Gameday 6 Results - Thu 24, Jan

NY Islanders v Toronto 7-4 - The New York Islanders expect to get offense from their first line, led by emerging star John Tavares. But it was their second and third lines that made the difference Thursday as New York rallied from a two-goal deficit to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 7-4 at Air Canada Centre. Tavares had two assists and Matt Moulson, his left wing, scored twice. However, the Islanders also got two goals and an assist from Michael Grabner, a goal and two assists from newcomer Brad Boyes and the eventual game-winner from Keith Aucoin, who was claimed on waivers from the Leafs last week. After a dreadful first period in which they were outscored 3-1 and outplayed badly, the Islanders (2-1-0) ran off five unanswered goals to blow the game open. In contrast, one night after the Leafs looked terrific in a 5-2 win at Pittsburgh, they fell apart. The turning point came midway through the second period when the Islanders took advantage of a penalty to Toronto's Mikhail Grabovski, who was called for using his hand to play the puck off a faceoff. With the Leafs pressing while shorthanded, Tavares turned the puck out of his own zone and led a 4-on-2 rush that ended with Mark Streit beating Ben Scrivens from the slot at 11:44 to make it 3-2. Capuano agreed that Streit's goal changed the momentum. Boyes then scored his first goal as an Islander at 13:10 when he went to the front of the net and tipped home Frans Nielsen's pass from the left corner to tie the game. The score remained tied heading to the third period when Grabner whipped a feed from Boyes past Scrivens at 3:23 giving the Islanders their first lead of the game at 4-3. Aucoin then ended Scrivens' night when he scored from inside the right circle at 4:35, putting the visitors up by two goals. The Islanders have nine newcomers, including four players who were added last week, and are still getting to know each other. Thursday's victory should help, especially with a visit to Boston on Friday night. After the first period it seemed that the Isles' top line of Moulson, Tavares and Kyle Okposo was the only one that came to play. That changed in the second half of the game. James Reimer, who relieved Scrivens, was victimized at 11:20 when Moulson scored to make it 6-3. Just prior to the scoring play, Tavares seemed momentarily hobbled when he was driven into the boards from behind by Dion Phaneuf, but he was not injured on the play and didn't miss a shift. Matt Frattin, who was called up earlier in the day to replace injured Joffrey Lupul, netted a goal with 2:13 remaining gave the Air Canada Centre crowd a brief flicker of life, but after Aucoin prevented a goal a few seconds later by sweeping the puck off the goal line, Grabner worked the puck down the ice against three Leafs before hitting the empty net for a shorthanded goal with 1:10 left. The seven goals were the most for the Islanders since they won 7-6 in Buffalo on Feb. 13, 2011, and were the most they've ever scored in a road opener. The Leafs (2-2-0) came out flying and grabbed the lead when Gunnarson's long shot went through a screen and past Evgeni Nabokov at 2:12. Gunnarsson along with Frattin both finished with a team-high three points. Moulson, who's reached the 30-goal mark in each of the last three seasons, got his first of 2012-13 at 8:39 when Scrivens couldn't control a rebound, allowing the Toronto-area native to get the Islanders on the board. Nazem Kadri put Toronto back in front just over a minute later, swatting home a loose puck after John-Michael Liles' shot hit the end boards and caromed back in front. It was his third goal in four games. The Maple Leafs struck again when Grabovski used defenseman Travis Hamonic as a screen and zipped a 30-foot wrister past Nabokov at 12:48 to make it 3-1. Toronto finished the period with a 16-9 advantage in shots. Nabokov and the Islanders steadied after that; the 37-year-old goaltender fought the puck through the first 20 minutes but elevated his play in the final two periods and finished with 39 saves, including several tough stops near the end of the game. Scrivens stopped 20 of 25 shots before being pulled, It was the first time this season the Maple Leafs have allowed more than two goals in a game. The loss left Carlyle shaking his head as he prepared for a trip to New York to play the Rangers on Saturday night.

NY Rangers v Philadelphia 1-2 -  An injury-plagued Philadelphia Flyers team desperate for its first win of the season scored a pair of goals in the second period and had a remarkable showing on a third-period penalty kill en route to a 2-1 victory against the New York Rangers on Thursday. Wayne Simmonds had a goal and an assist and Jakub Voracek scored what proved to be the game-winner on the power play. Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 18 shots as the Flyers snapped an eight-game winless streak against the Rangers, dating to Feb. 20, 2011. The Flyers played without two-thirds of their top line, Brayden Schenn was suspended for a high hit Tuesday against the New Jersey Devils' Anton Volchenkov and Scott Hartnell is out four-to-eight weeks with a broken first metatarsal in his left foot sustained in Tuesday's game when he was hit by a shot by teammate Kimmo Timonen. The Flyers also were missing injured forwards Danny Briere (wrist) and Zac Rinaldo (leg), and they lost defenseman Andrej Meszaros to an upper-body injury sustained at the end of the second period. He sat out the entire third period and the Flyers say he will be re-evaluated Friday. Taylor Pyatt scored the Rangers' lone goal on a third-period power play and goalie Henrik Lundqvist made 31 saves. Pyatt's goal early in the third was the League-high seventh power-play goal allowed by the Flyers this season, but their penalty-killers recovered to save the game. At 9:24, rookie forward Tye McGinn was assessed a double minor for high-sticking Rangers defenseman Michael Del Zotto. Just 15 seconds later, Nicklas Grossmann was sent off for hooking, giving the Rangers a two-man advantage for two full minutes. With Sean Couturier, Maxime Talbot and Braydon Coburn doing most of the work, the Flyers survived the two-man advantage, allowing the Rangers just one shot. After Grossmann exited the box, the Flyers still had to kill off the final 1:45 of McGinn penalty, but they survived that flurry as well. In all, they allowed four shots during the 3:45 of extra-man time for the Rangers and blocked two shots. Tortorella tried to shorten the bench and mix up his lines to create a spark, even splitting up his top line of Brad Richards, Rick Nash and Marian Gaborik. He put Carl Hagelin with Richards and Gaborik, and slid Nash onto a line with Derek Stepan and Pyatt. Simmonds put the Flyers ahead at 11:53 of the second period with his first goal of the season. Grossmann's shot from the right point hit off Richards in the slot and bounced off Simmonds' right skate and past Lundqvist. The lead was just the Flyers' second of the season, and first since they had a one-goal lead for 10:57 in the second period of their second game of the season, against the Buffalo Sabres. Voracek's first of the season was the Flyers' second on the power play. Kris Newbury was assessed an extra roughing minor after a fight with McGinn. On the ensuing power play, Claude Giroux badly missed a one-timer from the left circle, banging it off the end boards, but the carom went to Simmonds in the slot. Lundqvist stopped his attempt, but the rebound went to Couturier, who pushed the puck off the right post. Then the puck found its way to Voracek, who poked the puck over the goal line at 15:54. The two goals from right in front were the kind the Flyers had been talking about needing to score during their disappointing start to the season. The Rangers got within one early in the third on Pyatt's third goal of the season. New York got a power play 22 seconds in when Philadelphia defenseman Braydon Coburn was called for high sticking. On the man advantage, Grossmann slid to block a Marian Gaborik shot from the slot, but the puck bounced right back to the New York forward, who found Pyatt just to the left of the Philadelphia net for a goal at 1:39. But that was as close as the Rangers would get, as the Flyers' penalty kill proved to be the difference.

Montreal v Washington 4-1 - It's not getting any easier for Adam Oates or the Washington Capitals. The Montreal Canadiens scored four-second period goals and defeated the Capitals 4-1 Thursday night at Verizon Center. The Capitals fell to 0-3-0 under their new coach and visit the unbeaten New Jersey Devils on Friday. After a scoreless first period, the Canadiens scored power-play goals by Tomas Plekanec and Andrei Markov 63 seconds apart, then added even-strength goals by Brian Gionta and Josh Georges. Carey Price made 30 saves for the Canadiens, losing his shutout on a goal by Joey Crabb with 2:23 remaining. Markov also had an assist, giving him four points in the Canadiens' first three games. Max Pacioretty and Raphael Diaz each had two assists Thursday. Washington, 0-3-0 for the first time since 1993-94, will look to avoid an 0-4 start Friday when they face the Devils, for whom Oates was an assistant coach last season. Capitals goalie Michal Neuvirth made 18 saves in his first start of the season. The Capitals have been outscored 14-6 in their three games (two at home) and have allowed seven power-play goals. Alex Ovechkin, playing right wing for the first time, has not scored. Montreal won its second straight after losing its opener. It was the Canadiens' first win over the Capitals after six straight losses.

Buffalo v Carolina 3-6 - No one said it in so many words, but the Carolina Hurricanes must be breathing an enormous sigh of relief. After starting the season with a 5-1 clunker at the Florida Panthers and 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the home opener, Carolina was desperate for some proof its revamped offense was everything it was cracked up to be. After a solid but tentative first period against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, the Hurricanes got all the evidence they needed. Eric Staal scored a hat trick, and Jeff Skinner added two goals to lift Carolina to a 6-3 win at PNC Arena. After Skinner found the net with a top-shelf backhander early in the second period, the Hurricanes seemed to come to life playing with their first lead of the season. Carolina had a two-goal lead within three minutes, getting a little puck luck from defenseman Justin Faulk. With the Hurricanes shorthanded, Jordan Staal blocked a diagonal pass that led to a 3-on-1. Faulk carried the puck up ice and beat Sabres goaltender Jhonas Enroth with a low shot. The Sabres scored a pair of goals less than two minutes apart to tie the game. Cody Hodgson cleaned up a long rebound from Jordan Leopold's shot from the right point, followed by a pretty score from Jason Pominville. Christian Ehrhoff fired to the slot, where Pominville from his knees reached out to redirect the puck past goalie Cam Ward. Ward buckled down after that, making several key saves, particularly in the third period. He finished with 30. Skinner scored his second of the night on a wraparound, to give the Hurricanes a 3-2 lead, but the spotlight quickly shifted to Eric Staal. On the ensuing faceoff, he took a pass from Jamie McBain and slid a backhander under Enroth. The two goals came nine seconds apart. Thomas Vanek set up Pominville's second goal with a beautiful behind-the-back pass to cut the Carolina lead to 4-3, but Eric Staal who answered. He one-timed a pass from Joni Pitkanen to give the Hurricanes a little breathing room, and some proof that the offense could carry play. He put the finishing touches on the game with an empty netter, giving him 13 hat tricks for his career. Only Teemu Selanne of the Anaheim Ducks has more among active players with 20. The Sabres absorbed their first loss of the season after opening with wins against the Philadelphia Flyers and Toronto Maple Leafs. The teams move on to Buffalo on Friday night to complete a home-and-home series at First Niagara Center. When the Hurricanes hit the ice, they might do it with a little more confidence.

Ottawa v Florida 3-1 - Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson continues his mastery of the Florida Panthers even if he doesn’t make a big deal about it. Anderson made 25 saves, and Chris Phillips and Erik Karlsson scored as the Senators improved to 3-0 with a 3-1 victory at BB&T Center. Jason Spezza added an empty-netter with 1:15 left. Anderson, a backup for the Panthers from 2006-07 through 2008-09, improved to 9-0-1 against his former team. He shut out Florida 4-0 Monday night at Ottawa. With two victories against the Panthers this season, the Senators have taken 11 of the past 12 meetings dating to the 2009-10 season. Ottawa is off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2007-08 when it opened with five consecutive victories. Tomas Fleischmann scored for the injury-riddled Panthers, who have lost three in a row since opening the season with a 5-1 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night. Florida has scored two goals in its three losses. Already missing regulars Kris Versteeg, Marcel Goc, Sean Bergenheim and Erik Gudbranson, the Panthers also found themselves without center Stephen Weiss after he was scratched with a lower-body injury. Jose Theodore finished with 34 saves, including 14 in the first 11 minutes before Phillips beat him with a slap shot from the point toward the end of a second consecutive power play. Theodore stopped Guillaume Latendresse’s penalty shot with 9:11 left in the third period. Latendresse was hooked from behind by Brian Campbell while on a breakaway. Latendresse, a teammate of Theodore with the Montreal Canadiens and Minnesota Wild, tried to slip a quick backhand through the five-hole on a deke, but Theodore made a stick save. Karlsson broke the 1-1 tie at 8:28 of the second period after a wild sequence in front of the Florida net. After a loose puck bounced in front of Theodore, three players wound up on the ice before the Panthers gained possession. Karlsson intercepted Shawn Matthias’ cross-ice pass just outside the blue line, and after waiting for a teammate to clear the zone, skated in down the left side before beating Theodore with a short-distance wrist shot to the far side. Fleischmann opened the scoring at 8:24 with a power-play goal. After Tomas Kopecky controlled the faceoff, Fleischmann passed the puck back to Campbell at the point. Campbell flipped it to Fleischmann, who skated in then beat Anderson with a wrist shot through the five-hole from the top of the circle. The goal snapped Anderson’s shutout streak at 122:24. He hadn’t given up a goal since the 6:00 mark of the first period of the opener when Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien scored on a power play. Anderson wasn’t tested often in the third period Thursday, but he came up big when he gloved Peter Mueller’s shot from the wing with 6:07 left. Seconds earlier, Jakob Silfverberg almost increased Ottawa’s lead but his wrist shot bounced off the right post. The Senators will play at Tampa Bay on Friday night, while Florida will hold its first in-season practice.

Nashville v St Louis 0-3 - Patrik Berglund and Jan. 24 seem to go hand-in-hand. One year ago on the date, the St. Louis Blues forward scored his first penalty-shot goal. He added his second Thursday night. Berglund had a goal and an assist, helping the St. Louis Blues to a 3-0 victory against the Nashville Predators in a rematch of Central Division foes who played in Nashville on Monday. The Blues (3-1-0) have been the best in the NHL on home ice since the beginning of last season. They added the Predators (1-1-2) to that list and improved to 32-6-5 over that span. St. Louis is 8-2-3 in the past 13 meetings with Nashville, including four wins in a row. This is the first time in franchise history the Blues have started their home schedule with back-to-back shutouts (they blanked the Detroit Red Wings 6-0 in the season opener Jan. 19). The Blues, who got goals from T.J. Oshie and rookie Vladimir Tarasenko, have thrown a blanket over the Predators on home ice, blanking them for the second game in a row. Nashville hasn't scored in 182:44 at Scottrade Center, since Dec. 30, 2011. Jaroslav Halak had to stop 13 shots to pick up his 24th career shutout and 15th with the Blues, moving within one of tying Glenn Hall for the franchise record. The Predators got few offensive chances and lost to the Blues for the second time in four days. The game marked the return of Blues defenseman Wade Redden to the NHL after nearly a three-year absence. St. Louis signed Redden after he was waived by the New York Rangers last week. Redden spent the past two seasons with the Rangers' American Hockey League farm team. Oshie scored his second power-play goal in as many games, and the Blues' seventh in 11 tries, when he slid the puck past Pekka Rinne's outstretched left pad. Berglund's gritty work in front popped the puck to his teammate at the side of the goal at 12:59 of the opening period to give the Blues a 1-0 lead. The Predators, in the second game of a seven-game trip, mustered three shots on goal in the period; they went 16:10 between the first and second shots. Berglund gave the Blues a 2-0 lead when he beat Rinne 9:26 into the second after being awarded the penalty shot when he was tripped by Mike Fisher as he broke down the right side and made a sharp cut to the net. Berglund beat Rinne, who came out to cut off the angle, with a quick snap shot. Berglund scored on a penalty shot one year ago against the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 3-2 shootout loss. He is now 2-for-3 in his career. Tarasenko added his fourth goal in four games when he beat Rinne coming in off a weak-side line change after taking Alex Steen's pass from the half-wall 9:04 into the third period. The rookie has six points to begin his NHL career. In two home games this season, which includes the season-opener against Detroit, the Blues have not allowed a goal on 27 shots.

"It's a really interesting line (with Andy McDonald and Steen) because it's a throwback line," Hitchcock said. "It's a line that I think the hockey purists ... anybody that you talk to that saw the game back in the '80s and '90s would really appreciate this line. It's a puck-possession line, a line that has three guys with the innate ability to find open space on the ice in a game that has no space. They find space. They find room to make plays, they find open people, they see the ice. It's a fun line to watch from the bench."

Chicago v Dallas 3-2 - The Chicago Blackhawks didn't let an early two-goal deficit keep them from their best start in 40 years. Marian Hossa scored his fifth goal of the season 1:41 into overtime as the Blackhawks rallied to beat the Dallas Stars 3-2 on Thursday night. Hossa finished off a pass from Patrick Kane for a power-play goal that gave Chicago a 4-0-0 record, the franchise's best start since the 1972-73 team also began with four straight wins. Chicago finished the night 3 for 7 on the power play. Patrick Sharp had a goal and two assists for the Hawks while Kane chipped in with a pair of assists. The Stars began overtime with 42 seconds of power-play time carried over from Niclas Hjalmarsson's penalty at 18:42 of the third period. But Brenden Morrow was called for interference 22 seconds into OT, and after 20 seconds of 3-on-3 play, the Blackhawks went on their seventh power play and got the winner when Hossa beat Kari Lehtonen. Lehtonen kept the Stars in the game with 38 saves. Chicago's Corey Crawford stopped 21 shots. Loui Eriksson gave the Stars the lead by scoring a shorthanded goal just 1.4 seconds before the first intermission. After getting the puck from Derek Roy near the Dallas blue line, Eriksson deked Chicago defenseman Brent Seabrook, dashed up the ice and beat Crawford through the five-hole to make it 1-0. Crawford appeared to have stopped the puck, but it slid through his legs and over the goal line. Dallas had a great chance to double its lead 3:33 into the second period when Ryan Garbutt was awarded a penalty shot after being taken down near the net by Seabrook. However, Garbutt's backhanded attempt on his first career penalty shot was denied by Crawford's pad. Dallas did make it 2-0 at 10:41 of the second when Ray Whitney lifted a short backhander over Crawford's left shoulder following a Chicago turnover. Michal Rozsival lost possession of the puck near the Hawks' blue line and Cody Eakin flipped the puck to Whitney, who beat Crawford for his second goal of the season. The Hawks made it 2-1 at 15:57 of the second when Sharp took a pass from Kane and fired a shot that deflected off the stick of Stars' defenseman Trevor Daley before landing in the back of the net for a power-play goal. Dallas almost took a 3-1 lead to the second break when a long slapper by Alex Goligoski looked as if it were headed into the back of the net. However, Chicago defenseman Duncan Keith swooped in to clear the puck just before the horn sounded to end the period. Chicago's power play converted yet again at 14:07 of the third when Jonathan Toews blasted a 30-foot wrister past Lehtonen to make it 2-2. Sharp and Keith picked up the assists on the equalizer. Stars forward Jaromir Jagr left the ice late in the third period with an undisclosed injury.

 

Columbus v Colorado 0-4 - A quick start, 33 saves from goalie Semyon Varlamov and a three-point performance from Matt Duchene were more than enough for the Colorado Avalanche to win for the second time in as many games at the Pepsi Center. Duchene had two goals and set up one by PA Parenteau 51 seconds into the game as the Avalanche blanked the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-0 on Thursday night. John Mitchell produced it at 4:38 of the third period after missing most of the first after being struck in the forehead with the puck. He put a move on Blue Jackets defenseman Jack Johnson in the right circle before scoring against goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for his second goal of the season. The goal came shortly after Varlamov robbed Ryan Johansen on a shot that came from point-blank range. Mitchell, who has taken a physical beating in the first three games, also felt fortunate to return to action. He was bleeding profusely after getting hit at 3:38 of the opening period following a faceoff in the right circle. A major component of the Avalanche game plan was to play with plenty of energy from the beginning against a Blue Jackets team that was playing back-to-back games, having dropped a 5-1 decision Wednesday night in Phoenix. It's exactly what happened. Parenteau delivered a goal on the game's first shot. He scored from the left circle 51 seconds after the opening faceoff off a feed from Duchene for his second goal in two games. Duchene, with his first goal of the season, gave the Avalanche a 2-0 lead at 12:25. Erik Johnson spun around a defender near the right-wing boards and got the puck to Milan Hejduk, whose shot hit teammate Chuck Kobasew in front and bounced into the slot. Duchene pounced on the loose puck and scored into a half-open net. The Blue Jackets have gone 0-2-1 since opening the season with a 3-2 win at Nashville, and they aren't the kind of team capable of pulling off too many come-from-behind victories. The Avalanche outshot the Blue Jackets 12-3 in the opening 13 minutes, but Columbus gained its skating legs and closed the gap to 14-11 by the end of the period. Varlamov had to make a huge save with his left pad against R.J Umberger at 15:30 to keep his team ahead by two goals. Varlamov made an even better save against Nick Foligno at 15:36 of the second period after Foligno maneuvered around Avalanche defenseman Ryan Wilson. The Avalanche killed off six penalties for the second consecutive game and have snuffed out 16 in a row after allowing two power-play goals in the second period in Saturday's 4-2 opening-night loss in Minnesota. Johnson played a big role in that department Thursday. He spent nearly 3 1/2 minutes killing penalties while logging a team-high 22:32 in ice time and finished with five of the Avalanche's 26 blocked shots. Tempers flared throughout, and the teams combined for 20 penalties totaling 52 minutes, with a couple of fights and seven roughing minors in the mix.

 

Los Angeles v Edmonton 1-2 - The Los Angeles Kings saw their first win of the season turn into an excruciating overtime loss. Rookie Nail Yakupov tied the game with 4.7 seconds left in regulation and Sam Gagner scored a power-play goal 3:01 into OT as the Edmonton Oilers stunned the Kings 2-1 on Thursday night, keeping the defending Stanley Cup champions winless in three games. Though they earned their first point of the season, the Kings have been outscored 11-4 in the three losses. It looked like Jeff Carter's breakaway goal at 13:26 of the second period would stand up as the winner, especially when an apparent goal by Edmonton's Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with 1:05 left was waved off. After a conference, the officials ruled that Gagner had made contact with goaltender Jonathan Quick in the crease and took the goal off the scoreboard. But the Oilers refused to quit, and Yakupov, the first player taken in the 2012 NHL Draft, scored his second of the season when he swatted the rebound of Taylor Hall's shot out of midair and into the net. The Kings were called for having too many men on the ice 1:21 into overtime, and the Oilers finally scored on their ninth power play of the night when Nugent-Hopkins fed the puck across the front of the crease to Gagner, who slid it past Quick to trigger an eruption from the 16,839 fans at Rexall Place. It was a big rebound for the Oilers, who were torched for six first-period goals by San Jose in their home opener two nights earlier. Los Angeles broke the scoreless tie when Kyle Clifford sent Carter in alone and he beat Dubnyk under the crossbar. Quick stopped the first 33 shots he faced, but with time running out, Taylor Hall wristed the puck at the net from the high slot. It hit Quick's blocker and Yakupov knocked it in for his second goal of the season. The Kings hurt themselves by failing to connect on eight power plays. Los Angeles is now 0 for 18 with the extra man in three games. Five of the Kings' power plays came in the first period, when they had a two-man advantage for 2:00 and a four-minute power play after Oilers' defenseman Ladislav Smid received a double minor for instigating a fight while wearing a face shield. But the Kings came away with nothing, and then had to kill three power plays by the Oilers. Both teams had three more unsuccessful power plays in the second period, and the Kings had to kill three more penalties in the third, including a tripping call against Carter with 2:50 remaining in regulation during which the Oilers thought they had tied the score. Despite the loss, Kings coach Darryl Sutter wasn't displeased with his team's play.

 

Phoenix v San Jose 3-5 - Who needs a full training camp? Apparently not San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau. Marleau stayed red-hot Thursday night, scoring two goals for the third straight game as the Sharks rallied to beat the Phoenix Coyotes 5-3 in their home opener at HP Pavilion. Marleau broke a 3-3 tie with 1:53 remaining in regulation when he took a pass from Pavelski and beat goalie Jason LaBarbera with a one-timer. Thornton scored an empty-netter with 2.8 seconds left to play as the Sharks won for the third time in as many games. Logan Couture and Martin Havlat also scored for the Sharks, who scored four unanswered goals after falling behind 3-1. Thornton had three assists, giving him eight for the season. The Coyotes, now 1-3-0, got goals from Steve Sullivan, Antoine Vermette and Lauri Korpikoski. LaBarbera, starting in place of the injured Mike Smith, stopped 30 shots. The Coyotes and Sharks battled to a 1-1 tie through two periods, but Phoenix scored two quick goals in the third to grab a 3-1 lead. Vermette put Phoenix ahead 2-1 at 5:01 with a power-play goal, beating Sharks goaltender Antti Niemi to the far side with a sharp-angled shot from the left circle. Korpikoski made it 3-1 at 7:28 by beating Niemi with another sharp-angled shot from the left side after Phoenix won a battle for the puck along the boards. San Jose cut the lead to 3-2 with 10:45 left in the third when Marleau took Thornton's pass in the low slot and ripped a shot past LaBarbera. Havlat tied it at 13:06, jamming a rebound past LaBarbera from close range after a blast from Ryane Clowe. The Sharks scored six goals in the first period Tuesday in a 6-3 victory at Edmonton. San Jose caught what appeared to be a good break when Smith missed the game with a lower body injury, he left midway through the first period of the Coyotes' 5-1 victory against Columbus on Wednesday. Smith posted three of his eight shutouts against the Sharks last season. He had a 1.98 goals against average and .945 save percentage in six starts against San Jose. LaBarbera was just 3-7-1 lifetime against the Sharks entering the game. But he was solid through the first two periods, picking up where he left off Thursday when he stopped 21 of 22 shots against Columbus. The Sharks peppered LaBarbera with 15 shots in the first period, thanks in large part to three power plays, but scored only one goal. That came on a Couture tip-in at 19:22 on a power play with defenseman Derek Morris in the box for cross-checking San Jose's Justin Braun. Thornton won a faceoff in the left circle, and Pavelski ripped a long shot from the point. Couture, planted in front of the crease, redirected the puck past LaBarbera. The Sharks had plenty of opportunities to score earlier in the period, but LaBarbera turned away their first seven power play shots. Three of those came when the Sharks had a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:21. The Coyotes pulled even at 7:11 of the second when Sullivan scored a 5-on-3 power-play goal with Sharks forwards TJ Galiardi and Andrew Desjardins in the box for high-sticking. Galiardi earned a four-minute penalty after drawing blood from Korpikoski. After being outshot 15-9 in the first period, the Coyotes outshot San Jose 13-2 in the second. On their only power play of the period, the Sharks didn't put a single shot on goal. Phoenix played the entire third period without center Matthew Lombardi, who suffered an upper body injury earlier in the game and did not return. For the second straight game, the Coyotes were without second-line center Martin Hanzal and defenseman Rostislav Klesla, who are day-to-day with lower body injuries. They recalled goaltender Chad Johnson and defenseman David Rundblad from Portland of the AHL.