Sharks 2025-26 Game 55 Recap: Avalanche 4, Sharks 2 (2/4/26)

 The Sharks put up a good fight in the third period, but they head into the Olympic break on a four-game losing streak with a 4-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. 

The Avalanche struck first early in the second period on a goal that went to Artturi Lehkonen that resulted from a large scramble in front of the Sharks net. Yaroslav Askarov made a few great saves before he and many others lost track of the puck and it found the back of the net. Later in the middle frame, Lehkonen scored his second goal of the game to extend the Avs’ lead to two, with this second one being much cleaner than the first. Also late in the second period, the Sharks appeared to have scored, but the official review determined that there was no goal on that particular play. 

The Sharks got on the board early in the third period on a slapshot by Timothy Liljegren for his first goal of the year, assisted by Alex Wennberg and John Klingberg. A few minutes later, Philipp Kurashev scored his seventh goal of the season to tie the game at two. We had a new puck game at that point, but to not much surprise, the Avalanche would find a way to win, as they scored the next two goals via a Josh Manson slapshot and a Brock Nelson empty-netter to prevail on home ice. 

Yaroslav Askarov bounced back from his previous few starts and performed well despite being unable to get the win, compiling 38 saves on 41 shots against. In addition, Kiefer Sherwood was activated from the injured reserve and made his Sharks debut tonight, while Ryan Reaves was placed on injured reserve. 

Although the Sharks played much better tonight than in their past three contests, this last road trip was certainly disappointing, as they were only able to collect three out of a possible ten points. Having played in ten different arenas in their past ten games has certainly taken a toll on this Sharks team, and the Olympic break could not come soon enough for them. In the meantime, a few other teams have leapfrogged the Sharks in the standings, and the Sharks find themselves five points out of a Wild Card spot in the West heading into the Olympic break. Still, the Sharks being in the Wild Card discussion up to this point in this season is a major improvement compared to last season. Team Teal begins its post-Olympic break stretch with a six-game homestand starting on Thursday, February 26 against the Calgary Flames at 7 pm PT. 

Sources: NBC Sports California, NHL App, Curtis Pashelka via X 

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Sharks 2025-26 Game 54 Recap: Blackhawks 6, Sharks 3 (2/2/26)

 The Sharks’ losing skid has reached three as they fall 6-3 to the Chicago Blackhawks. 

It was all Blackhawks to begin this game, as Chicago scored four unanswered via Connor Bedard on the power play in the first period and Connor Murphy, Ryan Donato, and Sam Rinzel in the first half of the second period. After this fourth goal was given up, Alex Nedeljkovic entered the game for Yaroslav Askarov, who finished his night with six saves on ten shots against. Later in the second period, Will Smith got the Sharks on the board with his 17th goal of the season, assisted by Macklin Celebrini and Collin Graf. The Blackhawks followed that up moments later with a goal from Ilya Mikheyev to restore their four-goal lead. 

San Jose scored the next two goals to climb back into this game via Macklin Celebrini’s 28th goal of the season from Tyler Toffoli and William Eklund late in the second period, and Shakir Mukhamadullin’s third goal of the season from Philipp Kurashev and Vincent Desharnais early in the third period. The Blackhawks further maintained their stranglehold on this game, with Ryan Donato scoring his second goal of the game to make it a three-goal game once more. 

Alex Nedeljkovic recorded five saves on seven shots in relief for Askarov. In addition, Pavol Regenda and Timothy Liljegren were inserted back into the lineup in place of Zack Ostapchuk and John Klingberg, and the lines have been shuffled around compared to their past few games. 

The Sharks’ comeback efforts fell significantly short in this contest, and besides a two-point performance from Macklin Celebrini, not much went their way against a lesser opponent that they should have overcame. Team Teal travels to Denver to face the Colorado Avalanche in their final game before the Olympic break on Wednesday at 6 pm PT. 

Sources: Sharks Audio Network, NHL App, Curtis Pashelka via X 

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Sharks 2025-26 Game 53 Recap: Flames 3, Sharks 2 (1/31/26)

 Team Teal was unable to finish after a great start for a second straight game, as they fall 3-2 to the Calgary Flames. 

The Sharks got off to another solid start, scoring the first goal of the game on the power play via Will Smith for his 16th goal of the season, assisted by Alex Wennberg. Later in the opening period, Morgan Frost scored a 5-on-3 goal to tie it at one for the Flames. Team Teal went back ahead early in the second period on Adam Gaudette’s 13th goal of the season, assisted William Eklund and Michael Misa. Gaudette now has goals in three consecutive games. Soon after, the Flames tied the game once again, this time via Matvei Gridin to make it two a piece. 

Calgary grabbed its first lead of the day early in the third period on a shorthanded goal from Joel Farabee, which would ultimately be the game-winner for the Flames. In the final seconds of this contest, Macklin Celebrini had a prime scoring opportunity to tie and force overtime, but he got robbed by Dustin Wolf with a huge save. 

Alex Nedeljkovic was back in the crease for the Sharks in Calgary, compiling 39 saves on 42 shots against. Late in the third period, Nedeljkovic was slow to get up after laying himself out to make a save and appeared to be injured, but fortunately returned to the crease after being helped off the ice and walking it off. In addition, Shakir Mukhamadullin and Philipp Kurashev made their returns to the Sharks lineup from the injured reserve, while Vincent Iorio was placed on waivers and has been claimed by the New York Rangers in order to create a roster spot opening. 

Overall, it was another frustrating loss for the Sharks after they started this one off well. The Flames played more aggressively, and the Sharks were unable to fully respond down the stretch. On top of that, inconsistent officiating throughout much of this contest did not help the Sharks’ case to win here either. More positively, the Sharks’ third line of Adam Gaudette, William Eklund, and Michael Misa has been clicking as of late. The Sharks have two games remaining on their current road trip and before the Olympic break, and their next game is in Chicago against the Blackhawks in a must-win matchup on Monday at 5:30 pm PT. 

Sources: NBC Sports California, NHL App, Curtis Pashelka via X 

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Sharks 2025-26 Game 52 Recap: Oilers 4, Sharks 3 (OT) (1/29/26)

 Team Teal got the start it wanted, but the Oilers stormed back late in the third period to win 4-3 in overtime. 

The Sharks got off to one of their quickest starts to a game I have seen recently, scoring twice in the first minute and 35 seconds. It began with Collin Graf scoring on a mostly wide-open net for his 15th goal of the season, assisted by Will Smith and Macklin Celebrini, followed by Adam Gaudette scoring on a breakaway for his 12th goal of the season, assisted by William Eklund. Later in the first period, the Sharks went up by three on Michael Misa’s second NHL goal, which was initially saved by Connor Ingram and deflected off of Evan Bouchard before finding the back of the net. Timothy Liljegren and Sam Dickinson assisted on the Sharks’ third goal of this contest from Michael Misa. 

Team Teal nearly got a goal in the second period from Barclay Goodrow, but it was disallowed due to Zack Ostapchuk running into Connor Ingram prior to Goodrow putting the puck in the net. Early in the third period, Leon Draisaitl scored to get the Oilers on the board, while Edmonton scored twice via Connor McDavid and Evan Bouchard later in the third to tie the game at three to force overtime. The Oilers completed their comeback on the game-winning goal by Zach Hyman to win it in overtime. 

Yaroslav Askarov compiled 28 saves on 32 shots against in his second consecutive start. 

It was such an incredible start for the Sharks to this game, and it seemed like they were going to win until the final minutes of regulation. A combination of defensive miscues, the Sharks often shooting themselves in the foot late in this game, and the Oilers’ offensive firepower allowed Edmonton to climb back into this one and win in overtime. It was also a pretty costly mistake for the Sharks to not put Macklin Celebrini out onto the ice at any point during the bonus period. The teenage superstar would have definitely given the Sharks a better chance of earning the victory in this contest had he been able to play in OT. This loss was tough and disappointing, but at least the Sharks were able to salvage a point out of this loss, and they did not allow themselves to fall behind from the get-go. Team Teal closes out the month of January on Saturday in Calgary against the Flames on Saturday at 1 pm PT. 

Sources: NBC Sports California, NHL App 

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Sharks 2025-26 Game 51 Recap: Sharks 5, Canucks 2 (1/27/26)

 Team Teal began their final road trip before the Olympic break by taking care of business handily against the league-worst Vancouver Canucks by a score of 5-2. 

The Canucks struck first via Tom Willander early in the opening period, while it was all Sharks moments after. Team Teal’s great response began with Macklin Celebrini’s 27th goal of the season, assisted by Will Smith and Sam Dickinson. This was followed up by Adam Gaudette’s 11th goal of the season from William Eklund and Macklin Celebrini, and Tyler Toffoli’s 15th goal of the season from Alex Wennberg and Sam Dickinson to go up 3-1 just under six minutes into this contest and chase Kevin Lankinen out of the Canucks net. 

The Sharks extended their lead to three in the second period on a power play goal by Will Smith for his 15th goal of the season, assisted by John Klingberg and Macklin Celebrini. Later in the middle frame, Timothy Liljegren and Evander Kane dropped the gloves and fought, with Evander getting an extra two minutes for roughing as well. 

San Jose made it a four-goal game 28 seconds into the third period on a power play goal by John Klingberg for his tenth goal of the season, assisted by Will Smith and Macklin Celebrini. Later in the final frame, Vancouver lessened their deficit to three on a power play marker by Filip Hronek, but that would not have made much of a difference as the Sharks would win this contest pretty easily. 

Yaroslav Askarov was back in the crease tonight for the Sharks in Vancouver and bounced back significantly from his previous few starts, recording 23 saves on 25 shots against. 

Overall, this is another great and necessary win for the Sharks over a team fully embracing the struggle bus this season. Macklin Celebrini led the way with four points in his hometown of Vancouver, followed by Will Smith with three points and the first two-point performance for Sam Dickinson in the NHL. Next up, the Sharks travel to Edmonton to face the Oilers for the first time this season on Thursday at 6 pm PT. 

Sources: Sharks Audio Network, NHL App, Curtis Pashelka via X 

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My 15th NHL Game: Sharks 3, Rangers 1 (1/23/26)

 I attended the Sharks' only home game in between two lengthy road trips and last home game before the Olympic break Friday night, and it was absolutely amazing for several reasons. First, I was hoping to make it to this particular game since it was Bay Area Unite Night with the 49ers and the Sharks were hosting the New York Rangers, a team pretty high up on my list of those I have been wanting to see play in person. I was fortunately able to do so, and it began by receiving a Sharks-49ers mashup shirsey. It basically looked like the 49ers' red home jerseys with some Sharks elements in it, and it is awesome. I had to open it up and put it on as soon as I could. I then headed straight for the team store, where I purchased a three-puck holder to hold and better display some of my collectible pucks. As for 49ers Bay Area Unite Night, besides the mashup shirsey giveaway, it featured appearances from Niners legend Tom Rathman, mascot Sourdough Sam, and some cheerleaders. However, I could only see them from afar, as I missed the cutoff to meet and get photos with them, which was honestly not a big deal to me. 

Warmups were next, and it's always a joy to take part in watching that aspect of hockey. Before diving into the actual game itself, it's worth noting that Igor Chernyshov was sent down to the Barracuda the day before, so I was unable to see him perform in this game. In the moments leading up to the official start of this game, the four players representing the Sharks in the upcoming Milano Cortina Winter Olympics were honored, and Tom Rathman, who was the 49ers' running back and fullback from 1986 to 1993, was brought out to do the ceremonial puck drop. For those who need a quick refresher, the four players representing the Sharks at this year's Winter Olympics are Macklin Celebrini for Team Canada, Alex Wennberg for Team Sweden, Pavol Regenda for Team Slovakia, and Philipp Kurashev for Team Switzerland. 

The Sharks got off to a blistering start against the Rangers, scoring three consecutive goals early in the first period. Macklin Celebrini opened the scoring on the power play with a redirection tap-in at the doorstep on a pass from Tyler Toffoli for his 25th goal of the season. Will Smith also assisted on this opening goal. The second of three Sharks first-period goals was scored on the power play by Pavol Regenda for his eighth goal of the season, assisted by Michael Misa and Collin Graf. The third Sharks goal in this contest was scored by Macklin Celebrini at even strength for his 26th goal of the season, assisted by Will Smith and Collin Graf. Macklin Celebrini also became the fastest player in Sharks franchise history to score 50 career goals, doing so in 120 games played. Later in the first period, the Rangers scored their lone goal of the game via Sam Carrick to get themselves on the board. 

Later in the third period, Macklin Celebrini got elbowed in the face by Gabe Perreault, and while nobody in the area liked seeing that, luckily Macklin was okay. The big first period by the Sharks was all it took for them to beat the Rangers. Alex Nedeljkovic was fantastic and continued to ride his hot streak into this game, recording 28 saves on 29 shots against. Besides his current hot streak, Ned’s popularity has increased significantly among Sharks fans, especially after his recent fight against Sergei Bobrovsky in the Sharks’ game against the Panthers in South Florida. He was also named the second star of the night, with Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith earning the first and third stars of the night respectively. 

Overall, this Sharks-Rangers game was an incredible and unforgettable experience. I had a strong gut feeling that Macklin Celebrini would have a huge performance in this game after being held off the scoresheet in the Sharks' previous two games in the state of Florida, and he certainly delivered, scoring two goals. It was also a must-win game for the Sharks against a Rangers team that has been pretty mediocre this season, and they definitely took care of business. The Sharks are now 6-5-3 and back to a winning record when I am at their games. In addition, the New York Rangers are the latest team to be added to my list of NHL teams I have seen play in person, putting me one team shy of the halfway point in my quest to see all 32 NHL teams play in person. Regular game reviews resume on Tuesday, when the Sharks travel to Vancouver to face the Canucks at 7 pm PT to begin a five-game road trip and their final stretch of games before the Olympic break. 

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