Alexander Wennberg buried the winner just 2:49 into overtime, capping a spirited San Jose comeback as the Sharks erased a two-goal deficit and edged the Toronto Maple Leafs 3–2 on Thursday night.

Following an offside review, the goal was confirmed and the Sharks improved to 15-14-3 on the year, while the Leafs fell to 14-11-5

John Klingberg delivered a standout performance with a goal and an assist, while Dmitry Orlov supplied the remaining offense for San Jose (15-14-3). Alex Nedeljkovic was sharp throughout, turning aside 28 shots, and Wennberg—who orchestrated much of the Sharks’ push—added two primary assists to accompany his OT heroics.

Auston Matthews and Dakota Joshua found the back of the net for Toronto (14-11-5), which couldn’t hang on to its early cushion. Dennis Hildeby made 29 saves in a solid outing, and William Nylander chipped in with a pair of assists as the Leafs settled for a single point despite a strong start.

SHARKS CLAW BACK

Matthews pushed the lead to 2–0 midway through the second period, ripping home a power-play marker for his 13th of the season — and his fourth in the past seven outings. The strike finally broke Toronto’s brutal 2-for-28 slump with the man advantage, offering a momentary sigh of relief for a unit that has labored for weeks.

San Jose fought back when Orlov snapped Hildeby’s shutout streak at 132 minutes, six seconds, wiring home his first of the campaign to cut the deficit to 2–1 heading into the intermission. Klingberg later dragged the Sharks level, blasting a point shot through traffic in the dying minutes of regulation after Barclay Goodrow’s earlier pinball-style tally was negated on an offside challenge in the third.

Toronto’s night grew even more precarious on the back end. Already missing top defenders Chris Tanev (upper-body) and Brandon Carlo (lower-body), the Leafs lost Oliver Ekman-Larsson early in the final frame when Sharks winger Adam Gaudette fell awkwardly onto his left ankle along the boards.

Notables

Wennberg sealed the victory in overtime with a slick, instinctive finish, deftly kicking the puck from his skate to his stick in tight before sliding it past Hildeby for the decisive goal.

Matthews scored career goal #414, pulling within seven markers of  Mats Sundin (420) for the most goals in Maple Leafs history.

Next Game

The Sharks travel to face the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. ET. The Pens will look slightly different entering the game as they'll have a new starting goaltender. 

The Penguins traded goaltender Tristan Jarry and forward Sam Poulin to the Edmonton Oilers in a deal that sends Stuart Skinner, defenseman Brett Kulak, and a 2029 second-round draft pick back to Pittsburgh.

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