EDMONTON, Alberta – Rookie goalie Yaroslav Askarov figured to provide a spark to the reeling San Jose Sharks on Saturday after they lost three straight heartbreaking games on their recently completed homestand.
“He’s a good personality. He’s got some swagger and confidence about himself, which is good for a goaltender,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said before Saturday’s game, “and I know he’s well liked in that dressing room.”
Askarov has to be beloved now.
In a game featuring some of the offensive talents in the NHL, Askarov completely stole the show, even though he allowed a goal late in the third period and one to Leon Draisaitl just 18 seconds into overtime as the Sharks lost 3-2 at Rogers Plaqce,
The Sharks were leading by a goal when, with the Oilers net empty, Mattias Ekholm scored with 17.3 seconds left to tie the game.
Askarov finished with 41 saves.
Luke Kunin and Jan Rutta both scored first period goals for San Jose, with Rutta’s goal – his first of the season – coming at the 8:21 mark.
Askarov was making his third start of the season for the Sharks. In his two NHL games this year, against the St. Louis Blues and Los Angeles Kings, Askarov was 1-0-1 with a .927 save percentage. In his first win for the Sharks on Nov. 25, Askarov stopped 22 of 24 shots as San Jose beat Los Angeles 7-2 at SAP Center.
The Sharks were trying to replicate that defensive effort against two of the NHL’s best players, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
Easier said than done, as an open Zach Hyman, stationed to the right of the Sharks net, one-timed a pass from McDavid past Askarov at the 7:07 mark of the first period to tie the game 1-1. Too many Sharks players had their eyes on the puck on McDavid’s stick.
But the Sharks got the lead right back, as Rutta, under pressure at the blue, got a pass from Jake Walman and fired a shot at the net that went off the post and in for his first goal since April 13 of last season.
“We’ve got to defend the middle of the ice,” Warsofsky said. “Obviously, they have two superstars over there and a really good team, so it’s going to be important that we don’t fuel them with some turnovers. And that doesn’t mean in the news zone. That means in the offensive zone, when we have the puck as well, so make them defend. And then when we’re in our own end, and we get a chance to break out pucks, we’ve got to make sure we execute.”
Askarov and Alexander Georgiev will form the Sharks’ goalie tandem for the foreseeable future, with their next game on Monday against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena. After Christmas, the Sharks host the Vegas Golden Knights on Dec. 27, the Calgary Flames on Dec. 28 and the Philadelphia Flyers on Dec. 31.
