The San Jose Sharks had goals from Michael Misa, Ivar Stenberg and Will Smith, but it still wasn’t enough in Dallas. The Stars held on for a 4-3 win at American Airlines Arena, and the Sharks’ slide continued with a seventh loss in their last eight games.
San Jose actually struck first for the first time in nine games, and it came on a sharp setup from Macklin Celebrini. Celebrini created the opening for Misa, who finished to give the Sharks an early edge.
But the lead didn’t last long. A Trouba penalty opened the door for Dallas on a 4-on-3, and Roope Hintz cashed in after the rebound chance developed in front of the net.
The Stars kept pressing from there, and Jason Robertson put Dallas ahead after the Sharks’ penalty kill couldn’t handle the cross-slot movement. Before the period was over, another turnover turned into trouble for San Jose, with Jamie Benn finishing the sequence after the Sharks failed to clear and then failed to clean up the defensive side of the rush.
The Sharks had chances to settle things down, but the execution kept slipping away. Smith had looks in the first period, including one from the slot that Jake Oettinger stopped, and San Jose’s power play never found much rhythm. When the Sharks did get opportunities, Dallas was quick to punish mistakes going the other way.
The second period brought a lift from Stenberg, who scored after Celebrini again did the heavy lifting. Celebrini forced the issue high, the puck stayed alive, and Stenberg had time to make his play on the 2-on-1. That cut the deficit and gave San Jose something to build on.
But the Stars answered again. After the Sharks struggled to get the puck out and couldn’t finish a shift cleanly, Dallas broke back the other way and scored on another mistake in transition. Then Smith delivered on a 5-on-3, burying a gorgeous pass from Marchment to keep the Sharks within reach.
By then, Celebrini was carrying a massive workload, already past 20 minutes played in regulation. San Jose leaned on him heavily, and the effort was obvious. Still, the game kept coming back to the same issue: too many young mistakes, too many missed clears, too many plays that had to be perfect but weren’t.
The Sharks kept trying to push in the third, with Pohlkamp skating out of trouble and Dickinson showing flashes with the puck, but the final stretch never produced the equalizer. Stenberg drew another penalty late, yet the power play again came up empty, and Dallas closed it out from there.
For San Jose, the scoring was there. The finish wasn’t.
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Sharks Let Another Winnable Game Slip As Familiar Problem Returns
Macklin Celebrini did his part in a game the Sharks badly needed, piling up three points and helping San Jose build an early lead before the night turned into another frustrating chase. Michael Misa got the opening goal with Celebrini on the assist, and for a while it looked like the Sharks might finally turn a strong start into something more lasting against Dallas.
Instead, the Stars leaned on the power play to swing the game back their way, and San Jose spent the rest of the night trying to dig out of the hole. Will Smiths late power-play goal gave the Sharks a chance to steal a point at the end, but the equalizer never came and the 4-3 loss became their fifth straight defeat, another reminder that the margin for error keeps shrinking. [Read more 🡒]
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The timing matters because the Sharks have been trying to steady themselves without one of their more reliable two-way options in the middle of the ice. Wennbergs return would not solve everything overnight, but it would give the lineup more structure and experience at a time when the team needs both. There is still a little waiting to do before the next update, and the Sharks will be watching closely to see how soon they can get him back in the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Sharks Young Core Finally Sparked The Offense But One Problem Won Again
The Sharks finally got a little life from their young core in Dallas, scoring three goals for the first time since Oct. 29 and getting contributions from rookies Michael Misa, Ivar Stenberg and Macklin Celebrini. Even in a 4-3 loss to the Stars, there were signs of the offense starting to find some rhythm again after a rough stretch, and Alex Nedeljkovics return in goal gave San Jose a chance to hang around with 26 saves in his first start since Oct. 31.
Still, the same issue that has haunted this team kept dragging it back under. San Joses penalty kill was beaten repeatedly, and a night that could have been a reset instead became the Sharks fifth straight loss and a frustrating finish to a three-game road trip. The young talent is starting to show up on the scoresheet, but until the special teams clean up, those flashes are going to keep getting buried. [Read more 🡒]