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Sharks upend Phoenix to complete rugged two-game road swing
By Daniel Dullum January 12, 2010 |
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GLENDALE, Ariz. – It’s not often that a goal is practically gift-wrapped at the NHL level, but San Jose’s Patrick Marleau says he’ll take one when it’s there. “I’ll take those. I’ll take them all night,” Marleau said of his first goal of Tuesday’s game against Phoenix, a rare empty net opportunity on a penalty kill. “You try and get to the right spot in case something like that happens so you’re there to put it in.” Not only was Marleau in the right sport for his first goal of the night, his second tally helped set the tone in the Sharks’ 3-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes before an announced crowd of 9,248 at Jobing.com Arena. “He’s the best left winger in the game right now,” Sharks center Joe Thornton said of Marleau. “No doubt about it. Every night, he seems to have a lot of energy and he’s so consistent.” With San Jose’s Jody Shelley serving a hooking minor, Phoenix was on the power play when Marleau scored his first goal at 11:24 of the first period. Marleau cashed in when Coyotes goaltender Jason LaBarbera got too adventurous handling a bouncing puck behind his net, allowing the Sharks’ center to scoop up the loose, rolling puck and flip it into an empty net unassisted for his 30th goal of the season. “I was just trying to get a good trace on the puck and saw it bounce out and I was able to get to it first,” Marleau explained. “You want to get pressure up ice on the PK and obviously Blakey (Rob Blake) did a good job of getting the puck down, making it hard for the goalie (LaBarbera) to get it off the boards and cause a little havoc that way and I was lucky enough to have it pop out right to me.” The victory was the second of a tough back-to-back road swing for San Jose, who defeated Los Angeles 2-1 on Monday. The Sharks improved to 67 points and maintain their lead in the Pacific Division and surge ahead of idle Chicago to assume first place in the overall Western Conference standings. “L.A. has given us a tough time all year and so have these guys,” Thornton, who assisted on the third San Jose goal, said. “Usually we see (the Coyotes) on back-to-back nights, so it’s nice to come in here and pretty much dominate the whole 60 minutes. It was a great road trip for us.” “I think it was more significant that we played three games in four nights, and (the Coyotes) were rested,” Sharks coach Todd McLellan said. “We took some penalties early and we were able to get by. That’s more important than who we’re playing at this point in the season.” Phoenix trails the Sharks by 10 points in the division race and slipped to sixth overall in the West with Nashville’s 5-3 win over Edmonton. The improved Coyotes have lost three straight for the first time this season. “We don’t have anybody who can score 100 points. We’re a team that has to score by committee,” Coyotes coach Dave Tippett said. “ As Phoenix’s James Vandermeer served a cross-checking minor, Marleau put San Jose up 2-0 at 18:06 of the first period, taking the rebound of Dan Boyle’s initial shot and sending a backhander past LaBarbera from just outside the crease on the glove side. “I was just tending to the net, there were a couple of tips and the puck was tipped to my stick. I got a piece of it,” Marleau said, adding that it was important to get an early lead against the Coyotes, who have played San Jose tough all season. “They come out strong and do a good job of trying to get that first goal, so it was a big boost for us to get that first one,” Marleau said. While San Jose was 1-for-4 on the power play, the Coyotes failed to score in seven power play attempts, including a two-man advantage in the second period. “Our penalty kill did a great job and that took a lot of the life out of them,” McLellan said. “The penalty kill has been real good for us all year. We’ve had stretches where we haven’t been real sharp, but for the most part it gives us a chance to win every game. “It starts with the goaltender, but the game plan is spelled out for them and they stick to it,” he continued. “Of late, we’re getting more and more penalty killers involved – guys like Torrey Mitchell and Ryane Clowe – and I think that’s important for our team.” Tippett felt San Jose’s success on the penalty kill was a combination of the Sharks’ talent and the Coyotes’ failure to execute. “I’m sure they watched out power play (against the New York Islanders) and we executed pretty well and did a good job of moving the puck,” Tippett said. “I’m sure their plan was to pressure us and with our execution, having a lot of bouncing pucks, allowed them to pressure. And you have to compete for those loose pucks. We didn’t win enough of them. “Execution and hard work take you a long way.” With 7:11 left in the second period, the Sharks extended their lead to 3-0 on Dany Heatley’s 27th goal of the season. Operating behind the net, Heatley pushed a stuff shot between LaBarbera’s left skate and the pipe. “We were just working it down low. Joe made a good play from behind, I got a step on the defenseman, wrapped it around and got a rebound,” Heatley said. At 11:50 of the third period, Radim Vrbata put the Coyotes on the board, scoring his 14th goal of the season on a blast from the right circle, beating Evgeni Nabokov to his stick side. But 3-1 was as close as Phoenix would get. “We knew they would come back,” McLellan said. “We’re happy with the way we responded. We didn’t give up very many chances and Nabby did what he was supposed to do.” Nabokov stopped 32 of 33 shots, while LaBarbera, filling in for Ilya Bryzgalov, finished with 29 saves for Phoenix. “The key was that we were able to start the game on the right note,” Nabokov said. “Getting the lead right away and go from there. “But we are taking too many penalties, so we have to be careful about playing with fire.” The Sharks return to HP Pavilion Thursday to host Boston, starting a three-game homestand that includes Edmonton on Jan. 16 and Calgary on Jan. 18. SHARK BITES: Coyotes D Ed Jovanovski served the first game of a two-game suspension issued by the NHL on Tuesday. In the Jan. 9 game against the Islanders, Jovanovski elbowed center John Tavares in “the head area” and was assessed a major penalty and a game misconduct. Now considered a repeat offender by the league, Jovanovski also forfeits $158,536.59 in salary to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund. … Sharks G Evgeni Nabokov moved into 30th place on the NHL’s all-time win list for goaltenders with the victory Monday at Los Angeles. Nabokov has 275 victories. … Eight San Jose players will participate in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games at Vancouver, B.C. – Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Dany Heatley and Dan Boyle (Canada); Evgeni Nabokov (Russia); Joe Pavelski (United States); Douglas Murray (Sweden) and Thomas Greiss (Germany). |
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