San Jose @ Arizona preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 2, 2019 ) Arizona 2, San Jose 3

San Jose has quickly erased the memory of a 4-10-1 start - and a loss to Winnipeg on Wednesday that Sharks coach Peter DeBoer called "lifeless'' - as they visit the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday. San Jose is 10-2-0 in its last 12 games after a 4-1 victory over Los Angeles on Friday put them back on the fast track.

"After the last game, we really wanted to fix some things, and getting the first goal was really important," DeBoer told reporters. "It was a nice bounce-back game after last game." The Sharks' Tomas Hertl (10 goals) returned Friday after missing four games (lower body) but left in the third period with DeBoer calling it precautionary. Arizona is 6-2-2 in its last 10 games after a 2-1 shootout loss at Vegas on Friday. The Coyotes have played in three straight shootouts, going 1-2 after winning their first three such contests of the season, and are 6-4 in games that have gone past regulation.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBCS California (San Jose), FS Arizona

ABOUT THE SHARKS (14-12-1): Patrick Marleau scored against Los Angeles for his 557th career goal, moving him past Johnny Bucyk and into 27th on the all-time list with Guy Lafleur (560) the next target. Noah Gregor on Friday scored his first career goal in his 11th game with teammate Joe Thornton telling reporters: "You saw him really skating good after that. It changes your mindset when you get that first one." Martin Jones stopped 33 shots Friday so Aaron Dell, who played Wednesday, will likely get the call against Arizona.

ABOUT THE COYOTES (15-8-4): Defenseman Jakob Chychrun scored for the second time in six games Friday and has four of his six this season in the last 12 contests. Eric Comrie backed up Darcy Kuemper on Friday and could make his first start of the season Saturday if Antti Raanta remains sidelined because of illness. Arizona went 0-for-1 on the power play Friday, snapping a streak of three games with a man-advantage goal, and is 5-8-3 this season when it doesn't score on the power play.

OVERTIME

1. The Coyotes are 6-0-3 versus the Pacific Division since a season-opening 2-1 loss at Anaheim.

2. San Jose hasn't scored a power-play goal in six games (0-for-16) and is 2-for-29 in its last 10 contests.

3. The clubs split their four-game set last season with each winning a road game as Hertl scored a series-most three goals.

PREDICTION: Coyotes 3, Sharks 2