Sharks Give Up 3 Late Goals In Loss To Coyotes
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Jan Jenik scored twice, including the tiebreaker in a three-goal third period, and the Arizona Coyotes snapped a six-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night.
Late in the game, Coyotes star Clayton Keller crashed into the boards and was taken off the ice on a stretcher with an apparent leg injury.
Barrett Hayton and Nick Schmaltz scored in the final three minutes for Arizona. Nick Ritchie had a goal in the first period and Karel Vejmelka stopped 40 shots in his sixth consecutive start.
Jenik took a centering pass from Phil Kessel and broke a 2-all tie at 7:11 of the third. It was Kessel's second assist of the night. Jenik has three career goals, all against San Jose.
The game was delayed about 10 minutes with 5:15 remaining after Keller, the Coyotes' leading scorer, crashed into the boards behind the San Jose net. He remained prone on the ice for about five minutes before being wheeled off.
Scott Reedy and Brent Burns scored, and James Reimer made 18 saves for the Sharks, who had won three of four. Reimer won his previous three starts.
The Coyotes had scored nine goals in their previous six games, never more than two in a game.
Reedy opened the scoring on a power play at 12:15 of the first period after Arizona forward Alex Galchenyuk was penalized for closing his hand on the puck late in a Coyotes power play.
Reedy, stationed in the crease, scored on the second deflection of Ryan Merkley's shot from the left point that also got a piece of San Jose forward John Leonard on its way to the net. The goal came with three seconds left on the power play.
Ritchie tied it at 15:48 of the first when he poked a pass from Schmaltz through the crease into the right side.
Jenik scored his first goal of the season at 8:33 of the second, set up when Merkley fell down while stickhandling behind the Sharks' net. Kessel picked up the puck and found Jenik alone in front.
Jenik was recalled from Tucson of the American Hockey League on Monday for the third time this season.
Burns tied it 2-all on a slap shot from the left blueline that got through a crowd in front at 14:07.
Each team had later chances. Tomas Hertl hit the right post at 4:19 of the second, and Merkley cleared a puck that trickled through Reimer's pads just before it crossed the goal line with three minutes left in the period.
Vejmelka stopped Leonard on a breakaway five minutes into the third, and saved four shots during an 11-second flurry moments later before Jenik's goal made it 3-2.
NOTES: Schmaltz has 22 points in March, the most for a Coyotes player in a calendar month since the franchise moved to Arizona before the 1996-97 season. … The Coyotes have won four straight home games against San Jose and are 5-0-1 in their last six at home versus the Sharks. … Kessel had his 100th career multi-assist game. … The Coyotes played without top-six defensemen Jakob Chychrun (lower body) and J.J. Moser (lower body) for the seventh straight game and were without forwards Lawson Crouse (upper body), Christian Fischer (lower body), Antoine Roussel (lower body), Liam O'Brien (upper body) and Andrew Ladd (lower body). Crouse was injured in Monday's loss at Edmonton. … Sharks F Logan Couture returned after missing the Anaheim game Saturday with an upper-body injury. … Sharks D Jonah Gadjovich (undisclosed) did not play and is expected to miss three games. … Vejmelka played his fourth game over six days in four cities and three different time zones.
UP NEXT
Sharks: Play at Colorado on Thursday in the second game of a road back-to-back.
Coyotes: Host the Anaheim Ducks on Friday.
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