SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks once again failed to hold a third-period lead.
Holding a one-goal lead with less than 12 minutes left in regulation time, the Sharks allowed goals to Kyle Connor and Dylan DeMelo, with DeMelo’s goal coming with 1:13 left in the third period, a 4-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday at SAP Center.
Winger Fabian Zetterlund scored at the 4:44 mark of the third period to give the Sharks a 3-2 lead.
Defenseman Jake Walman controlled the puck in the Sharks’ zone and sent it ahead to Zetterlund in the neutral zone. Zetterlund, on his off wing, then beat Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck short side for his 11th goal of the season and second in as many games.
Of Zetterlund’s 11 goals this season, seven have come in the third period.
Walman had two assists, and Tyler Toffoli and Macklin Celebrini added goals and assists for the Sharks, who also coughed up third-period leads in losses to the Carolina Hurricanes last Tuesday and the Utah Hockey Club on Saturday.
Goalie Alexandar Georgiev, making his first start for the Sharks in San Jose, finished with 29 saves. He allowed two goals to Kyle Connor, including a power-play goal that tied the game 3-3 at the 11:56 mark of the third period.
On Celebrini’s goal, he took the pass from Walman along the boards and skated toward the middle of the ice. With Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan DeMelo in his way, Celebrini stickhandled to his right and quickly sent a no-look backhand shot to the net.
Celebrini’s shot either surprised Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck or he just didn’t see it. Either way, the power play goal tied the game 2-2 game between the Sharks and NHL-leading Jetswith 2:49 left in the second period.
Celebrini also assisted on Tyler Toffoli’s second period goal. With his seventh multi-point game, Celebrini passed Jeff Friesen for most by an 18-year-old in Sharks history.
The Sharks created a handful of scoring chances in the first period but still trailed 1-0 after 20 minutes.
The Jets sent a pass to the Sharks’ blue line that Gabriel Vilardi tipped past a pinching Jake Walman. Mark Scheifele then corralled the loose puck, took it below the San Jose goal line and fed it in front to an open Connor, who went backhand to forehand to beat Georgiev.
Facing the Jets, who entered Tuesday with a league-leading 45 points, Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky wanted his team to be the aggressor, and not sit back and allow Winnipeg to dictate the pace.
“As a team, there’s some things I’m looking for and individually, there’s some things I’m looking for,” Warsofsky said Tuesday morning. “Guys sticking their nose in there and getting on pucks and winning 50/50 pucks, it’s obviously been a big issue for us this year, to come away with 50/50s so I’m looking for that.”
The Sharks went 3-3-0 on a recently completed road trip and opened a three-game homestand on Saturday with a feisty 4-3 loss to the Utah Hockey Club. The Sharks disagreed with some of the calls officials made against them, and felt that more calls could have been made against Utah.
In particular, a nearby referee in the second period did not call what appeared to be a boarding penalty for Utah forward Kevin Stenlund’s hit from behind on Sharks rookie center Macklin Celebrini, who crashed hard into the boards but was not injured.
Immediately after the game ended, cameras showed Warsofsky yelling at the officiating crew for a few seconds before leaving the Sharks bench and returning to the team’s dressing room.
Tuesday, the NHL fined Warsofsky $25,000 for what it termed “inappropriate conduct” during the game.
“It’s something that I’m trying to get better at,” Warsofsky said Tuesday morning. “At the same time, I’m passionate. I wear my emotions on my sleeve. Sometimes, it gets the best of me, but at the end of the day, I’ve got to have our players back, and that’s not going to change.”
