MINNESOTA WILD NOTES:
SERIES NOTES
All-Time Wild Record: 36-35-8 (20-15-4 at Xcel Energy
Center, 16-20-4 at San Jose)
2022-23: The Wild dropped the series opening game, 3-2 in a shootout, at Xcel Energy Center (11/13)…C Connor Dewar (1-0=1) and C Freddy Gaudreau (1-0=1) scored goals for Minnesota…LW Kirill Kaprizov (0-1=1), C Mason Shaw (0-1=1) and RW Mats Zuccarello (0-1=1) recorded assists…G Filip Gustavsson stopped 35 of 37 shots faced for the Wild…D Marc-Edouard Vlasic led San Jose with two points (0-2=2)…C Steven Lorentz (1-0=1), C Nico Sturm (1-0=1) and D Erik Karlsson (0-1=1) all recorded a point…G James Reimer stopped 28 of 30 shots faced for the Sharks.
WILD LEADERS: Zuccarello leads the Wild with 23 points (7-16=23) in 26 contests against the Sharks…D Alex Goligoski owns 18 points (3-15=18) in 50 games…D Jared Spurgeon has 16 points (7-9=16) in 39 matches.
WILD GOALIES: G Marc-Andre Fleury is 17-5-4 with a 1.87 GAA, a .939 SV% and three shutouts in 26 starts vs. San Jose…Gustavsson is 0-0-1 with a 1.86 GAA and .946 SV% in his lone start vs. the Sharks.
SHARKS LEADERS: C Logan Couture leads the Sharks with 28 points (13- 15=28) in 43 career games against the Wild…Karlsson has 28 points (8-20=28) in 25 matches…C Tomas Hertl owns 20 points (8-12=20) in 28 games.
SHARKS GOALIES: Reimer is 7-4-1 with a 2.36 GAA, a .925 SV% and two shutouts in 13 games (12 starts) vs. the Wild…G Kaapo Kahkonen has not faced Minnesota.
FAST FACTS: Minnesota has won five of the last seven meetings vs. San Jose…The Wild is 20-14-4 in its last 38 games vs. San Jose, including a
six-game win streak (1/5/17-4/7/18)…Minnesota is 13-6-2 in its last 21 contests against the Sharks at Xcel Energy Center…The Wild has points in nine of the last 13 games played at SAP Center at San Jose (8-4-1).
INJURIES
Brandon Duhaime: upper body
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Dec. 11, 2022 – Dec. 21, 2022
12/20/22 Recalled F Steven Fogarty from Iowa
12/17/22 Reassigned F Sammy Walker to Iowa
12/13/22 Reassigned F Nic Petan to Iowa
12/11/22 Reassigned D Andrej Sustr to Iowa
ON THE POWER PLAY DYNAMIC DUOS
• Through 32 games the Wild has converted 24.3 percent (26 of 107) of power-play opportunities, 10th-best in the NHL.
• The Wild have converted 32.1 percent (18 of 56) of power-play opportunities at home this season, second-best in the NHL.
• The Wild have registered a PPG in 12 of its last 14 games. Since Nov. 23, Minnesota ranks tied for sixth in the NHL with a 29.2 power-play percentage (14 of 48).
• Minnesota recorded a power-play goal in a season-high six consecutive games from Nov. 23 – Dec. 4, going eight-for-19 (42.1 pct.) during that span. The streak tied for the fifth-longest in franchise history.
DYNAMIC DUOS
• Through 32 games the Wild has converted 24.3 percent (26 of 107) of power-play opportunities, 10th-best in the NHL.
• The Wild have converted 32.1 percent (18 of 56) of power-play opportunities at home this season, second-best in the NHL.
• The Wild have registered a PPG in 12 of its last 14 games. Since Nov. 23, Minnesota ranks tied for sixth in the NHL with a 29.2 power-play percentage (14 of 48).
• Minnesota recorded a power-play goal in a season-high six consecutive games from Nov. 23 – Dec. 4, going eight-for-19 (42.1 pct.) during that span. The streak tied for the fifth-longest in franchise history.
• Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello have factored on the same goal 28 times this season.
• During the Wild’s current six-game winning streak, the line of Kaprizov (2-6=8), Zuccarello (5-5=10) and C Sam Steel (1-5=6) has combined for 24 points.
• In six games since Dec. 10, goaltenders Marc-Andre Fleury (three starts) and Filip Gustavsson (three starts) have combined for six wins, six total goals allowed (1.00 goals allowed per game) and a .961 save percentage. Since Dec. 10, Minnesota ranks first in the NHL in both save percentage and goals allowed per game
PENALTY KILLERS
• Since Nov. 8, Minnesota is third in the NHL with a 83.8 penaltykill percentage (62 for 74).
• Minnesota is fifth in the NHL with a 83.3 penalty-kill percentage (40 of 48) on the road this season.
TOTAL TEAM EFFORT
• The Wild hold an active seven-game home win streak, the NHL’s longest active streak and tied for second-longest in the NHL this season.
• Since Oct. 25, the Wild is tied for third in the NHL with 18 wins and tied for fourth with 37 points.
• Since Oct. 25, Minnesota is giving up 2.30 goals per game (second in NHL), allowing 28.04 shots per game (fourth in the NHL) and recording a .918 save percentage (sixth in the NHL).
IN THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT
• Minnesota is 9-2-0 in the month of December, ranking first in the NHL in wins and points (18).
SAN JOSE SHARKS NOTES:
LAST GAME
Game 33 – 12/20 – SJS 3 vs CGY 7…San Jose knotted the game at 3-3 early in the final frame but matched a season high by giving up four goals in the third period to drop their third consecutive game. Matt Benning appeared in his 400th NHL game. Matt Nieto (0g, 1a) appeared in his 600th NHL game and became the second Shark this season to record a point in their 600th game (other: Tomas Hertl, 1g on Nov. 10 @ STL). Nico Sturm (1g, 0a) scored his third goal in his last five games and has matched his season total from last year in 48 less games.
SJ Goals: Sturm (9), Barabanov (4), Meier (17)
SF: 27
SA: 39
SJ PP: 0/3
SJ PK: 2/2
W: Markstrom
L: Reimer
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
12/18 Assigned D Nick Cicek and F C.J. Suess to the San Jose Barracuda
12/17 Placed F Luke Kunin on IR; activated F Matt Nieto off IR
12/12 Activated G James Reimer off IR; Assigned G Eetu Makiniemi to the San Jose Barracuda
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
TONIGHT’S OPPONENT
San Jose looks to bounce back from a disappointing 3-7 decision against Calgary on Dec. 20. The Sharks and Wild will be playing each other for the second time this season, with the Sharks earning a 3-2 shootout decision in Minnesota on Nov. 15. Marc-Edouard Vlasic (0g, 2a) is the Sharks leading scorer against the Wild this season, with a pair of third period assists in game one of the season series. Alexander Barabanov scored the shootout-deciding goal and all four assists came from defensemen. Five Wild players earned one point each in the contest. Former Shark Jake Middleton can make his first appearance in San Jose as a member of the visiting team. This game closes out pre-Holiday break play for the Sharks and Wild. Both teams will play road games in Canada on Dec. 27, with the Sharks facing Vancouver and the Wild traveling to Winnipeg. Minnesota are led by Kirill Kaprizov in virtually every offensive category. Mats Zuccarello is also clipping at above a point-per-game pace (14g, 22a in 31 GP). Calen Addison (2g, 13a in 20 GP) leads all rookie defensemen in assists, points and points per game.
STORYLINES
EK65…Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson continues to lead NHL defensemen in goals and points and was the first defenseman this season to hit the 10-goal and 40-point marks. With a pair of assists on Dec. 18 against Calgary, Erik Karlsson crossed the 40-point threshold, becoming the fastest defenseman to reach 40 points in a season in franchise history. He needed eight fewer games than Brent Burns, who reached 40 points in 41 games on three separate occasions (2015-16, 2016-17, 2018-19). It was also the fewest games Karlsson has needed to reach 40 points in a season in his career. His first assist of the evening also marked his 700th NHL point. Per NHL PR, he became the 12th fastest defenseman to reach 700 career points, and fastest since Brian Leetch, who achieved the mark on April 18, 1998, playing in his 725th game. Karlsson is the third Swedish-born defenseman to cross the 700-point threshold (Nicklas Lidstrom and Borje Salming) and he leads all defensemen in assists and points since debuting in 2009. 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 41 of 99 goals scored for San Jose this season (41.4%). 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.
A BENNING BONANZA…With a pair of assists on Nov. 21 against Ottawa, Matt Benning began a career-best hot streak, earning nine assists in a 10-game stretch thru Dec. 9 against Anaheim. This marked the most points Benning had recorded in a 10-game stretch in his career, with his previous most being five points (multiple times). The defenseman matched the longest point streak of his career with a point in three straight contests from Dec. 4 thru Dec. 9 (0g, 4a). He ranks second among Sharks defensemen in assists and points and is on pace to set career highs in assists, points and time on ice.
HERTL HEATING UP…Tomas Hertl has been hot offensively as of late, with seven points (2g, 5a) in his last five games and 26 points (10g, 16) since the beginning of November. The forward has now found the scoresheet in 16 of those 24 games with nine multi-point efforts and a team-leading +7 rating in that span. He recorded at least one point in six straight contests from Nov. 15 to Nov. 25 (1g, 6a), which was tied for the fourth-longest point streak of his career. He notched his 400th career NHL point on Nov. 11 with an assist and played in his 600th NHL game on Nov. 10. His .97 point-per-game pace (32 in 34) this season is the highest single-season pace of his career (above 2018-19, 74 in 77, .96 ppg)
IT’S TIMO TIME…Timo Meier is T-2nd in points on the Sharks this season and ranks T-6th in League goal scoring (16) 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 took sole possession of 10th on the Sharks all-time points list with a goal on Dec. 17. 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. With a power play goal against Calgary on Dec. 18, Meier is now on pace to set career highs in goals and power-play goals. He is just four power-play goals shy of his total (12) from last season, which he achieved in 77 games and marks the most power-play goals by a Swiss-born forward in a single season. The Herisau, Switzerland native currently ranks T-1 st in the NHL with 156 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 ranks second on the Sharks in goal scoring after a second-period marker against Vancouver on Dec. 7. Couture’s 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 20 contests dating back to Nov. 10 with six multi-point efforts and 19 points (10g, 9a) in that span. He totaled 16 points (9g, 7a) in 14 November contests.
SUPREME SPECIAL TEAMS…The Sharks’ power play has been hot as of late, cashing in on 18 of 68 (26.5%) trips to the man-advantage since the start of a six-game home stand on Oct. 25, good for ninth in the NHL in that span. San Jose has gone empty in just 10 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 from Dec. 3 thru Dec. 7, but still enters tonight’s contest as the league’s second-best unit this season at 84.0%. 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.
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 10 wins on the year, including each contest of a three-game win streak Friday (Nov. 11) at Dallas (trailed 1-0), Sunday (Nov. 13) at Minnesota (trailed 2-0) and Tuesday (Nov. 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 thru 17, 2018 that the Sharks earned three consecutive come-from-behind wins in one road stint.
REIM TIME…Sharks goaltender James Reimer returned from injury on Dec. 13 and promptly posted his 198th win of his career, having made 20 saves on 22 shots against Arizona. He 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 .932 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 second best two-season stretch by a goaltender since the NHL began tracking the statistic in 1997-98 (min. 30 games played, 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:
Scott Harrington One year Signed to a PTO on Sept. 9. Signed to a one-year deal on Sept. 30 Erik Karlsson’s overtime game-winning goal on Oct. 20 at New York (Rangers), assisted by Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl, was the first goal the Sharks scored this season that did not feature at least one of Grier’s offseason additions.
QUINN FOR THE WIN…On July 26, Grier introduced David Quinn as Head Coach of the Sharks and later named Scott Gordon, Ryan Warsofsky and Brian Wiseman as Assistant Coaches, Thomas Speer NHL Goaltending Coach and Nick Gialdini Video Coach. Quinn, who most recently served as head coach for Team USA at both the 2022 Winter Olympics and 2022 World Championship, spent three seasons as head coach of the New York Rangers from 2018 to 2021, earning a 96-87-25 record. In his three years, the Rangers held the league’s eighth-best power-play percentage (22.1%), ranked seventh in team blocked shots (4,195) and takeaways (2,244), and were tied for tenth in wins when trailing first (52). Adam Fox, who made his NHL debut under Quinn in 2019-20, was awarded the Norris Trophy following the 2020-21 season. Quinn’s first NHL win was a 3-2 overtime victory against the Sharks at Madison Square Garden with the Rangers on Oct. 11, 2018. His first NHL win with the Sharks was a 3-2 overtime victory against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 21, 2022. The 56- year-old recorded his 100th career NHL win on 11/11 at Dallas, a 5-4 final.
