Askarov is clutch in Sharks 3-2 win

SAN JOSE — How do the Sharks plan on surviving games where they get out shot by more than 10 while finding themselves on the penalty kill six times in one afternoon? The fans seem to know the answer as chants of “Asky” erupted in the game's waning moments after Yaroslav Askarov made a series of clutch saves that allowed San Jose to hold on to a 3-2 victory by the skin of their collective Shark teeth.

The Sharks once again found themselves outshot by a 34-24 margin in their dramatic victory over the Canucks thanks in large part to San Jose going on the penalty kill nine times. If you were just looking at the box score, you might be inclined to assume that Vancouver was looking disconnected and lack luster on their power play. On the contrary, despite not being able to get goal while up a man, Vancouver always felt like they were on the verge of netting a goal and regularly generated scoring chances. In particular, they had a lot of success getting the puck across the crease for one timers deep in the slot. Askarov was up to the task on these plays when the passing lane in low was open and did well not to overslide and stay square to the shooter on the one timer to snuff out these high danger scoring chances. Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky said the game is starting to slow down for his young goalie even when Vancouver got the extra attacker on the ice in the final seconds of the game.

“He's confident, he's calm. Even the 6-on-4, the 6-on-5, he's seeing pucks, looks really calm, he's not flailing all over the place in a sense he's very in control so he's playing at a high level

The numbers back up coach's comments. After a rough opening month to the season Askarov ended October wwith goals against average of 4.69 and a save percentage of .844. Those numbers on the surface would indicate the netminder might be better served back in the AHL. The numbers also weren't too much prettier for Alex Nedeljkovic who also has a save percentage in the high 80s to go along with a 3.60 goals against. Whatever problems both goalies were having early were certainly exacerbated by a team that was struggling to make plays in their own end without turning the puck over. Since then Askarov has been a wall in the month of November with a 6-1 record and a .952 save percentage.

But outside of San Jose's loss to the Avalanche the nigh before Thanksgiving, the Sharks have done well to limit the amount of high danger scoring chances their goalies face. That being said, Askarov still has to stand on his head sometimes to help this team win games and this was undoubtedly the case against Vancouver.

The Sharks were protecting a 3-2 lead going into the third period and didn't make it easy on themselves with a deluge of penalties the final 20 minutes. San Jose had gotten two of their goals that night on their own powerplays with the first goal coming from Will Smith after he received a pass from Alex Wennberg that caught Canucks goalie Nikita Tolopilo before he could get across the crease. This goal tied the game before Elias Pettersson untied the game after a bad clear attempt by Timothy Lijegren lead to a breakaway goal. Miscues from Sharks defense men had been fewer as of late but they have certainly not disappeared entirely.

William Ecklund allowed San Jose to tie the contest again after a one timer from the faceoff dot found the back of the net with the assistance of a no look pass from Macklin Celebrini. This was quickly followed by an unusual game-wining goal from Adam Gaudette who was awarded a goal after video review. He said he was happy to get goal even if it took a minute for everyone to realize what happened.

“I thought I saw it go in and I was a little confused there. I told the coaches I said, 'you better challenge that' but it was tough to see and thankfully Toronto (NHL office) I think called in and said it looked like it crossed the line. You could see it in the netting of the goalies' glove there and I was just praying they'd call it a goal after our chances our line had there.”

With that being the extent of the Sharks offense, it would be up to the penalty kill to hold the line the rest of the way. And on this night the best penalty killer out there was the goalie. Askarov flashed the right handed leather several times on shots from the point, doing well to peak around screens and limit rebounds with traffic in front. Colin Graf, who might have been the second best penalty killer on the ice

said the PK unit tries to do what it can to help out its goalies when the opposition applies pressure.

“Goalies are playing great, that's number one. Goalies' always have got to be your best PKer. They've been shutting it down back there for a good stretch now and I think it's just limiting the stuff to the outside. You obviously have to give something up especially when the team has got the best offensive players on the ice and they game plan too and they've got strategy but I think if we can limit shots to 25 to 30 feet and further out, you've got a better chance for your goalie to save them.”

Many parts of this game did not go ideally for the Sharks. Too many penalties, including a potentially costly double minor from Celebrini late in the third, could have spelled doom for the Sharks as more and more pressure was put on the penalty killers and the goalie playing behind them. But on days like this, that scarcely matters. A goalie as hot as Askarov is a cologne that cover the pungent orders of undisciplined hockey. The Sharks need to avoid assuming that their Askarov or Njdeljkovic will bail them out every night when they put the team puts itself in bad position with either penalties or turnovers. Personally I'm not too concerned. The Sharks might have put a lot of pressure on Askarov but seeing him respond to that pressure while hearing the fans get audibly excited about a goalie for the first time in nearly 10 years is also pretty dope.