SAN JOSE SHARKS NOTES:
LAST GAME
Game 29 – 12/7 – SJS 5 vs VAN 6 OT…Logan Couture (1g, 1a) and Tomas Hertl (0g, 2a) both posted multi-point efforts as San Jose came up short despite battling back from a two-goal second period deficit. Nick Bonino (1g, 0a) opened the scoring 18 seconds in, marking the earliest goal by a Sharks skater this season. Couture scored San Jose’s first shorthanded goal of the season and 14th of his career – placing him in a tie with Owen Nolan and Marco Sturm for second most in franchise history. Eetu Makiniemi made his NHL debut in relief of Kaapo Kahkonen. Jonah Gadjovich (1g, 0a) scored his first goal of the season early in the third period. SJ Goals: Bonino (2), Meier (13 pp), Couture (14 sh), Gadjovich (1), Labanc (6)
SF: 39
SA: 28
SJ PP: 1/3
SJ PK: 1/3
W: Martin
OTL: Makiniemi
RECENT TRANSCATIONS
12/7 Activated F Nico Sturm off IR
12/6 Placed F Matt Nieto on IR; recalled F C.J. Suess from the San Jose Barracuda
12/6 Assigned G Aaron Dell to the San Jose Barracuda; recalled G Eetu Makiniemi from the San Jose Barracuda
12/1 Assigned F Jeff Viel to the San Jose Barracuda
11/28 Placed G James Reimer on IR; recalled F Jeff Viel from the San Jose Barracuda
11/27 Recalled D Scott Harrington from the San Jose Barracuda
11/26 Recalled G Aaron Dell from the San Jose Barracuda; placed D Mario Ferraro on IR
11/25 Re-assigned G Aaron Dell to the San Jose Barracuda
11/23 Activated D Radim Simek from IR; placed F Nico Sturm on IR
11/22 Recalled G Aaron Dell from the San Jose Barracuda
11/18 Assigned D Scott Harrington to the San Jose Barracuda
11/14 Placed D Radim Simek on IR; recalled D Nick Cicek from the San Jose Barracuda
TONIGHT’S OPPONENT – ANAHEIM DUCKS
The Sharks will be traveling to Anaheim to play the Ducks for the first time this season. San Jose have earned points in 5 of their six games against the Ducks dating back to last season but haven’t been able to secure the two points in all but one of those contests (1-1-4). San Jose will be eager to avenge home overtime losses against the Ducks on Nov. 1 and 5. Timo Meier (3g, 2a), Erik Karlsson (3g, 2a) and Tomas Hertl (1g, 4a) lead San Jose in scoring against Anaheim this year. Karlsson notched his first hat trick, and first hat trick by a Sharks defenseman, on Nov. 1. Anaheim defeated Carolina, 4-3 in overtime, at Honda Center on Dec. 6. Following tonight’s game, the Ducks will embark on a four-game Canadian road trip, with games against Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Edmonton.
STORYLINES
IN RARE COMPANY…Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson continues to lead NHL defensemen in goals and points, and still stands as the only defenseman this season to cross the 10-goal threshold. In November, Karlsson became the first Sharks defenseman to reach 20 points in a calendar month with a position-leading 21 points (6g, 15a) in just 15 games. He has factored into 35 of 86 goals scored for San Jose this season (40.7%). Per NHL PR, the highest-ever rate in the NHL’s modern era (since the 1943-44 season) at which a defenseman factored into team goals for a season was Bobby Orr at 43.3% in 1969-70.
HERTL HEATING UP…Tomas Hertl scored both of San Jose’s goals in their 2-5 loss in Ottawa on Dec. 3, four days after potting a pair in a shutout win over Montreal. The forward has now found the scoresheet in 14 of the past 19 games with eight multi-point efforts in that span. Hertl registered a season-high three points in San Jose’s Nov. 5 game against the Anaheim Ducks, including a goal and two assists and has 26 points (8g, 18a) in the team’s previous 24 games dating back to October 20 at the New York Rangers. He had goals in three consecutive contests for the first time this season from Nov. 5 thru 11 and notched his 400th career NHL point on November 11 with an assist. His .93 point-per-game pace (25 in 28) this season is the second highest single-season pace of his career.
IT’S TIMO TIME…Timo Meier ranks fourth on the Sharks with 25 points and leads the team with 12 goals since Nov. 1. The winger took sole possession of 10th on the Sharks’ all-time list in goals with a strike on Nov. 10 and ranks second on the Sharks with 13 markers on the season. He logged a five-game goal-scoring streak (Nov. 1 thru Nov. 11, 6g) and found the back of the net in eight of 15 November games. The Swiss forward currently leads the NHL with 136 shots on goal. Last season, Meier rifled off 326 shots on net, the most by any Sharks forward (third most by a Sharks player) in a single season.
CAPTAIN COUTURE…Logan Couture took the team goal-scoring lead with his 14 th of the season on Dec. 7 against Vancouver, breaking a tie with Timo Meier. Couture’s second period goal was the Sharks first shorthanded tally this season and moved Couture into a tie with Owen Nolan and Marco Sturm (14) for second most shorthanded goals in franchise history. Since debuting in the 2009-10 season, the center ranks T-14th in shorthanded goals and T-15th in shorthanded points among League skaters. The captain posted a career-long five-game goal streak which ended on Nov. 27, finishing one game behind San Jose’s team record of six games. Couture has lit the lamp in 10 of the past 15 contests with six multi-point efforts and 18 points (10g, 8a) in that span. He totaled 16 points (9g, 7a) in 14 November contests.
SUPREME SPECIAL TEAMS…The Sharks’ power play has been hot of late, cashing in on 14 of 49 (28.6%) trips to the man-advantage since the start of a six-game home stand on October 25, good for sixth in the NHL in that span. San Jose has gone empty in just eight games in that stretch, including Nov. 10 at St. Louis and Nov. 30 at Toronto when the team had zero power play opportunities and Nov. 17 against Detroit and Nov. 19 against the New York Rangers when they had just one each. The Sharks penalty kill has struggled as of late, allowing multiple goals in three consecutive games, but still enters tonight’s contest as the league’s second-best unit this season at 84.3%. The Sharks posted stout 6-for-6 and 3-for-3 efforts against Montreal on Nov. 29 and Toronto on Nov. 30, respectively. The Maple Leafs had a scorching 28.3% power play at home this season entering Nov. 30’s game. San Jose’s penalty kill killed off its first 22 penalties of the season before finally allowing a power play goal on Oct. 22 at New Jersey. San Jose has been operating at a league-best 85.9% shorthanded efficiency since the 2022 NHL All-Star break, and the Sharks have the league’s fourth-best penalty kill percentage since the start of the 2020-21 season (83.3-percent).
COMEBACK KIDS…The Sharks overcame a two-goal deficit en route to a 3-2 shootout victory on November 13 at Minnesota, the team’s first multi-goal comeback win of the season and first since 4/24/22 at Vegas, a 5-4 shootout decision. San Jose has come from behind in four of eight wins on the year, including each contest of a three-game win streak Friday (11/11) at Dallas (trailed 1-0), Sunday (11/13) at Minnesota (trailed 2-0) and Tuesday (11/15) at Vegas (trailed 1-0 and 2-1). San Jose was the first team to earn a win over Vegas when trailing after two periods on the year (the Knights had been 7-0-0). Per NHL PR, the three-game road trip was the first time since March 14-17, 2018 that the Sharks earned three consecutive come-from-behind wins in one road stint.
REIM TIME…Sharks goaltender James Reimer earned his first shutout of the season on Oct. 23 with a 30-save performance at Philadelphia. Reimer’s shutout, his fifth as a Shark, moved him into a tie with Aaron Dell for eighth on the franchise’s all-time shutouts list. He recorded his third 41-save effort of the season on Saturday (11/19) against the New York Rangers, including saves on the first 40 shots he faced in the game. Reimer also owns a .937 shorthanded save percentage since joining the Sharks at the start of the 2021-22 season, the best in the NHL in that span (min. 10 games played) and the best two-season stretch by a goaltender since the NHL began tracking the statistic in 1997-98 (min. 30 games played, second best is Cory Schneider from 2010-12 with a .936 SV% in 58 GP).
GRIER’S GAMEPLAN…On July 5, Sharks president Jonathan Becher and Assistant General Manager Joe Will introduced Mike Grier as the team’s fifth General Manager and first black general manager in NHL history. The 47-year-old appeared in 221 games with the Sharks from 2006 through 2008 as part of a 14-season, 1,060 game NHL playing career. Just two days later, Grier was with the team as they selected center Filip Bystedt with the 27th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. On July 13, the Sharks traded longtime defenseman Brent Burns and signed Matt Benning, Oskar Lindblom, Markus Nutivaara and Nico Sturm on the first day of free agency. A full list of players under NHL contract that have joined the organization since July 5 is below:
ANAHEIM DUCKS NOTES:
LAST ANAHEIM DUCKS GAME
DEC. 6, 2022 – ANAHEIM 4 vs. CAROLINA 3 – OT
The Ducks earned a 4-3 OT win over the Carolina Hurricanes Tuesday night at Honda Center. Anaheim improved to 4-1 in overtime this season with the 3-on-3 goal, all four victories coming on home ice. Ryan Strome scored the overtime winner for Anaheim, his second OT goal of the season (fourth career). His two overtime goals co-lead the NHL with five other skaters Adam Henrique opened the scoring with his eighth goal at 3:59 of the first period, his 103rd goal as a Duck, passing Andrew Cogliano for ninth-most in franchise history. Max Comtois netted Anaheim’s second goal at 11:13 in the first, his fifth of the year. Brett Leason scored his second goal in as many games, giving him his first career goal streak (2-0=2). Mason McTavish earned his third assist in as many games (0-3=3), Frank Vatrano extended his assist streak to three games (0-3=3), his longest as a Duck, and Troy Terry, Max Jones, Sam Carrick and Cam Fowler earned assists. John Gibson stopped 34 shots to earn his fifth win of the campaign.
PP: 0-2 PK: 2-2 SF: 30 SA: 37 TOI: Cam Fowler (25:39)
Three Stars: 1. R. Strome 2. M. McTavish 3. S. Aho Game Summary | Event Summary | Game Recap
UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE
DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME (PT) TV / AUDIO
Dec. 12 @ Ottawa Canadian Tire Centre 4:30 p.m. BSW / Ducks Stream
Dec. 13 @ Toronto Scotiabank Arena 4 p.m. BSSC / Ducks Stream
Dec. 15 @ Montreal Bell Centre 4 p.m. BSSC / Ducks Stream
Dec. 17 @ Edmonton Rogers Place 1 p.m. BSSC / Ducks Stream
Dec. 20 @ Los Angeles Crypto.com Arena 7:30 p.m. BSSC / Ducks Stream
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
Nov. 26 Assigned D Urho Vaakanainen to San Diego (AHL) on a Long-Term Injury Conditioning Loan.
Nov. 27 Recalled D Urho Vaakanainen from a Long-Term Injury Conditioning Loan in San Diego (AHL). Activated Vaakanainen
and C Derek Grant from Injured Reserve (IR) and placed LW Max Comtois on IR.
Dec. 1 Placed D John Klingberg on Injured Reserve (IR).
Dec. 5 Reassigned LW Pavol Regenda to San Diego (AHL).
Dec. 6 Claimed C Jayson Megna on waivers from Colorado. Activated LW Max Comtois from Injured Reserve (IR) and placed
C Isac Lundestrom on IR.
ANAHEIM DUCKS INJURIES
Man-Games Lost: 130
PLAYER INJURY/ILLNESS EXPECTED ABSENCE GAMES MISSED
John Moore Upper-body Indefinite 27
Jamie Drysdale Torn labrum (shoulder) 4-6 months 19
John Klingberg Lower-body Day-to-day 7
Isac Lundestrom Upper-body 6 weeks 3
Derek Grant Lower-body Day-to-day 2
ANAHEIM DUCKS NOTES
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Anaheim Ducks wrap up a two-game homestand tonight when they host the San Jose Sharks at Honda Center (7 p.m. PT, TV: ESPN+ AUDIO: Ducks Stream). The Ducks enter tonight’s contest with points in three of their last five outings (1-2-2, 5 pts.). Anaheim owns an all-time record of 1,027-888-304, including 578-384-145 at home and 449-504-158 away from Orange County. Anaheim continues its 14-game December schedule, consisting of six home and eight road contests. All-time, Anaheim is 153-140-48 in the month of December. Since the start of 2013-14, Anaheim is 60-30-19 in December, picking up points in 79 of the 109 contests. Following tonight’s game, the Ducks will begin a season-tying five-game road trip Monday, Dec. 12 at Ottawa (4 p.m. PT).
DUCKS-SHARKS: Anaheim and San Jose continue a four-game season series tonight at Honda Center. The Ducks have won back-to-back games vs. the Sharks to open the 2022-23 season series, following a 6-5 OT win Nov. 1 and a 5-4 SO win Nov. 5. Anaheim has earned wins in eight of their last 10 games vs. San Jose (8-2-0) dating to 2021-22. The Ducks own a 74-67-16 all-time record vs. the Sharks, including an 36-33-9 mark in Orange County. Anthony Stolarz is undefeated in seven career starts as a Duck against the Sharks (6-0-0), posting one shutout, a 2.37 GAA and .937 SV%. All-time, Stolarz is 7-1-0 in seven starts vs. San Jose. John Gibson (6-5-5) has a 2.89 GAA and .911 SV% in 17 appearances vs. San Jose. Kevin Shattenkirk (5-21=26 in 39 GP) leads Ducks skaters in career scoring and assists vs. the Sharks. Adam Henrique (12-12=24 in 31 GP) paces Ducks skaters in career goals vs. the Sharks. The season series will wrap up in Orange County with the teams facing off Jan. 6 at Honda Center (7 p.m. PT).
ANA-SJS SEASON SERIES:
DATE LOCATION TIME / RESULT TV / AUDIO
Nov. 1 SAP Center 6-5 SO win
Nov. 5 SAP Center 5-4 SO win
Dec. 9 Honda Center 7 p.m. PT ESPN+ / Ducks Stream
Jan. 6 Honda Center 7 p.m. PT ESPN+ / Ducks Stream
ANA-SJS ALL-TIME SERIES:
Overall @ Anaheim @ San Jose
All-Time Series: 74-67-16 36-33-9 38-34-7
Current Streak: Three ANA wins Two ANA wins Three ANA wins
Last ANA Win: Nov. 5, 2022 (5-4 SO) Mar. 6, 2022 (3-2 OT) Nov. 5, 2022 (5-4 SO)
Last SJS Win: Mar. 26, 2022 (4-1) Mar. 13, 2021 (3-1) Mar. 26, 2022 (4-1)
ANA Last 10: 8-2-0 5-3-2 6-4-0
POWERING UP: Anaheim’s power play has scored multiple goals on the man advantage in two of the last four games (5-15, 33.3%, one game with 0 PP opportunities), while recording multiple goals on five occasions this season (two games with 0 PP opportunities this season). The Ducks have also scored seven PPG the last 10 contests (7-30), clipping at 23.3% in that span.
CLUTCH COMEBACKS: The Ducks co-lead the NHL with three third-period, multi-goal comebacks wins this season (also NYI), including Oct. 12 vs. SEA (5-4, OT win, trailed 4-2 with 15:51 in third), Oct. 30 vs. TOR (4-3 OT win, trailed 3-1 with 12:36 remaining) and Nov. 5 @ SJS (5-4 shootout win, trailed 4-2 with 9:33 remaining). The Ducks four multi-goal comeback wins this season rank second behind only Chicago’s four. Anaheim’s comeback win over San Jose marked the second time in franchise history the club has come back from a multi-goal deficit in the final 5:00 of regulation in the regular season (also Dec. 7, 2016 vs. CAR). Anaheim has recorded four third-period, multi-goal comeback victories in a single regular season just three times in franchise history (six in 2014-15 and five in 2009-10 & 4 in 2013-14).
TERRY TALK: Right wing Troy Terry leads Anaheim in points (11-16=27), goals, PPG (3) and assists this season, ranking tied for 10th among NHL leaders in even-strength points this season (8-13=21). Terry has earned 3-3=6 points his last five games and 4-3=7 points his last eight outings. He also has collected 7-11=18 points his last 19 appearances. Terry also has 8-13=21 points his last 22 contests. He had a career-best five-game assist streak Oct. 30-Nov. 6 (1-7=8), surpassing his prior best of four straight games with an assist Nov. 9-16, 2021 (3-4=7). Terry is currently on pace for 86 points, which is ahead of his career high set last season (37-30=67 in 75 GP in 2021-22) and would stand as the highest single-season total by a Ducks skater since Ryan Getzlaf in 2013-14 (31-56=87 in 77 GP). Terry finished November leading Anaheim in scoring (6-8=14) and goals in 14 contests during the month.
GENERATION Z: Center Trevor Zegras is second among Ducks in points (9-13=22), goals and assists. Zegras has 1-4=5 points his last six games, 2-8=10 points his last 13 outings, 5-12=17 points his last 18 games and 7-12=19 points his last 22. On Nov. 27 vs. SEA, he tied a career high with three assists (0-3=3), his third career three assist game, the most by a Ducks skater before the age of 22. His three points also tied his single-game career high (last: Feb. 19, 2022 @ VAN; 0-3=3). It was his fourth career three-point game, tying Ryan Getzlaf for the second-most three-point games by a Duck at age 21 and trailing only Paul Kariya (12). Zegras finished the month of November with 11 assists (2-11=13 in 14 GP), one of three Ducks players since 2013-14 to post at least 11 assists in a calendar month, joining Ryan Getzlaf (eight times; best: 17 in March 2017) and Corey Perry (12 in November 2016).
CAM’S CORNER: Defenseman Cam Fowler leads Anaheim blueliners in points (3-11=14), goals and assists through 27 games, on pace to match his single-season career high of 42 points set last season. Fowler has 3-10=13 points his last 12 games, including four multi-point outings (three multi-assist). Since Nov. 15, Fowler’s 12 points (3-10=13 in 12 GP) third among all NHL defensemen in that span trailing Buffalo’s Rasmus Dahlin (2-13=15) and Detroit’s Filip Hronek (5-9=14). Fowler had a career-tying five-game point streak from Nov. Nov. 15-23 (2-6=8), matching his prior high set four prior times; last: Nov. 7-16, 2021; 1-4=5). The last Ducks defenseman with a longer run was Chris Pronger (six games, Oct. 29-Nov. 7, 2009; 3-6=9). Fowler recorded three straight multi-point efforts Nov. 15-19 (1-5=6), joining San Jose’s Erik Karlsson (four straight multi-point games, Oct. 27-Nov. 3; 7-4=11) as the only defensemen in the NHL with three or more consecutive multi-point outings. Fowler is one of four defensemen in Ducks history with multiple points in three consecutive games and the first since Scott Niedermayer in 2008-09.
PLAYER SEASON MULTI-POINT STREAK DATES PTS
Cam Fowler 2022-23 3 GP Nov. 15-19, 2022 1-5=6
Scott Niedermayer 2008-09 3 GP Jan. 27-31, 2009 1-6=7
Chris Pronger 2006-07 3 GP Nov. 19-22, 2006 1-5=6
Scott Niedermayer 2005-06 3 GP Mar. 7-12, 2006 0-6=6
Scott Niedermayer 2005-06 3 GP Jan. 28-Feb. 1, 2006 2-6=8
Oleg Tverdovsky 1999-00 3 GP Jan. 29-Feb. 1, 2000 0-6=6
GIBBY’S GAME: John Gibson leads NHL goalies in saves (637), co-leads in starts and appearances (20), and goaltender assists (2). Gibson leads the NHL with nine games of 35-plus saves this season, three more than any other goaltender and co-leads the league with four 40-save performances (also WPG’s Connor Hellebuyck). Gibson was one of seven goalies the last 10 years with eight 35-plus save contests through the first 19 starts in a season, and is the only goalie to do so twice (also 2018-19). Gibson has recorded four 40-plus save games this season (Dec. 3 @ MIN, 45; Nov. 23 vs. NYR, 41; Nov. 6 vs. FLA, 43; Oct. 12 vs. SEA, 44), co-leading the NHL with Connor Hellebuyck (WPG). Gibson earned his fifth career helper, the primary assist, on Troy Terry’s OT winning goal Oct. 12 vs. SEA and tied J.S. Giguere for second in Ducks all-time goaltender assists with his sixth career helper Nov. 3 @ VAN. Gibson stopped his eighth career penalty shot (10th attempt) against Alexander Kerfoot Oct. 30 vs. TOR. He has stopped an NHL-leading six penalty shots since the start of 2020-21, with two goalies tied with three penalty shot saves (Connor Hellebuyck, WPG & Frederik Andersen, CAR/TOR).
M(A)C ATTACK: Rookie center Mason McTavish has picked up 4-10=14 points this season, and is tied for second among Anaheim leaders in PPG (2), tied for third in points and is fourth in assists. He currently ranks tied for fifth among NHL rookies in points and assists. McTavish recorded his 10th point Nov. 23 vs. NYR (3-7=10), with only Trevor Zegras (10 points in 15 GP in 2021-22) reaching the mark in fewer games the last 10 seasons. Among NHL rookies, McTavish ranks tied for fifth in scoring and sixth in assists (7). McTavish scored his first goal of 2022-23 Nov. 5 @ SJS (1-1=2), as part of his second career multi-point game (also Oct. 13, 2021 vs. WPG; 1-1=2).
QUE RICO!: Center Adam Henrique has 8-5=13 points his last 17 outings, while he ranks third among team leaders in goals (8) and tied for third in scoring overall (8-6=14). He recorded points in a season-long six straight games Nov. 5-19 (5-3=8), his best as a Duck and one short of his career-long point streak set over 10 years ago in seven straight contests with New Jersey Nov. 25-Dec. 8, 2011 (2-7=9). He scored goals in a season-best three straight games Nov. 5-12 (3-0=3, +3; missed Nov. 9 due to birth of first child), including his 100th goal as a Duck (100-90=190) Nov. 12 vs. CHI, becoming the 10th player in franchise history to reach the milestone.
