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National Hockey League
San Jose 3, Arizona 0
When: 10:00 PM ET, Sunday, March 20, 2016
Where: SAP Center at San Jose, San Jose, California
Referees: Dave Jackson, Brad Watson
Linesmen: Brian Murphy, Brandon Gawryletz
Attendance: 15756

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Goaltender James Reimer hasn't taken long to fit in and make a favorable impression on his new teammates.

Reimer pitched his second shutout as a member of the Sharks, leading San Jose to a 3-0 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday at SAP Center.

Reimer turned away 25 shots for his 13th career shutout as the Sharks won for the fourth time in six games to again move within one point of second-place Anaheim in the Pacific Division. The Ducks beat the Winnipeg Jets in overtime earlier Sunday.

"It's always a good time when things are going your way," Reimer said. "But it's hard to take credit for that tonight. I thought our team played one of its better games in a long time, especially with it being a back-to-back."

Acquired from Toronto at the trade deadline, Reimer blanked the Edmonton Oilers during his second start with San Jose on March 8. He had gone 98 starts between shutouts, as his previous came on Oct. 29, 2013, as a member of the Maple Leafs.

"He's making all the saves," Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said. "He made a couple saves on the breakdowns. That's what you need. It's great to see him step in that way."

The loss marked the end of a goal-less weekend for the Coyotes, who were shut out by visiting Tampa Bay on Saturday.

"You are looking for opportunities when you aren't scoring and trying to capitalize on what you get," Arizona coach Dave Tippett said. "We didn't generate enough chances on 5-on-5 or the power play."

Forwards Joel Ward, Tomas Hertl and Pavelski provided the goals as San Jose improved to 16-15-3 on home ice by winning its second game in as many days to open a season-long six-game homestand.

"We're confident with the lineup we have every night," said Joe Thornton, who extended his streak of recording a point during each of the team's last 28 wins. "It's been a lot of fun to be a part of this right now."

The Sharks (41-25-6) scored the only goal of the second period to take a 2-0 lead into the third.

San Jose managed to solve Arizona's stingy penalty kill, which was a perfect 18-for-18 spanning six games until it was asked to play short-handed at 11:05 of the middle period as a result of center Boyd Gordon holding San Jose winger Melker Karlsson.

And has been the case of late, it was San Jose's second power-play unit that converted. Hertl scored his 18th goal of the season 57 seconds into the advantage when his centering attempt caromed off the stick of Arizona defenseman Connor Murphy and between the pads of Coyotes goalie Mike Smith at 12:02.

"You need that second unit, that second wave and they've come up huge lately," Pavelski said.

It marked the first power-play goal allowed by Arizona since March 7 at Colorado.

"They have a great power play," Arizona captain Shane Doan said. "We dropped the ball as a unit and we can't do that."

The Sharks had to be strong on the penalty kill to keep their early lead. San Jose killed a combined 5:22 of Coyotes power play time spread over three advantages before the hosts received their first five-on-four.

Arizona (31-34-7) enjoyed a 39-second five-on-three late in the first period when San Jose's Patrick Marleau high-sticked Antoine Vermette to join defenseman Justin Braun in the box. Defensemen Brent Burns, Paul Martin and Ward snuffed out the two-man advantage, and Arizona managed only one shot of the remaining 1:22 of a five-on-four.

Using the successful kill as momentum, the Sharks broke through at 18:28 of the first period to snap the scoreless tie.

Ward scored his third goal in two games when he was credited with his 20th on a shot by defenseman Brenden Dillon that ricocheted past Smith. Ward was battling Arizona defenseman Klas Dahlbeck in the slot as Dillon let his wrist shot go from the left point.

Pavelski scored his 34th goal into an empty net at 18:55 of the third period. And Burns set a franchise mark for a defenseman with his 65th point on an assist.

Smith finished with 33 saves.

"Smitty played well but they found ways to get the puck in the goal," Doan said.

NOTES: The Sharks were without D Marc-Edouard Vlasic (right leg) and LW Matt Nieto (broken knuckle) for a second consecutive game. ... San Jose next plays St. Louis on Tuesday. ... The Coyotes entertain the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday to open a four-game homestand. ... Arizona D Oliver Ekman-Larsson (upper body) and D Nicklas Grossmann remain day-to-day. ... LW Jiri Sekac and LW Sergei Plotnikov were healthy scratches for the Coyotes, while D Matt Tennyson did not dress for the Sharks. ... The game drew a crowd of 15,756.
Top Game Performances
 
Arizona   San Jose
N/A Points Joonas Donskoi 2
N/A Goals Tomas Hertl 1
N/A Assists Joonas Donskoi 2
N/A Power Play Goals Tomas Hertl 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Mike Smith .943 Save Percentage James Reimer 1.000
Mike Smith 33 Saves James Reimer 25
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Arizona 25 0 0-4 3-5 10 37
San Jose 36 3 2-5 4-4 8 25
Upcoming Games
  • San Jose will play their next game at home against St. Louis. The Sharks have a W/L % of .525 after a win and .625 after a loss.
  • Arizona will play their next game at home against Edmonton. The Coyotes have a W/L % of .484 after a win and .390 after a loss.