By Brianna Huffmaster – Spear Editor | Macklin Celebrini (left) and Will Smith (right) on the ice during a home game against the Los Angeles Kings on Nov. 25 (Photo by Nick Orozco – Co-Executive Editor of The Spear)
A late-game comeback wasn’t enough as the San Jose Sharks (7-13-5) lost 4-3 at home against the Ottawa Senators (10-11-1) Wednesday night.
It seemed that Ottawa had full control with a 2-0 lead in the first period. San Jose fought back as the game was eventually tied at three with 7:28 left in the third.
The Senators won the battle as they answered right back with the game-winning goal.
Small mistakes by the Sharks played a big part in the outcome as the Senators were able to capitalize.
“We got to play smarter in some scenarios which we’re learning,” Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “Frustrating night.”
Despite the mistakes, there were bright spots for San Jose. Rookie Will Smith had an all-around game with an assist and the game-tying goal. Struggling at the beginning of the season but has slowly found a rhythm on the ice.
All five of his assists have come in November and has three goals on the season after starting his first eight NHL games with zero points.
“We knew [Smith] would figure it out at some point and he’ll probably take another speed bump here along the way but he’s done some really good things,” Warsofsky said. “He takes the coaching, you can see him try to translate it. He’s taking some steps forward.”
Another dominant force was the line consisting of William Eklund, Macklin Celebrini and Fabian Zetterlund, the three combined for 12 shots.
“[There’s] lots of skill and talent [with that line],” Luke Kunin said. “Just want those guys to keep going, build that chemistry. It’s fun to watch.”
Celebrini and veteran Mario Ferraro were the other two Sharks who scored goals in the game.
Ferraro’s goal came on a tic-tac-toe play with assists from Smith and Klim Kostin while Eklund and Jake Walman set up Celebrini.
San Jose outshot Ottawa 39-11.
A common theme for the Sharks this season has been their ability to come back from behind. These comebacks either end in resilient wins or tough defeats.
Though this game resulted in the latter, the Sharks know their identity and will continue to learn from close losses.
“We have that ‘don’t quit’ mentality,” Smith said. “We showed that tonight, I think it was a good effort.”
San Jose will need to adjust quickly as its next game is a divisional matchup against the Seattle Kraken (11-11-1) scheduled for 12:30 p.m. tomorrow at SAP Center.
