Vegas @ San Jose preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 18, 2019 ) Vegas 7, San Jose 3

The San Jose Sharks were fighting for first place in the Pacific Division just a few weeks ago, but now they are just trying to secure the second spot when they host the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. The Sharks have dropped seven straight contests (0-6-1), matching their longest slide in six years, and lead Vegas by five points but have five games remaining to the Golden Knights' four.

“There’s no easy recipe for getting out of slumps like this,” San Jose center Logan Couture told reporters after Thursday’s 5-4 home loss to Chicago. “In this league, every team goes through times like this. It’s who gets out of it quickest and who comes out of it the proper way. That’s what we’re looking to do.” The Sharks have allowed 31 goals during their losing streak and hope to tighten things up against Vegas, which has lost four in a row (0-3-1) after suffering a 3-2 home setback against Minnesota on Friday. The Golden Knights received a pair of goals from Paul Stastny in the loss and clinched a playoff spot after Arizona lost in a shootout against Colorado earlier in the night. Marc-Andre Fleury has missed the last seven games with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day but is not expected to play Saturday against his team’s likely first-round opponent in the Western Conference playoffs.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet-Rocky Mountain (Vegas), NBCS California Plus (San Jose)

ABOUT THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS (42-30-6): Max Pacioretty registered an assist on Friday after sitting out the previous three games with a leg injury to reach 40 points, which ranks him sixth on the team despite missing 16 contests. Jonathan Marchessault (team-high 56 points) and William Karlsson were kept off the scoresheet Friday after each recorded four goals and five assists in their previous six games. Reilly Smith has collected 10 of his 52 points over the last seven games to move within one of 300 for his career while Stastny has notched 17 in his last 16 contests.

ABOUT THE SHARKS (43-25-9): Tomas Hertl recorded a goal and two assists in his 400th NHL game on Thursday, giving him five of his 68 points in the last four contests to place second on the team. Defenseman Brent Burns leads the way for San Jose with a career-high 78 points, including five assists in his last six games, and Couture has 66 after scoring two goals and setting up two others in his last four contests. Captain Joe Pavelski, the team’s leading goal scorer (37), has missed the last five games and is questionable for Saturday with a lower-body injury.

OVERTIME

1. Vegas D Colin Miller recorded his third assist in four games Friday to move within one of 100 points for his career.

2. San Jose C Joe Thornton is two assists away from tying Steve Yzerman (1,063) for eighth place on the all-time list.

3. The Golden Knights have won two of the three meetings between the division rivals this season, including a 7-3 road triumph on March 18.

PREDICTION: Sharks 5, Golden Knights 3