OTTAWA - There was no denying the huge sense of relief from the Ottawa Senators.
Thanks to Vladimir Tarasenko鈥檚 game-winning goal with 3.3 seconds remaining in regulation time, the Senators were able to snap a five-game losing streak and pick up a 5-4 win over the San Jose Sharks.
Despite being outplayed in the third, the Sharks (10-30-3) managed to tie the game with just over three minutes remaining with a goal from Filip Zadina and it looked like the game was headed to overtime.
With time winding down the Senators managed to hem the Sharks deep in their end. Tarasenko shoved Justin Bailey, who bumped into Mackenzie Blackwood, allowing Tarasenko to pick up Artem Zub鈥檚 rebound and find the back of the net.
The goal was reviewed for goaltender interference, but the call on the ice stood.
鈥淚鈥檓 not going to lie; winning is nice,鈥 said Tarasenko. 鈥淔irst of all, we shouldn鈥檛 have allowed the (tying) goal. We should make sure the puck is out and it doesn鈥檛 get to this nervous situation where you鈥檙e scoring at the end. It鈥檚 very nice to win a game.鈥
It was yet another deflating loss for the Sharks, who have struggled all year.
鈥淲e were fighting all night to battle back and getting that last one late to tie the game, obviously we wanted to get it to overtime to at least get a point,鈥 said Bailey.
鈥淔or me we kind of got caught out there and I took like a half second to look for where my guy was and at that point I got hit into our goalie and the puck squirted right out to him so, obviously, it鈥檚 a tough way to lose.鈥
Coming off a road trip that saw them go 0-5-0 the Senators were relieved to finally pick up the first win of the calendar year.
鈥淚t鈥檚 huge,鈥 said Drake Batherson, who had a goal and assist. 鈥淭o finally get a win feels good. A little nerve-racking there when they had to go upstairs for the last goal, but we鈥檒l take any win we can get at this point.鈥
Claude Giroux, Thomas Chabot and Brady Tkachuk also scored for Ottawa (15-23-0), while Joonas Korpisalo turned away 15 shots. Tim Stutzle had four assists.
鈥淚 thought we had a great effort; we played very well,鈥 said Ottawa interim head coach Jacques Martin. 鈥淲e鈥檝e just got to keep learning about managing the puck better, recognizing situations.
" 鈥 It was well deserved. We had lots of shots and I thought we were better as far as going to the net and carrying the play.鈥
There was some upside for the Sharks as they had contributions from a number of players who had struggled offensively of late.
Anthony Duclair, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Kevin Labanc and Filip Zadina scored for the Sharks. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 36 shots.
鈥淚t鈥檚 obviously a tough ending for us,鈥 said Zadina. 鈥淲e had been battling the whole game and played hard. It hurts but you have to play the full 60 minutes, not play 59 whatever, just have to play for 60 minutes.鈥
Blackwood was the difference for the Sharks, specifically in the second when the Senators outshot the visitors 22-4.
鈥淗e鈥檚 been outstanding,鈥 said Sharks coach David Quinn. 鈥淗e鈥檚 been outstanding all year and, you know, I鈥檓 just really, really disappointed because we did a lot of good things in Montreal and didn鈥檛 follow it up tonight.鈥
Trailing 2-1 the Sharks tied things early in the second. San Jose broke in on a 2-on-1 and Vlasic, who was the trailer, beat Korpisalo for his first of the season. Less than three minutes later the Sharks took the lead on Labanc鈥檚 second of the season.
Ottawa tied the game on Tkachuk鈥檚 18th of the year and Batherson gave Ottawa the lead scoring on a Jakob Chychrun rebound.
The Senators led 2-1 after the first on goals from Giroux and Chabot.
Duclair cut the lead in half with a shot from the slot midway through the period.
NOTES
Senators C Josh Norris missed his second straight game, G Anton Forsberg (groin) isn鈥檛 expected back until after the NHL All-Star break. Mads Sogaard from AHL Belleville was recalled. Rourke Chartier returned to the lineup after missing the last 12 games. Jacob Bernard-Docker was a healthy scratch. 鈥 San Jose鈥檚 Ty Emberson returned to San Jose for further evaluation with an undisclosed injury. The defenceman is considered out week-to-week.
UP NEXT
Senators: Host the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday.
Sharks: Head to Buffalo to take on the Sabres Monday.
This report by 春色直播was first published Jan. 13, 2024.
