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National Hockey League
San Jose 4, Vancouver 1
When: 10:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 25, 2017
Where: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia
Referees: Marc Joannette, Brian Pochmara
Linesmen: Ryan Gibbons, Kiel Murchison
Attendance: 18139

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- A revamped third line is adding to the San Jose Sharks' firepower.

Tomas Hertl scored a goal and Chris Tierney had two assists as the Sharks defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4-1 on Saturday night.

It's the second game Tierney played center between left winger Hertl and right winger Joel Ward. The combination proved hard to handle for the Canucks.

"I thought we generated some good chances," Tierney said. "I think we can get better too.

"We talked on the bench throughout the game about what we can kind of do to improve and where each other is going to be on the ice. It felt good playing with those guys. It's easy to create offense with them."

San Jose coach Peter DeBoer was impressed with the line.

"I thought some of those guys had our better legs early and it took some of our veterans guys a little longer to get into," DeBoer said. "By the third we were playing the way we can."

Mikkel Boedker and Logan Couture broke open a close game with power-play goals 2:49 apart in the third period for the Sharks, who haven't lost in Vancouver in more than five years.

"That's pretty impressive," Boedker said about the Sharks' 10 straight wins in Vancouver. "We played well here the last time.

"I think you build off that momentum. It's two big points for us in the division race and we have to keep getting points."

Patrick Marleau also scored for the Sharks (36-18-7) who hold a five-point lead over Edmonton and Anaheim in the Pacific Division.

Tierney's assists were his first points since scoring two goals in a 4-1 victory in Vancouver on Feb. 2.

"It's something about Vancouver and the Canadian air," said the Keswick, Ontario, native. "I always feel good when I play here."

The Canucks started the game missing five players from the lineup who were affected by the mumps. Defenseman Luca Sbisa left the game after the second period with what the team said was the stomach flu.

Boedker said the Sharks weren't worried about picking up any illnesses from the Canucks.

"You want to make sure you stay away from all that stuff," he said. "I think once the game is on you don't notice it."

Both teams were coming off five-day breaks and it showed early. Sharks' goaltender Martin Jones, who finished with 35 saves, made some big stops early to keep his team in the game.

"We knew it would be a little messy and it was," said DeBoer. "Jonesy, thankfully, was our best player and gave us a chance to get our legs under us.

"I thought as the game wore on we got better and better. But it wasn't a pretty one by any means."

Daniel Sedin scored for the Canucks (26-29-6), who have three wins in their last 12 games (3-9-0). Vancouver dressed three players from their AHL farm team.

"I thought we played a good game for 60 minutes, battled hard," said Sedin, who scored only his second goal in 17 games. "The young guys came in and played really well.

"We got a lot of pucks to the net and battled hard."

Canucks coach Willie Desjardins said the turning point was Marleau's goal with 51 seconds left in the second period which gave San Jose a 2-1 lead.

"We just didn't quite have the jump we needed," Desjardins said. "They got the power-play goal in the third and that kind of put it away.

"I thought overall the effort was good. I thought our young guys came up and played hard. The first two periods we gave ourselves a real chance to win that game."

DeBoer was impressed with how hard the undermanned Canucks played.

"You have to give them credit, they played a real good game, right from the drop of the puck," DeBoer said. "For a short lineup, they played hard, they played fast, they gave us some issues. So, hats off to them for the effort they had."

NOTES: Canucks D Troy Stecher missed the game with a confirmed case of the mumps while C Markus Granlund, C Michael Chaput, D Nikita Tryamkin and D Chris Tanev all sat out after shown mumps symptoms. ... RW Alexandre Grenier, LW Joseph Labate, D Evan McEneny and D Jordan Subban all were called up from Utica of the AHL. ... RW Jannik Hansen and G Ryan Miller submitted trade lists to GM Jim Benning. ... The Canucks play at home Tuesday against Detroit. ... Sharks RW Joonas Donskoi (flu) didn't make the trip. ... The Sharks' first shot on goal came at 5:04 of the first period. They then collected five in 1:14. ... San Jose's last loss in Vancouver was Jan. 21, 2012. ... D Tim Heed was a healthy scratch. ... The Sharks host Toronto on Tuesday.
Top Game Performances
 
San Jose   Vancouver
Chris Tierney 2 Points Daniel Sedin 1
Mikkel Boedker 1 Goals Daniel Sedin 1
Chris Tierney 2 Assists Henrik Sedin 1
Logan Couture 1 Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Martin Jones .972 Save Percentage Ryan Miller .846
Martin Jones 35 Saves Ryan Miller 22
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
San Jose 26 4 1-1 2-2 9 31
Vancouver 36 1 0-2 0-1 7 32
Upcoming Games
  • Vancouver will play their next game at home against Detroit. The Canucks have a W/L % of .407 after a win and .441 after a loss.
  • San Jose will play their next game at home against Toronto. The Sharks have a W/L % of .629 after a win and .538 after a loss.