SHARKSPAGE

With Joe Thornton out, Patrick Marleau, Dany Heatley and Antero Niittymaki lead Sharks 5-2 over East powerhouse Tampa Bay

SJ GOALTENDER #30 ANTERO NIITTYMAKI MADE 33 SAVES IN WIN OVER TB

TB CAPTAIN #4 VINCENT LECAVALIER REGISTERED 2A, 5SOG

#43 MCCARTHY, #10 MAYERS, #21 NICHOL CELEBRATE GOAL IN 2ND

Conventional wisdom would suggest that losing your top scorer would make it more difficult to break a 156 minute, 59 second long scoring drought, but the Sharks are anything but conventional. With Joe Thornton serving the first of a 2-game suspension, the top line of Patrick Marleau, Logan Couture and Dany Heatley combined for 6 points in a 5-2 route of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Goaltender Antero Niittymaki turned in one of his finest performances of the season, stopping 33 of 35 shots against his former team. The win snapped a streak of 2 straight shutout losses, and put the Sharks on positive footing as they start a critical 5-game homestand.

“I thought we had a pretty good gameplan tonight,” San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan told reporters after the game. “The fact that pucks went to the net and went in, they weren’t pretty goals. We had second and third opportunities, which we were looking for in our previous two games on the road.” The Sharks 2nd ranked power play converted 1 of 7 opportunities with the man advantage (14%), while the Lightning’s 2nd ranked penalty kill was effective as well killing of 6 of 7 (85.6%). San Jose also cut back on the revolving door to the penalty box after allowing opponents 16 power plays in their last 2 games.

The play was decidedly tilted towards Tampa Bay at the outset. After back-to-back losses on Wednesday and Thursday night in southern California, including a physical 1-0 loss to Los Angeles, the Lightning pushed the pace in the neutrazl zone and outnumbered the Sharks down low. “The first 6 or 7 minutes we faced something new,” defenseman Dan Boyle noted after the game. “We were prepared for it, but until you actually play against it, it is something a little different.” The former Lightning defenseman also described the team’s playing style under rookie head coach Guy Boucher. “With that coach they play a different style of game, they don’t forecheck all that much. They have 5 guys back. It is a cookie cutter league. Most teams do the same thing, but these guys play differently than everybody else.”

Antero Niittymaki was stellar early on shutting down Martin St. Louis on a pair of shots, including a long wrister deflected wide with his blocker. NHL goal (11) and point (22) scoring leader Steven Stamkos combined with Steve Downie for a quality scoring chance down low, while Vincent Lecavalier floated to an open space in the slot to hammer a shot on goal from distance.

Niittymaki was equal to the task. “It was nice to get a lot of shots early on,” he said post-game. “I am used to 4 or 5 in the first period, tonight they had 10. It got me into the game.” The Tampa Bay Lightning also out-Sharked the Sharks at times, getting the puck out to the defense before quick shots were fired through traffic on goal. 19-year old phenom defenseman Victor Hedman, and former Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brett Clark hammered shots from the point. Each time left wing Sean Bergenheim narrowly missed punching home the rebound.

The complexion of the game turned halfway through the first period when defenseman Douglas Murray took an interference call for checking center Dana Tyrell along the end boards. With the Lightning aggressively looking to capitalize on the power play, Stamkos floated a pass out of his own zone that was intercepted by Patrick Marleau. Marleau changed directions, took a hard stride and buried a heavy slapshot 5-hole on goaltender Mike Smith. At the end of a long west coast road trip, the Tampa Bay Lightning were visibly deflated after the Sharks first shorthanded goal of the season.

Tampa Bay would answer back as the penalty on Murray expired. Stamkos exploded off the wall with the puck, and fired a quick wrist shot on goal from the point. Martin St. Louis deflected the puck wide of Niittymaki and just inside the post to tie the game at 1-1. It was his 6th goal of the season.

The Sharks top line of Patrick Marleau, Dany Heatley and Logan Couture began to roll. After two offsides early on Marleau and Heatley, they started getting the puck deeper in the zone with the feeling they were eventually going to punch through the Lightning’s collapsing defense. With Vincent Lecavalier in the box for hooking Marleau, Patrick Marleau scored his second goal of the game 15:26 into the first. A shot/pass by defenseman Dan Boyle to Marleau resulted in an attempted shot/pass to Heatley at the side of the net. Tampa defenseman Mattias Ohlund tried to cover the pass, but instead he deflected it by Smith 5-hole. Clutch saves by Mike Smith on McCarthy, and Antero Niittymaki on a late Stamkos shorthanded breakaway kept the score at 2-1 after 20 minutes.

San Jose Sharks head coach Todd McLellan discussed his team’s struggle to score goals. “We have 70 games left to play. We will score goals. The biggest difference tonight was that we were not on the penalty kill.” Without a constant effort to chase down opponents shorthanded, the Sharks had more energy in the second period. The net result was goaltender Mike Smith facing a firing range. He was forced to smother pucks down low, and flash the blocker as well as the glove as San Jose outshot the visiting side 20-6. Two early penalties on Sean Bergenheim, and a double minor on Ryan Malone, forced the Lightning on their heels.

Heatley, Couture and Marleau kept pushing forward and generating scoring chances. At 11:27 of the second period Heatley scored his 6th goal of the season. Dan Boyle moved the puck up to Couture along the half wall, and the young centerman fired a shot on goal. Heatley buried the rebound into what looked like 8 feet of open net. The Sharks have been struggling to find secondary scoring, but the fourth line of Jamal Mayers, John McCarthy and Scott Nichol delivered at 17:27. Mayers reached a dump down low, and fired a hard pass to McCarthy at the front of the net. The rookie one-timed it for his second goal of the season, and a 4-1 lead.

Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Guy Boucher discussed how injuries and a long road trip took a toll on his team late in the game against San Jose. “Malone was sick as a dog, Downie should have never played, Thomson is sick. You guys know our injuries, it hurt us today. What hurt us tonight was the second period… the second period killed us with a million penalties. We couldn’t get momentum. They got it, they were smart. They played hard and got a lot of shots on net.” Defenseman Victor Hedman was able to return from a foot contusion suffered against Anaheim and Steve Downie played with an injured back, but forwards Dominic Moore (groin) and Simon Gagne (neck) were not in the lineup.

In the third period, Logan Couture drove to the front of the net and was rewarded. After Dany Heatley entered the zone with possession, Couture set up in front of Mike Smith and deflected a shot home for his 5th goal of the season 27 seconds in. “We hve a ton of confidence in (Couture),” McLellan said. “He has been one of our top forwards from training camp onwards. We feel real confident playing him in all situations.” The tally by Couture ensured that each member of the top line would score a goal, Marleau netting two. Couture success on both sides of the ice is a glimpse of his future potential. He has shown the ability to fill a playmaking role on the top line, or to deliver a shutdown shift late in a game.

Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos scored on the power play at 18:13 for his league leading 11th of the season. Antero Niittymaki (5-1-1, .932SV%, 1.78GAA) stopped 33 of 35 shots for his 5th win of the season. Tampa Bay goaltender Mike Smith (4-2-0, .881SV%, 3.43GAA) stopped 34 of 39 shots against. The Sharks outshot Tampa Bay 39-35, outhit them 20-15, and finished 37-34 from the faceoff circle (52%). Patrick Marleau lead both teams with 8 shots on goal, Jamal Mayers and Jamie McGinn lead both teams with 3 hits, and defenseman Dan Boyle blocked a game high 4 shots. Worcester Sharks leading scorer Benn Ferriero was called up to replace Thornton in the lineup. The Lightning are 1-6 in their last 6 visits to HP Pavilion.

A photo gallery from the game is available here.

[Update] Sharks snap skid, drub Lightning – SF Chronicle.

[Update2] Lopsided loss could have been worse, Tampa Bay Lightning loses to San Jose Sharks 5-2 – Damian Cristodero for the St. Petersburg Times.

“At some point in the game, we got away from the structure a little bit,” Lightning captain Vinny Lecavalier said. “Little things, but structure is the most important thing — backchecking the right way, being first on the puck.

“That’s our motto; we have to be first on the puck. If we’re not, then we’re not playing our game.”

[Update3] Lightning’s West Coast woes continue with loss to San Jose – Tampa Tribune.

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