macklin Celebrini scored his seventh goal of the season for the Sharks, who were coming off an impressive 5-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. After a win over the Central Division-leading Avalanche, the Sharks now host the Detroit Red Wings, who have won eight of their last 11 games, to close out a four-game homestand on Sunday.
“They’re probably one of the best teams in the league with the kind of players that they have,” Celebrini said of the Avalanche. “I thought we did a good job playing hard against them.”
Kurashev had 54 points in 75 games with the Blackhawks in 2023-24, but saw his ice time drastically reduced last year on an evolving roster.
Going from 19 minutes per game to just under 14, and bouncing around the lineup, Kurashev had just seven goals and 14 points in 51 games with Chicago last season. As a restricted free agent, Kurashev, 26, was not given a qualifying offer by the Blackhawks, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent and sign a one-year, $1.2 million deal with the Sharks in July.
Playing mainly on a second line with Wennberg and William Eklund, Kurashev now has six points in his last three games and eight points on the season. His ice time is up to 18 minutes a night.
“Our scouts did a really good job targeting him as a guy we think there’s more there than what he probably showed in Chicago towards the end,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “He’s starting to get confident, and obviously gets on the scoresheet. But when he’s competing and he’s skating for pucks, he’s a very effective player, and he’s really solidified our top six.”
Kurashev, Wennberg, and Eklund now have a combined 17 points in their last four games. Saturday, they also did a solid job matching up against the Avalanche’s top line of Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas and Artturi Lehkonen.
“That whole line, they’re playing so well, they’ve been huge for us,” Celebrini said. “Matching up against the team’s top lines, and creating as much offense as they have, it’s huge for our group. How (Kurashev’s) been able to put the puck in the net, it’s been great for us.”
Askarov had a bounce-back game against the Avalanche with 36 saves, after he allowed four goals on 14 shots in a 4-3 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday. After Necas scored 30 seconds into the game, Askarov finished the first period with 14 saves and had 28 saves after 40 minutes.
“I would say I felt more calm, not off (my angles),” Askarov said. “I was moving at the same time the puck was moved, being square.”
Askarov also made seven saves in the third period, including a pad stop on a shot from the slot by former Shark Brent Burns with 15 seconds left in regulation time.
“He was unbelievable,” Celebrini said of Askarov. “If he keeps going like that, we’re going to win a lot of games.”
The Sharks took a 2-1 lead on Kursahev’s goal 4:07 into the second period. The Avalanche got that goal back just over five minutes later in somewhat disputed fashion.
MacKinnon got behind the Sharks’ defense and was in alone on Askarov. He went forehand to backhand to try and beat Askarov right before Sharks winger Jeff Skinner lost an edge and crashed into the net.
MacKinnon put the puck across the goal line after the net had been knocked off. The play was reviewed by the NHL, which, in confirming a goal, cited Rule 63.7, which says in part that “the attacking player must have an imminent scoring opportunity prior to the goal post being displaced, and it must be determined that the puck would have entered the net between the normal position of the goal posts.”
LILJEGREN INJURED
Timothy Liljegren was injured midway through the first period, as a deflected puck into the Sharks’ bench caught the defenseman in the face.
Liljegren, who was in obvious distress, was immediately treated by the Sharks’ training staff and helped to the team’s dressing room. The Sharks announced before the start of the second period that Liljegren, who had emerged as a top-pair defenseman averaging 22:50 in ice time per game, would not return.
Warsofsky said after the game that Liljegren was still being evaluated, but that his injury would likely not keep him out long-term.
NOTABLE
Sam Dickinson was scratched from Saturday’s lineup, but Warsofsky didn’t rule out playing the rookie defenseman against the Red Wings. Dickinson has played in nine games this season, and if he plays a 10th NHL game, the first year of his entry-level contract will be burned.