The San Jose Sharks lost their second straight game with a 3-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks in a divisional tilt at Honda Center on Friday night.
Just one day after reassigning defenseman Mirco Mueller to the San Jose Barracuda, the Sharks called him up again. Mueller took an immediate flight to Anaheim Friday morning.
Ducks forward Rickard Rakell returned to the lineup after missing the past two games with an upper-body injury. Rakell has been practicing with the Ducks for the past week and was on the ice Friday for the optional morning skate.
The Ducks jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first period.
Sharks goalie Martin Jones denied a shot by Ducks defenseman Shea Theodore, but Rakell found the rebound and slipped it into the net to give the Ducks a 1-0 lead at 4:44 of the first.
The Ducks made it 2-0 at 15:06 as forward Antoine Vermette sped down the wing on a rush and snapped the puck into the back of the net.
The Sharks got even shortly after the Ducks’ penalty kill expired. Patrick Marleau sent a cross-ice pass to Brent Burns, who blasted a one-timer past Ducks goalie Jonathan Bernier to cut their lead in half with six seconds left in the first.
Burns changed the tempo of the game, but the Sharks trailed the Ducks 2-1 and were outshot 13-10 after the first.
Rookie forward Kevin Labanc tied the game 2-2 at 8:40 of the second period. Forward Logan Couture received a bank pass on the blue line from Joel Ward and sent a cross-ice pass to Labanc, who ripped a shot past Bernier for his third goal of the season.
The Ducks outshot the Sharks 22-18 but the score was tied 2-2 after the second.
A shot by Sharks defenseman Justin Braun went wide and trickled behind the net. Ducks defenseman Hampus Lindholm then fired a snap shot from the top of the circle that beat a screened Jones to score his first career goal and give his team a 3-2 lead at 14:22.
The Sharks played much better than they did Wednesday. San Jose won faceoffs and had tons of scoring opportunities, but the Sharks’ effort fell short in their 3-2 loss to the Ducks.
Bernier finished with 22 saves in an Anaheim victory. Jones made 29 saves in a losing effort for San Jose.
Up Next
The Sharks will return home on Saturday to host the Carolina Hurricanes. Game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PST on CSCA, FSCR.
