The San Jose Sharks are just not in the same weight class as the Vegas Golden Knights, and they haven’t been for years.
The question remains – who do the Sharks match up well against right now?
The Sharks got off to another devastatingly slow start Saturday, allowing 22 shots and three goals in the first period in what became a 7-3 loss to the Golden Knights, marking their ninth straight defeat to start the season.
With the loss, the Sharks became the first team in NHL history to go winless in their first nine games in back-to-back seasons.
The Sharks (0-7-2) allowed goals to Tanner Pearson and Jack Eichel in the opening 3:47 before Brett Howden scored off an assist from Tomas Hertl for a 3-0 Golden Knights 16:46 into the first period.
The Sharks got goals from Mikael Granlund, Nico Sturm, and Luke Kunin but never seriously threatened the Golden Knights. San Jose is now 0-16-3 in October games since a 4-3 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 27, 2022.
It was a night to forget for Sharks goalie Vitek Vanecek, who was under siege for the first two periods but also experienced a couple of moments he’d like to have back.
Pearson’s goal on the first shot of the game at the 1:57 mark of the first period went right between Vanecek’s pads, a deflating moment for a Sharks team hoping to get off to a decent start.
Then, in the second period with the Sharks on the power play, soon after Granlund scored his fourth of the season at the 10:13 mark, Vanecek was indecisive about coming out to play the puck that had been cleared into the San Jose end.
William Karlsson won the race to the puck, chipped it ahead to himself, skated back toward the center of the ice, and fired a shot that beat Vanecek and Alexander Wennberg for a 4-1 Golden Knights lead.
Vanecek made 35 saves on 42 shots.
Granlund’s goal snapped a 10-period goalless drought at even strength. But a chance to make it a one-goal game on a power play that’s been good of late turned right back into a three-goal deficit.
It was simply the kind of gaffe the Sharks could ill afford to make.
Now the Sharks close the road trip against the Utah Hockey Club, then return home to face the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday. They’ll have to win one of those games to avoid the indignity of going winless in their first 11 games for a second straight season.
The Sharks started 0-10-1 last year, matching the second-longest winless streak to start a year in NHL history. Six other teams have gone 11 games without a win to start a season, but the 1943-44 New York Rangers hold the all-time record, going their first 15 games without a win.
The Sharks face a Utah team next week that started the year on a hot streak but has since lost five of its last six to fall to 4-4-1.
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The Sharks have a rematch against the Kings, who they just lost two 3-2. At Crypto.com Arena on Thursday, the Sharks fell behind 3-0 after the first period, steadily improving as the game continued but could not find the equalizer.
The Sharks remain one of the lowest-scoring teams in the NHL. They still haven’t received a goal from one of their defensemen this season and are waiting for a handful of their forwards to find the back of the net.