In San Jose, the Edmonton Oilers’ Stuart Skinner made 20 saves on Monday night in a 3-0 shut out over the Sharks.
It was his first NHL career shutout.
“It was pretty special,” Skinner said. “To say that I got an NHL shutout is something cool and something that you dream of as a kid. Definitely a really special moment and I’m really grateful for it.”
Evander Kane returned to San Jose for the first time since signing with the Oilers.
“I thought he was a big factor in the game tonight,” Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said. “When I talked to Evander yesterday, he told me how much he just wanted to get the two points in the bank for the Edmonton Oilers and how that took precedent over everything else. … I’m extremely impressed with him as an individual. I think he’s a good hockey player and he makes us a better team with him in the lineup.”
The Sharks dropped to 22-21-4.
“I think that you can see there wasn’t a lot of sharpness to our game, and that’s the worry after being on a break that long,” San Jose head coach Bob Boughner said. “But you’ve got to find ways at this time of year and there are no excuses. Those are big points we let go of. I thought through the first two periods, analytically I mean, the chances are 4-2 us. I think they scored on all their chances, which were sifters with tips and traffic, and [then] they got inside us at our net a little bit too early.”
“It just wasn’t good enough. It’s not good enough. You’ve got to find ways to scrape points together this time of year.”
Edmonton got goals from Connor McDavid, Darnell Nurse, and Warren Foegele.
“I thought we played a full 60 minutes,” Woodcroft said. “There were times when the other team had some chances, but we really, really liked the commitment to the defensive side of the puck, the commitment to working back to our end. It was impressive to see those players put in the work they put in.”
Edmonton improved to 25-18-3.
“We haven’t played with a lead early in games a lot this season,” Nurse said. “But when you find a way to get it and just stick to your game plan, not take the foot off the gas, I think it’s huge.”
James Reimer made 38 save in the San Jose loss.
“We had a good start, first five minutes,” the Sharks’ Logan Couture said. “[If] we get that first goal, I think it changes the complexion of the game.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.