Time: 10:30pm ET Place: SAP Center, San Jose CA TV: FSD Radio: 97.1 FM The Ticket, 1270 AM Sharks Blog: Fear the Fin We’re deep into crunch time in the end of the season and I’m really struggling through the totally understandable concept of watching the games wanting to be entertained and also knowing I absolutely should be rooting for the Red Wings to lose in order to get the best possible draft lottery odds. There’s also an added wrinkle in it for tonight as the Wings will be playing a team whose playoff success can directly influence Detroit’s draft positioning in the future. While there’s no way to know whether it will have any noticeable effect on San Jose making the Cup Final or re-signing in San Jose, this game will have fans thinking about how to make sure one of those things happen so Detroit’s 2020 pick in that trade is the 2nd rounder rather than the third. Dylan McIlrath was called up yesterday to replace the called-up-but-too-ill-to-play Libor Sulak and could find himself in the lineup if the Wings need an extra body or if Jeff Blashill wants to break up the unstoppable duo of Brian Lashoff and Luke Witkowski. Matt Puempel, Ryan Kuffner, and Taro “Point-Per-Game’ Hirose also remain with the club and at least two (probably all three) will factor into the lineup. Puck drop is real late tonight on the West coast against the 2nd-best team in the Pacific Division who scores a bunch of goals but doesn’t do great about preventing them. San Jose will be looking to get tuned up to host Vegas in the opening round and Detroit is looking for things to build off of. Stay tuned to WIIM for updates today and later for tonight’s gamethread. LGRW<doc-sep>There may be nothing more like the San Jose Sharks than backing into a playoff position while idle amidst a season-worst five-game losing streak. Tonight, the Sharks (43-23-9, 2nd Pacific) will try the greatest trick they’ve ever pulled when they host the Detroit Red Wings (27-38-10): convincing the world that losing streak didn’t exist. To do so, they’ll have to overcome their biggest obstacle to postseason glory. During the Sharks’ current slump, the team has taken the vast majority of 5-on-5 shots and created a higher share of scoring chances than their opponents. In that hopeful sign is not the blistering offense that has led the team thus far. Rather, the Sharks have relied mostly on their defense to drag them through this losing streak. During those five games, the team allowed the league’s sixth-lowest rate of both 5-on-5 shots and scoring chances against (Natural Stat Trick). The team still allows rogue scoring chances here and there, and losing Radim Simek’s defensive impact hurts, but the five skaters in front of goal have mostly played well. It appears no form of resolute defense can flatter a goaltending duo that has appeared hell-bent on saving just 86.8 percent of the shots on goal they face. Together this season, Martin Jones and Aaron Dell have given the team a combined 31 quality starts, about 41 percent of the team’s 75 games (Hockey Reference). That means that 44 times this season, the Sharks have had to score a handful of goals or lose trying. The string of five losses is what happens when a team’s consistently powerful offense falls flat — as it has been since the beginning of February — with no signs of revival. Until now, anyway. Detroit Red Wings at San Jose Sharks Across the Bench: Winging it in Motown Puck Drop: 7:30 PT / 10:30 ET at SAP Center Broadcast: NBCSCA, Fox Sports Midwest Stream: NHL.tv, ESPN+ Radio: 98.5 KFOX / NHL App / Sharks App In the Sharks’ last six games, they’ve built a rate of at least three even-strength expected goals per hour or more (Evolving Hockey). For reference, the league-leading Carolina Hurricanes’ offense has pilfered the rest of the league to the tune of 3.11 expected goals per hour. There may be no brighter welcome sign for this struggling-to-emerge offense than the Detroit Red Wings’ defense. Paced by the likes of Danny DeKeyser and Filip Hronek, the Winged Wheel’s done nothing but kick up frictionless mud all season. In the month of March, the Wings have allowed the league’s third-highest rate of scoring chances and highest rate of unblocked shots (Natural Stat Trick). Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou and Tyler Bertuzzi guide a feisty top-two forward lines. But relying on two fresh-out-of-college rookies and castaway veterans to fill in the blanks means Detroit’s offense has been as poor as its defense. To be fair, one may have said the same about the Los Angeles Kings or Anaheim Ducks. There is no magical cure to reignite a trudging offense. There are no special incantations that revive goaltenders from the dead to recite. Instead, the Sharks must find a way to play as they have all season: behind an offense that littered the offensive zone with scoring chance after scoring chance. Erik Karlsson is the team’s gamebreaker, and missing him for stretches surely makes everything worse. Even without him, and possibly without Joe Pavelski and Evander Kane — who were both absent from practice yesterday — the Sharks are deep enough and skilled enough to compete with just about any team in the league. They will need do so and find again whatever it was that sent them hurtling across the time and space of October-to-January leaving four, five, six goals at a time in their wake. A well-rested team playing at home game against the damp blanket Detroit Red Wings should theoretically have no trouble regaining their previous offensive form, a form that seems to be creeping back as we speak. How this team reacts to a rough patch for their goal-scoring process will help signal what sort of prospects they have for a long spring. What will DeBoer do with his fourth line? Doug Wilson picked up Micheal Haley on waivers, and Pete DeBoer promptly played him for 14-straight games. During those games, Haley has been more often ineffective at driving play more often than he is helpful. His stranglehold on the final forward spot arrived at a momentary impasse when DeBoer inserted Lukas Radil back into the 12th man role. Though the fourth line of Haley, Barclay Goodrow, and Melker Karlsson has performed well enough together, they’ve failed to make much of an impact beyond how the team was already playing that evening. With Radil opposite Karlsson, the trio has routinely help elevate the Sharks’ 5-on-5 play. It’s clear Radil offers the team best bang for their buck on the fourth line. Soon, DeBoer should make clear who he thinks belongs there. Can the Ryan — Burns pair learn to limit chances against? So far, the reunion of Joakim Ryan and Brent Burns hasn’t been a disaster. It’s offered about what one might have expected: offense at the expense of defense. Much will depend upon how these two are able to limit opportunities against their helpless goaltenders. To date, the duo hasn’t quite figured out how to scramble the neutral zone and turn would-be entries away like the Simek — Burns pair did. The result, so far in their reprised relationship, has been to allow more goals relative to the rest of the team while together. The two have done so, miraculously, while also mostly enjoying an on-ice save percentage higher than the rest of the team’s (Natural Stat Trick). If this pair somehow figures out how to add defense to its already-potent offense, the Sharks’ middle pair becomes part of the solution once more. Will the power play rekindle its love of goal scoring? In the Sharks’ last 11 games, the team has scored just four goals in nearly 49 minutes of 5-on-4 power play time.<doc-sep>Make it six losses in a row for the San Jose Sharks. They put themselves into an early hole against the Detroit Red Wings and were unable to dig their way out on route to a 3-2 loss. The game didn’t start the way the Sharks had hoped, as seconds into the first period Dylan Larkin made it 1-0 on a breakaway. After giving up the early lead, San Jose did settle down and generated 11 shots for, including ten scoring chances when playing at even strength. However, Jonathan Bernier kept the net empty and San Jose went into the break down a goal. In the second period, the Sharks fired nine shots during five on five play, and as a result, their scoring chances were at a minimum. Missing the net and or making an unnecessary extra pass led to a frustrating period of hockey. Again, the inability to find the back of the net allowed the Red Wings to extend their lead to 2-0 after an Andreas Athanasiou breakaway goal. For the Sharks, the start of the third period offered more of the same, with little to no life offensively. The Sharks did start to rack up power plays in the middle of the frame but to no avail. On one of the numerous man advantages, a defensive mishap led to the Red Wings adding to their lead. Christoffer Ehn was left unmarked for a short-handed goal to make it 3-0. Evander Kane would finally get the Sharks on the board only a few seconds later on the power play. Towards the end of the period, Tomas Hertl made it 3-2 Sharks, but it proved to be too little too late as there was only five seconds remaining. The current losing streak continues. Pregame It wasn’t that long ago when the San Jose Sharks and the Detroit Red Wings were heated rivals. Ever since Jamie Baker scored that overtime goal to bounce Scotty Bowman’s Red Wings in the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs, every game between those two teams were must-watch ... at least until the 2013-14 season came along. When the NHL realigned the conferences and divisions to better suit the Winnipeg Jets, who had been playing in the Southeast division for their first two years since relocating from Atlanta, that moved the Red Wings to the Eastern conference, all but ending the rivalry between them and the Sharks. Since their move into the now-Atlantic division, the Red Wings have been sharply declining. They currently sit in seventh place in the Atlantic, only in front of the mess that is the Ottawa Senators. They were able to take two points from the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday night with an overtime goal from Anthony Mantha, a result that the Sharks must have gratefully appreciated, with a playoff series against Vegas all but certain. Lines Sharks Still no Pavelski for tonight’s game as the Goose takes on his old team. #SJSharks pic.twitter.com/7v0TycPeTm — x - Fear the Fin (@fearthefin) March 25, 2019 Expected Scratches: Micheal Haley, Dylan Gambrell (healthy) Injured Reserve: Joe Pavelski (undisclosed), Radim Simek (knee), Erik Karlsson (groin) Red Wings Tyler Bertuzzi — Dylan Larkin — Anthony Mantha Luke Glendening — Andreas Athanasiou — Taro Hirose Ryan Kuffner — Frans Nielsen — Darren Helm Jonathan Ericsson — Christoffer Ehn — Matt Puempel Danny DeKeyser — Filip Hronek Niklas Kronwall — Madison Bowey Brian Lashoff — Dylan McIlrath Jimmy Howard Jonathan Bernier Expected Scratches: Luke Witkowski (healthy) Injured Reserve: Justin Abdelkader (leg), Trevor Daley (back), Jacob de la Rose (accelerated heartbeat), Michael Rasmussen (upper body), Mike Green (virus) Thomas Vanek (hip) Where to Watch Puck drop at SAP Center starts at 7:30 p.m Pacific/10:30 p.m. Eastern. The game will be carried on NBC Sports California in the Bay Area and on Fox Sports Detroit in the Detroit market. The radio call will be available on 98.5 KFOX and on the Sharks app. This will also be the first game with a Spanish broadcast available. The call by Ambrosio Rico can be found on the Sharks + SAP Center App or via the SAP setting on the NBC Sports California’s television broadcast. Check back here at puck drop for live updates and reactions to tonight’s action. Hello everyone! Eddie here and after a little hiatus I’m with you all to liveblog tonight’s action versus Detroit. First Period 19:22: Goal. Yeah, not a good start to the game as Dylan Larkin gives the Red Wings an early lead 15:30: Tim Heed’s shot creates a rebound chance but Jonathan Bernier denies Tomas Hertl 14:27: Penalty. Justin Braun is called for holding and the Sharks are off to the penalty kill 12:25: Sharks kill the Braun penalty 8:11: Brent Burns comes close to scoring but Bernier makes the save to deny him 3:08: Burns with a shot from the right circle but Bernier saves it with the glove 1:13: Sharks with some scoring chances but they’re unable to get the puck past Bernier End of the First Second Period 17:12: Red Wings with some scoring chances early on but so far Jones stands tall 14:26: Power Play. Sharks head to the power play as the Red Wings are called for tripping 13:38: Gustav Nyquist with a rebound scoring chance but Bernier denies his former teammate 12:26: Red Wings kill their tripping penalty 11:48: Sharks with an odd-man chance but nothing comes of it 8:52: Joe Thornton with a great pass to Kevin Lebanc but Bernier is there to make the stop the Lebanc shot 5:16: Marcus Sorensen with a scoring chance but he’s unable to wrap it around the net 4:23: Goal. Andreas Athanasiou scores on the breakaway to make it 2-0 Red Wings End of the Third Third Period 19:26: Well, at least that breakaway didn’t result in a goal as Jones denies Mantha 17:10: No offensive life from the Sharks to start the third 16:02: Another breakaway save by Jones, this time on Athanasiou 12:39: Power Play. Red Wings are called for slashing and the Sharks could definitely use a goal on the man advantage 11:25: Goal.<doc-sep>The Detroit Red Wings will face former teammate Gustav Nyquist for the first time tonight when they visit the slumping San Jose Sharks at SAP Center (10:30, Fox Sports Detroit). Nyquist has three goals and three assists in 12 games with the Sharks, who acquired him from the Red Wings on Feb. 24 for a second-round pick this year and a third-rounder in 2020, which becomes a second-round selection if San Jose reaches the Stanley Cup Final or Nyquist signs with the club. Overall, Nyquist has a career-high 55 points (19 goals, 36 assists). The Sharks (43-23-9, 95 points) have lost five in a row (0-4-1). They won the first meeting between the teams, 5-3 on Feb. 24 at Little Caesars Arena. The Red Wings (27-38-10, 64 points) have won three of their past four and are third from last in the overall standings, ahead of the Kings (62 points) and Senators (58 points), in the competition for the best draft lottery odds. Jonathan Bernier is expected to start in goal. Michael Rasmussen and Thomas Vanek are out due to injuries, requiring the Red Wings to dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen, including Dylan McIlrath, who’ll make his debut for the team after being recalled from the Grand Rapids Griffins on Sunday. Jonathan Ericsson also returns tonight after missing five games with a lower-body injury.<doc-sep>
Updates On this day in 1972, @DetroitRedWings' Alex Delvecchio became the third player in NHL history to record 1,200 career points #Hockey365 #LGRW pic.twitter.com/tpSOGWF94m — Mike Commito (@mikecommito) March 25, 2019 #RedWings Vanek out so Wings going 11 and 7. Mid-body injury. — Dana Wakiji (@Dwakiji) March 25, 2019 Lineups DETROIT Darren Helm - Dylan Larkin - Anthony Mantha Tyler Bertuzzi - Andreas Athanasiou - Luke Glendening Matt Puempel - Frans Nielsen - Taro Hirose Christoffer Ehn - Ryan Kuffner Danny DeKeyser - Filip Hronek Niklas Kronwall - Madison Bowey Brian Lashoff - Luke Witkowski Dylan McIlrath Jimmy Howard Jonathan Bernier Sharks Timo Meier - Tomas Hertl - Gustav Nyquist Marcus Sorensen - Joe Thornton - Kevin Labanc Evander Kane - Lukas Radil - Joonas Donskoi Micheal Haley - Barclay Goodrow - Melker Karlsson Joakim Ryan - Brent Burns Marc-Edouard Vlasic - Tim Heed Brenden Dillon - Justin Braun Aaron Dell Martin Jones Keys to the Game Contain The Goose I know Sara has a billion memes ready to tell us how “The Goose Is Loose,” but those are only fun when Nyquist was scoring for Detroit. Now that he is lining up against the Red Wings, the boys in red (well, white tonight, but you get the idea) will have to keep Nyquist in a pen. A fence? A very small enclosed pond? Not really sure how geese are contained. In 12 games with San Jose, Nyquist has 3 goals and 3 assists, so he’s not exactly lighting up the stat sheet, but he’s now on the top line, and we all know how former players always seem to score against their former team, so.... Hirose Hot Streak Taro Hirose has three assists in three games since signing with the Red Wings as a free agent. He has adapted more quickly to the NHL game than fellow free agent signing Ryan Kuffner, although three games is obviously far too small of a sample size to make any real evaluations of either. In Wednesday’s edition of the power play update, I will highlight how even though he’s not doing anything flashy on the power play, he’s been a good addition to the man advantage. Can he get his first goal tonight? I’m going to go out on a limb and predict that he will. Motivation San Jose has clinched a playoff spot, and it looks likely they will finish second in the Pacific and play Vegas in the first round. Detroit is decidedly at the other end of the standings. Rather than spend a lot of time figuring out who has to win and who has to lose for Detroit to have the best chances at winning the lottery, I’m just hoping for exciting games from here on out, with young players getting a lot of opportunities. I mean the team that finished last overall has a 50.6% chance of dropping to fourth. (As always, fan how you want to fan. Just my two cents.)