San Jose Sharks get Yaroslav Askarov back for game vs. St. Louis Blues

goalie Yaroslav Askarov will make his first begin in over two weeks, and Tyler Toffoli might return to the lineup Thursday when the San Jose Sharks face the St. Louis Blues in a game between two groups headed in reverse instructions.

Askarov’s final begin got here on March 10, as he stopped 20 of 25 pictures in the Sharks’ 6-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Askarov suffered a lower-body harm in apply in Boston the next day and didn’t costume for the following six video games earlier than he backed up Alex Nedeljkovic on Tuesday in the Sharks’ 6-3 loss to the Nashville Predators.

Askarov has began a majority of the Sharks’ 69 games this season, going 19-17-3 with a .886 save share in 40 appearances.

Nedeljkovic carried a lot of the workload in Askarov’s absence, beginning six of seven video games. For the season, Nedeljkovic is 13-13-3 with a .894 save share.

The loss in Nashville was the Sharks’ fifth straight, and with 70 factors, they entered Thursday seven factors back of the Predators for the second wild card spot within the Western Conference, with two video games in hand. San Jose was additionally eight factors back of the Vegas Golden Knights for third place within the Pacific Division, with three video games in hand.

The Sharks are actually in twelfth place within the West, and must cross Winnipeg, Seattle, and Los Angeles earlier than they will catch Nashville.

The Blues, in the meantime, have gone 9-2-2 because the Olympic break and are actually one level behind the Sharks, who’ve fallen into twenty seventh place within the NHL’s general standings. As of Thursday morning, the Sharks had a 9.3% likelihood of reaching the playoffs, however MoneyPuck.com.

Toffoli has missed the final two video games with a lower-body harm he sustained within the first interval of the Sharks’ residence game in opposition to the Sabers on March 19. He was not with the Sharks in Nashville, however joined the crew in St. Louis.

Toffoli is the Sharks’ third main scorer this season with 44 factors in 67 video games, with eight factors in his final 12 video games. The Sharks can use the additional scoring punch after being held to 2 even-strength objectives of their final three video games, whereas permitting 27 objectives in the course of the five-game skid.