Mikael Granlund and Mike Hoffman both scored early in the third period to cap two-point nights as the host San Jose Sharks claimed their fourth win of the season with a 4-3 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
Ty Emberson scored his first career NHL goal and Fabian Zetterlund also tallied for the Sharks, who sit last in the league. Goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen made 31 saves, while Tomas Hertl and Calen Addison each tallied two assists.
Brock Boeser scored twice and Filip Hronek collected one goal and one assist for the Canucks. Goalie Casey DeSmith stopped 18 shots and J.T. Miller collected three assists.
With the score tied 2-2, Granlund gave the Sharks their third lead of the game 22 seconds into the third period by going coast-to-coast and finishing a deke to net his first goal of the season.
Hoffman made it a 4-2 game when he notched a power-play goal at 1:48 of the final frame by burying a rebound for his sixth goal of the campaign.
Boeser pulled the Canucks within one goal with his second marker of the game and 15th of the season, which puts him tied for the league lead, during a wild flurry with 3:11 remaining, but the visitors couldn’t find the equalizer.
The Sharks snapped an 11-game skid against the Canucks on a night they never trailed.
Emberson opened the scoring just before the midway point of the first period, but Hronek tied the game while on the power play at 15:37 of the opening frame with his second goal of the season.
Zetterlund restored San Jose’s lead at 14:05 of the second period with his fifth marker of the campaign, but Boeser converted a rebound chance for another Canucks power-play goal to tie the score with 21 seconds remaining in the second period.
With one assist, Vancouver captain Quinn Hughes extended his point streak to 11 games, which matches the run Hronek posted earlier this season and is the longest point streak by a defenseman in franchise history. Hughes has racked up 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) during his spree.
In addition, Hronek and Hughes both hit the 20-assist mark in the 22nd game, becoming the second-fastest pair of defensemen on the same team to hit that milestone in a season. The fastest are Bobby Orr and Carol Vadnais, who reached it in 21 games with the Boston Bruins in 1974-75.
–Field Level Media
