Feb 13, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; San Jose Sharks defenseman Matt Irwin (52) punches Arizona Coyotes center Brendan Shinnimin (39) during the third period at Gila River Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Fresh off a 5-1 victory last time out, the San Jose Sharks will look to build off their strong, four-goal third period as they look to pummel the lowly Arizona Coyotes at SAP Center. While the Sharks are still playoff long shots, San Jose wants to battle to the bitter end until someone tells them they’re officially out.
Standing in their way are the Coyotes who own the second-worst record in the entire NHL and trail the Buffalo Sabres by just two points for last place honors. It’s been a rebuilding season in the desert and Arizona hopes they can land one of the top two picks in the upcoming draft to help speed that process along.
The two teams will meet tonight in San Jose and then tomorrow in Arizona in the rare home-and-home matchup. The Sharks will look to capitalize on these two games and hope they won’t need another Joe Pavelski tirade to get them going.
Players to Watch
San Jose: Patrick Marleau. Marleau has had an up-and-down season, but he’s been scoring lately for the Sharks. Marleau has three goals and three assists in his past five games, including a goal last time out. Marleau has 18 goals and 36 assists on the season, but he’s a minus-16 for the year. Marleau will be looking to eclipse the 20-goal plateau for the 13th time in his career if he can score two more goals this year.
Arizona: Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Ekman-Larsson is a supreme talent and one of the best young defensemen in the game. The problem for him is he’s been on a dreadful hockey club. It’s pretty sad when a defenseman is your leading goal scorer and Ekman-Larsson is doing just that for Arizona. He leads the Coyotes with 21 goals and the next closest person is Mikkel Boedker with 14. Ekman-Larsson also leads Arizona with 40 points and 25:03 of ice time.
Quick Take
Simply put, the Sharks should dominate the Coyotes in this one. San Jose is clinging to the fact that they haven’t been officially eliminated from the playoffs just yet, although the mountain is still a very tall one to climb.
However, San Jose has an opportunity with this home-and-home against Arizona to pick up four vital points and put together their first three-game winning streak since the end of January.
The Sharks will need a much faster start than their last game when they didn’t generate many chances through the first two periods. Expect San Jose to come out with a better mindset and try to bury Arizona in the early going as the Coyotes just want this miserable season to end.
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