Detroit @ San Jose preview
SAP Center at San Jose
Last Meeting ( Feb 24, 2019 ) San Jose 5, Detroit 3
The San Jose Sharks hope to break out of a tailspin that appears to have put a Pacific Division a bit out of reach when they host the Detroit Red Wings on Monday night. The Sharks, who trail first-place Calgary by six points with seven games to go, have dropped five in a row (0-4-1) after a 4-3 overtime setback at Anaheim on Friday and allowed 27 goals in their last six contests.
“I don’t want to sugarcoat it. We had them for maybe six (grade-A) chances and they scored four goals,” San Jose coach Peter DeBoer told reporters Friday. “You can’t lay it at one guy’s feet, but you can’t win in this league with an .800 to .900 save percentage. … So we’ve got to find a way to get an extra save.” Sharks backup Aaron Dell, who beat Detroit with 20 saves in a 5-3 win on Feb. 24, was in net Friday and No. 1 netminder Martin Jones will likely get a chance Monday to snap a four-game losing streak in which he has posted an .871 save percentage. The Red Wings have long been eliminated from playoff contention in the Eastern Conference, but they played well of late with three wins in the last four contests after a 3-2 overtime triumph at red-hot Vegas on Saturday. “Our competition level was excellent right from the get go,” Detroit coach Jeff Blashill told reporters Saturday. “It says a lot about our group. We’ve continued to compete here even when we’re out of it. We’ve talked about that, having pride in ourselves and make sure we work and compete and build for a better future.”
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Ontario, Sportsnet Pacific, FS Detroit, NBCS California (San Jose)
ABOUT THE RED WINGS (27-38-10): Right wing Anthony Mantha scored twice Saturday, including the overtime winner, and is one shy of reaching 20 goals for the second straight campaign. Center Dylan Larkin assisted on Mantha’s winning tally to push his team-leading total to 63 points while speedy forward Andreas Athanasiou has four goals to go along with two assists over his past four outings. Blashill has been alternating goalies of late and could turn back to Jonathan Bernier, who is just 1-3-0 in his last four games but has a .925 save percentage in that span.
ABOUT THE SHARKS (43-23-9): Center Logan Couture, who played despite having an illness Friday, reportedly missed practice Sunday and his status is uncertain while captain Joe Pavelski (lower body) is expected to miss his fourth straight game. Defenseman Brent Burns recorded an assist in four straight contests and leads the team with a career-high 77 points - one more than 2016-17 when he won the Norris Trophy. San Jose needs to be sharper on special teams after going 1-of-12 with the man advantage the past six games and killing off just four of nine power plays the past three contests.
OVERTIME
1. Red Wings LW Taro Hirose, signed as an undrafted free agent recently, has an assist in each of his first three NHL games.
2. The Sharks broke the franchise record for goals in a season with 266 on Friday, passing the 2005-2006 team (265).
3. Detroit F Michael Rasmussen missed Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury and is questionable for the San Jose contest.
PREDICTION: Sharks 5, Red Wings 2