San Jose Sharks lose the final home game of the season to the Minnesota Wild
By Conor Power
San Jose's final home game of the season ended the way most of the year has gone. A 6-2 loss at the hands of the Minnesota Wild caps off a horrible season at home. The season isn't over, and we have two more games to play, but that was the last time we will see the Shark Tank this year. It's only fitting to cap off a bad season at home with a heavy defeat to a non-playoff team.
Minnesota struck first when Jacob Middleton passed the puck to Kirill Kaprizov at the point. Kaprizov's shot bounced off of Blackwood in front, and the rebound bounced between the legs of Mario Ferraro and back to Matt Boldy, who was standing behind him. Boldy had way too much net to shoot at, and he made it 1-0 Wild to put a dampener on the good mood in the building.
Mikael Granlund would get the puck back to the point where Ferraro and Jan Rutta would play catch at the point. Eventually, the Czech defenseman had enough of that and let a bomb rip from up top. It beat everything on the way through and found the back of the net. It's a great way to get back into the game after the Wild's top line had drawn first blood in this fight.
We'd get another goal before the end of the first period when Minnesota struck again. Jon Merril would pass the puck to his defensive partner, Declan Chisholm. Chisholm just let one rip from the point, and it beat Blackwood over the glove. Blackwood didn't see it entirely cleanly as Marc-Edouard Vlasic was out in front trying to clear the net, but it was 2-1 Wild.
Minnesota would tally again in the second period when Kirill Kaprizov's shot from the point was blocked. Marat Kushnutdinov tried to put the rebound home, but it was knocked down. Jonas Brodin tried when he jumped in from his defensive position, but Blackwood had the answer before the puck eventually fell to Liam Ohgren, who put the puck home, and the Sharks were down by two in the second on Ohgren's first NHL goal.
San Jose would strike back when Mikael Granlund would lead a rush into the offensive zone. He'd dish to William Eklund along the left boards, who set up another one-timer from the point. Mario Ferraro could jump on one and lazar it into the top corner of the net to cut the Wild lead down to just one. Another sensational shift from the Lund line and the Sharks top defensive pairing will provide some hope going into the summer that there might be something to work with here.
Unfortunately, the Wild didn't take too kindly to the Sharks scoring. Jonas Brodin jumped into the attack from his defensive position and circled the net with the puck before getting it back to Brock Faber at the point. Faber got the puck to Kaprizov, but the shot hit the post and sat on the goal line. Unfortunately, Blackwood's attempts to knock the puck away from the goal line would see him push it over the line himself and restore the two-goal Wild lead.
Minnesota would strike again before the end of the second on the powerplay when Matt Boldy was able to maneuver the puck over to Joel Eriksson Ek. The pass from behind the net out in front to Kirill Kaprizov saw Minnesota's star Russian winger put this one in with a little more intent, and there was nothing Blackwood could have done about that. It's 5-2 Wild, and the Sharks are honoring an awful year with an appalling performance.
Early in the third period, the Wild would score again to put the fork in the Sharks. A puck kept in at the point would break to Alex Goligoski. Goligoski would fire a pass to the front of the net, where Jon Marril tried to jump up and put it home but couldn't. Instead, the puck ended up on Marcus Johansson's stick. Johansson couldn't miss it, and this game was over.
Minnesota had mercy for the remainder of the game, and the Sharks lost the year's final game at the Tank. With the loss, they can no longer finish above the Chicago Blackhawks, so they will remain at the bottom of the NHL standings when the draft lottery occurs in the playoffs. A challenging season to endure is nearly over, and we hope that the Sharks can do a little more to make us smile before the end of it.