SAN JOSE – Oh, what a difference nine months can make.
Patrick Marleau netted two third
period goals to ignite an incredible, 5-3 comeback win over the Phoenix
Coyotes in the San Jose Sharks home opener at HP Pavilion Thursday night. With
the victory, the Sharks maintain a perfect 3-0 record.
“It’s a good start,” Captain Joe
Thornton said. “It’s better than being 0-3.”
In April,
Marleau received a healthy dose of the blame for the quickest Stanley Cup
playoff exit in franchise history. He scored only four goals in his last 27
games last year, including the playoffs. Now, he leads the NHL with six goals
in three games.
“It feels
good. I won’t lie to you, it feels good,” Marleau said.
After
jumping all over the Coyotes in the opening 10 minutes of the game, the Sharks
found themselves trailing 3-1 when Phoenix scored a pair of goals in the first
7:28 of the third period.
But Marleau
gave the Sharks a pulse after Thornton found him all alone in front of the net.
He fired the puck past the goalie Jason Labarbera, who was in for the injured
Mike Smith, to make the score 3-2 with 10:45 left in regulation.
“I was just
trying to get it off quick and I was able to sneak it in under his arm,”
Marleau said.
The Sharks
tied the game less than four minutes later when Martin Havlat tucked a rebound
inside the right goalpost, setting the stage for Marleau’s game winner with
1:53 to play.
Marleau
scored his sixth and most dramatic goal of the season on the rush from the
middle of the circle after receiving a pass from Joe Pavelski. The
longest-tenured Shark has scored two goals in each of the team’s three games
this season.
But Marleau
wasn’t the only Sharks player to put his name all over the stat sheet on
Thursday. Thornton recorded his third assist on the game-winning goal and he picked
up an empty-netter in game’s final minute, his first tally of the season. With
four points on the night, Thornton is now the NHL’s scoring leader with nine
points on the year.
In the
offseason, some suggested the Sharks needed a shakeup to return to the top of
the Western Conference standings this season. But right now, the familiar faces
are leading way.
“They’re
clicking,” Head Coach Todd McLellan said. “They had big nights tonight, but
teams are going to count on their big guys to get the job done and ours have
been producing right now.”
Despite a 3-0
start, McLellan said the club still has some wrinkles to iron out. The team
surrendered two short-handed goals and it now ranks 26th in the
league on the penalty kill at 64.3 percent. While it’s a small sample size, the
statistic is somewhat discouraging because the Sharks finished 29th
in that category last season.
“I thought
game management tonight wasn’t quite as good as it was in the first two games,”
McLellan said. “I thought shift length got a little bit long. I thought our
changes were sloppy and they were springing guys in behind us, so that can
improve.”
Defenseman
Matthew Irwin picked up his first NHL point on the Sharks second goal. McLellan
said he is impressed with rookie’s play through three games.
“He looks
like he belongs doesn’t he? He’s played extremely well since he’s been here,”
he said. “Not afraid to jump up. He used his legs, he used his speed, created a
scoring opportunity for us to get back in the game.”
Logan
Couture scored the game’s first goal on the power play in the first period and
he picked up an assist on Havlat’s goal in the third. He’s currently tied for
fourth in scoring with seven points.
Couture
said he never doubted Marleau’s ability to regain his scoring touch.
“I tell
everyone who I come in contact with that Patty Marleau’s the best player, most
skilled player that I’ve ever practiced with,” he said. “He’s just got
everything: speed, shot, skill. He’s showed at the start of this year.”
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