Sharks Find a Way to Win Despite Abysmal Performance Against Last Place Canucks

The San Jose Sharks continued their current homestand on Thursday night when they hosted the 32nd placed Vancouver Canucks. Unfortunately for the Sharks, they were massively outcoached by rookie bench boss Manny Malhotra for the majority of the night. 

Ultimately, Will Smith scoring two late goals and Mason Marchment getting the go-ahead goal just 11 seconds after Smith's goal helped the Sharks find a way to win in a game they likely should have lost.

Filip Bystedt made an impact on his first shift, as he skated around the Canucks defense to generate a scoring chance with his first shot, but he was denied by the Canucks' goaltender, Leevi Merilainen. A couple of minutes later, Michael Misa showed off his wheels, knocking down a Jacob Trouba pass and splitting the Vancouver defense, but again, Merilainen stood tall. 

Arshdeep Bains gave the Sharks the first power play opportunity of the night, after he was penalized for holding Collin Graf. Vancouver's penalty kill was challenged quite a bit but held strong. Immediately after Bains exited the penalty box, the Sharks were penalized themselves, as Michael Misa sat for slashing. 

Drew O'Connor scored shortly after the Sharks killed off Misa's penalty, taking advantage of a net-front scramble and giving the Canucks a 1-0 lead at 13:21 of the first period. 

Jonathan Lekkerimaki gave the Sharks an opportunity to tie things up with just over five minutes remaining in the period, as he was sent to the penalty box for interference. Sam Dickinson was then penalized for cross-checking late in the period. While shorthanded, Kiefer Sherwood generated another scoring chance creating a breakaway, but once again, the Sharks were unable to put the puck in the net. 

Nearly halfway through the second period, the Sharks got another opportunity with the man advantage as Zeev Buium sat for cross-checking Ty Dellandrea. Once again, the Sharks were unable to find the back of the net, dropping to 0-3 on power play opportunities. 

They got another chance late in the period, as Liam Ohgren sat for tripping Adam Gaudette. Once again, the Vancouver penalty kill stood strong.

With just over a minute remaining in the period, Ohgren sniped a shot from the faceoff circle, beating Askarov and doubling the Canucks' lead. 

Lekkerimaki took another penalty at 6:59 in the third period when he interfered with Macklin Celebrini, This time, the Sharks finally cashed in on their chance, as Will Smith fired a shot past Merilainen to break the shutout 8:00 into the final frame.

Smith then scored his second of the night, and sixth of the season, with 9:21 remaining in regulation. 11 seconds later, Mason Marchment scored his fourth of the season, giving the Sharks a 3-2 lead despite being outplayed for most of the night. 

Michael Kesselring took a penalty with just under three minutes left in regulation, allowing Malhotra to take his timeout ahead of their power play. Once Vancouver got the puck, Merilainen went to the bench for the extra attacker, making it 6-on-4 for two minutes. The Sharks' penalty kill stood tall, and they walked away with a 3-2 victory.

Despite the Sharks finding a way to leave this game with two points, their performance in the first 50 minutes cannot be swept under the rug due to finding a way to win. There were major problems that could've easily caused them to lose to the NHL's last place team which undoubtedly still need to be addressed.