SAN JOSE – Justin Schultz scored late in regulation and Rob Klinkhammer tallied the game-winner in a 13-round shootout to lead the Oilers a 5-4 win over San Jose on Monday night at SAP Center.
The Sharks concluded their season-long seven-game homestand at 4-1-2, and saw their three-game winning streak snapped by the last-place Oilers.
Edmonton won for the first time on the road against a Western Conference club, and ended a 15-game losing streak in California, including five in a row in San Jose.
The Sharks erased a two-goal third period deficit to take a 4-3 lead on goals from Scott Hannan, Matt Tennyson and Joe Pavelski. They couldn’t make it hold up, though, as Schultz’s wrist shot hit the blade of Logan Couture’s stick and fluttered in past Antti Niemi at 17:23.
Klinkhammer’s wrist shot in the bottom half of the 13th round of the shootout - a Sharks franchise record - ended it. Only Brent Burns was able to beat Viktor Fasth in the skills competition.
Joe Thornton had three assists, including his 600th in a Sharks sweater, while Pavelski had two goals and one assist.
San Jose trailed 3-1 at the start of the third. Hannan brought the Sharks back to within one, charging the net and getting position on Anton Lander to redirect in a pass to the front of the net from Thornton at 2:19.
Tennyson’s second career goal – both against Edmonton – tied it a minute-and-a-half later. Matt Nieto and Tyler Kennedy fought for a lose puck along the wall, and Kennedy teed up Tennyson for a blazing slap shot at 3:49 that cleanly beat Fasth.
Pavelski gave the Sharks a 4-3 lead midway through the final frame. Stationed just off the post, the Sharks’ leading goal-scorer deftly played a Burns pass off of his skate before flipping it in at 9:28.
Edmonton scored twice in the second, mainly due to some soft Sharks defense, to take a 3-1 lead into the dressing room after 40 minutes.
Jordan Eberle’s second of the night broke a 1-1 tie. The Oilers’ leading scorer took advantage of a juicy Niemi rebound and a casual backcheck by Couture to give Edmonton its first lead just 22 seconds after the second period faceoff.
Derek Roy increased the lead at 9:39, when he was left all alone in the slot and whacked in a pass from Nail Yakupov, who took the puck away from James Sheppard.
The Sharks struck first courtesy of a Pavelski power play goal. Thornton won an offensive zone faceoff, and Marleau danced with the puck before finding Pavelski in his customary place in front of the net. The puck directed in off of Pavelski’s skate at 11:50 of the first period for his 26th goal, 14 of which have come with a man advantage.
Eberle tied it at 18:03, when he swerved around Marleau and Burns to deposit it past Niemi, who was coming off of a 31-save shutout of Chicago on Saturday.
The Sharks had a goal waved off of a marginal call late in the first. Tomas Hertl appeared to give San Jose the lead back, but Sheppard bumped ever so slightly into Fasth with 40 seconds left before intermission just before Hertl found the net.
The Sharks and Oilers conclude their season series on April 9 at Rexall Place, in the penultimate game of the regular season for both teams. San Jose is 2-1-1 in the season series.
Special teams
The Sharks finished 1-for-2 on the power play. Pavelski moved back into a tie with Alex Ovechkin for the league lead in power play goals.
Edmonton was 0-for-1. The Sharks have been shorthanded just four times in their last three games, and have killed off 21 of 23 power plays against over the last nine games.
In goal:
Niemi took the loss with 36 saves, in his fourth straight start and ninth in the last 10 games. He's 21-11-6 on the season, and 5-0-2 in his last seven starts.
Fasth allowed four goals on 37 shots, and is 5-11-2 on the season.
Lineup
Thornton increased his point streak to six games. He has two goals and eight assists over that span.
Tennyson increased his point streak to three, with one goal and two assists.
Kennedy returned from a two-game absence due to a back injury. He replaced Tye McGinn on the fourth line, as McGinn suffered an upper body injury on Saturday vs. Chicago.
Edmonton’s Taylor Hall returned after missing three straight with an ankle injury.
Up next
A pair of key divisional matchups is on the horizon for the Sharks, as they visit Calgary and Vancouver back-to-back, beginning with the Flames on Wednesday. They return to host the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday.
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