San Jose Sharks, Macklin Celebrini beat Edmonton Oilers
SAN JOSE — Shakir Mukhamadullin scored the go-ahead purpose on the 9:27 mark of the third interval to assist elevate the San Jose Sharks to a badly wanted and entertaining 5-4 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday earlier than a sold-out crowd of 17,435 at SAP Center.
Trailing a rush up the ice, Mukhamadullin took a cross from William Eklund and fired a wrist shot previous Oilers goalie Connor Ingram for his fourth purpose of the season.
The Sharks held from there, killing a late hooking penalty to defenseman Vincent Desharnais to snap a five-game dropping streak.
Michael Misa, Macklin Celebrini, Alex Wennberg, and Barclay Goodrow all scored, and goalie Yaroslav Askarov completed with 20 saves because the Sharks improved to 1-1-0 on their essential six-game homestand.
The Sharks led by two earlier than permitting an Evan Bouchard purpose with 4:11 left within the second interval. With the Oilers urgent, the Sharks overlooked Bouchard – the top-scoring defenseman within the NHL – as he took a return cross from Connor McDavid and scored on a virtually wide-open web for his seventeenth purpose of the season.
The Sharks led 3-1 after a fast-paced — and loosely performed — first interval.
Celebrini and Misa scored targets 3:33 aside, with Misa’s purpose, his third of the season, giving the Sharks a 2-0 lead on the 11:07 mark of the primary interval.
The Oilers received one purpose again with 5:09 left within the first interval, as Leon Draisaitl, arrange within the slot, one-timed a cross from Connor McDavid previous Askarov.
The Sharks, although, responded with 2:55 to go. After a Sharks forecheck, defenseman John Klingberg took a cross from Goodrow and put a shot on purpose that was blocked in entrance. But Goodrow picked up the free puck and scored into {a partially} open web for a 3-1 Sharks lead.
Losers of 5 straight, the reeling Sharks made some lineup modifications for Saturday’s recreation, inserting Mukhamadullin for Timothy Liljegren on protection and Pavol Regenda for Ryan Reaves on the fourth line.
Mukhamadullin was a wholesome scratch within the Sharks’ 4-1 loss to the Calgary Flames on Thursday and, by means of a mixture of accidents and scratches, has performed in simply 26 of 56 video games to date this season.
Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky mentioned he wished Mukhamadullin to be on his toes defensively as they play one of many NHL’s most offensively prolific groups within the Oilers. Edmonton’s captain, Connor McDavid, leads the NHL with 100 factors in 60 video games, and the Oilers are third within the NHL with a mean of three.52 targets per recreation after they smacked the Los Angeles Kings 8-1 on Thursday.
“Just play solid hockey, defend with some urgency and some jam,” Warsofsky mentioned of what he needs to see from Mukhamadullin. “Puck play is critical. (Be) a guy who can help us keep pucks out of the back of our net. Keep taking another step.”
Earlier this week, Mukhamadullin expressed his frustration with how this season has unfolded and contemplated the place he’s in his profession. Mukhamadullin’s ice time has been notably down from 2024-25, as he is averaging 16:15 per recreation, effectively beneath the 18:04 he posted in 30 NHL video games final season.
Liljegren made a pricey error within the third interval of Thursday’s loss to Calgary. With the Sharks trailing by one, Liljegren’s tried outlet cross went off a Flames ahead as a substitute and proper to Nazem Kadri, who scored to present Calgary a 3-1 lead.
Regenda additionally didn’t play in Thursday’s loss however is coming off a formidable efficiency on the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, the place he had three targets and two assists in six video games for Slovakia, which completed fourth.
The Sharks (27-25-4) entered Saturday 5 factors again of the Seattle Kraken for the second wild card spot within the Western Conference.
Askarov began Saturday’s recreation after he made 25 saves in Thursday’s loss. Askarov had been 0-0-2 in two profession begins in opposition to the Oilers, stopping 67 of 74 photographs for a .905 save proportion.
In San Jose’s recreation in Edmonton on Jan. 29, Askarov and the Sharks had a three-goal lead within the third interval earlier than the Oilers charged again to tie the sport and ship it into additional time, the place Zach Hyman scored to present Edmonton a 4-3 win.
Saturday’s recreation marked the primary assembly between McDavid and Celebrini since they had been linemates for Canada on the Olympic Games. McDavid led the match with 13 factors in six video games, and Celebrini had 10 factors, together with his 5 targets main all skaters.
Celebrini is the NHL’s fifth-leading scorer with 81 factors in 56 video games, though he is been held off the scoresheet in three of his final 4 video games.
Saturday’s recreation is the primary of back-to-back matinees for the Sharks at SAP Center, as they host the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday at 1 pm The Sharks end their homestand with video games in opposition to Montreal on Tuesday, St. Louis on Friday, and the New York Islanders subsequent Saturday.
