National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
San Jose 4, Minnesota 3
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Where: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Referees: Brian Pochmara, Dan O'Rourke
Linesmen: Mike Cvik, Ryan Galloway
Attendance: 19043

Sharks 4, Wild 3 (OT): Defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic drilled a shot from the top of the left faceoff circle past Darcy Kuemper at 3:09 of overtime as visiting San Jose posted its third win in four games.

It was the career high-tying sixth goal of the season and second game-winner in as many nights for Vlasic, who scored with 4.5 seconds remaining to snap a tie at Winnipeg on Monday. Joe Pavelski recorded a goal and an assist, rookie Melker Karlsson and Tommy Wingels also tallied and Alex Stalock made 28 saves for the Sharks, who improved to 2-0-0 on their three-game road trip.

Jason Zucker registered two goals and an assist while defenseman Jared Spurgeon also scored for the Wild, who suffered their eighth loss in 10 contests (2-4-4) as they were without leading scorer Zach Parise due to personal reasons. Jason Pominville notched a pair of assists and Kuemper turned aside 22 shots as Minnesota had its seven-game home winning streak against San Jose halted.

The Wild got on the board with 4:39 left in the first period as Stalock put a clearing attempt from behind his net right on the stick of Zucker, who beat the scrambling goaltender on the short side from the left faceoff circle. Zucker helped double the lead two minutes later with a pass from behind the net to Spurgeon, who also beat Stalock short side from the right circle.

San Jose began its comeback midway through the second, when defenseman Brent Burns' dump-in caromed off the end boards and into the low slot for Karlsson, who slipped a backhander past Kuemper. Pavelski scored off a faceoff at 6:21 of the third and Wingels buried his own rebound 74 seconds later for a 3-2 lead, but Zucker redirected Charlie Coyle's pass from along the right-wing boards with 7:48 remaining to forge a tie.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Parise left the team to be with his father, former NHL player J.P. Parise, who is battling stage 4 lung cancer. ... Zucker, who registered his third two-goal performance of the season, pulled even with Parise and RW Nino Niederreiter for the team lead in tallies with 14. ... Karlsson has scored in three straight games after tallying just once in his first nine NHL contests.
Top Game Performances
 
San Jose   Minnesota
Joe Pavelski 2 Points Jason Zucker 3
Joe Pavelski 1 Goals Jason Zucker 2
Brent Burns 2 Assists Jason Pominville 2
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Alex Stalock .903 Save Percentage Darcy Kuemper .846
Alex Stalock 28 Saves Darcy Kuemper 22
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
San Jose 26 4 0-4 2-2 6 38
Minnesota 31 3 0-2 4-4 10 32
Upcoming Games
  • Minnesota will play their next game at home against Chicago. The Wild have a W/L % of .421 after a win and .526 after a loss.
  • San Jose will play their next game on the road against St. Louis. The Sharks have a W/L % of .524 after a win and .550 after a loss.