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 Edmonton went 0-13-2 during a combined 15 games at Anaheim, Los
Angeles and San Jose since April 1, 2012, before finally breaking
through again with a 5-4 win over the Sharks.
Left winger Rob Klinkhammer, an unlikely hero, ended the suspense by
scoring in the final round of the shootout, while Oilers goalie
Viktor Fasth allowed only a Brent Burns goal in Round 5 while
thwarting 12 other San Jose shooters.
"That's my first (shootout attempt) in the NHL, so I'm 1-for-1,"
Klinkhammer said. "That's about 100 percent ... that's usually what
I clip around."
Edmonton interim coach Todd Nelson added, "We only had three players
left ... and all three were pretty relieved."
The Sharks saw a three-game winning streak halted during the seventh
and final game of a season-long homestand. Monday's shootout was the
longest in San Jose history.
 "It's entertaining, it really is, but you want to win," said Sharks
right winger Joe Pavelski, who scored two goals in regulation. "Once
you go, you slowly turn into a fan as it goes longer and longer.
It's tough. Obviously, we didn't get the result we wanted."
After Burns scored on a shot that clipped the underside of the
crossbar, a goal upheld by video review, Fasth stopped Melker
Karlsson, Tomas Hertl, Barclay Goodrow, Matt Tennyson, Tyler
Kennedy, James Sheppard, Matt Nieto and Matt Irwin in succession.
Center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was the only other Oiler to score in the
shootout, and he had to answer Burns' goal in Round 5 to keep the
tiebreaker alive.
"For a moment, I thought we were going to start using the trainers,"
said Oilers right winger Jordan Eberle, who scored two goals in
regulation. "But it was an exciting game for the fans."
After Pavelski gave the Sharks a 4-3 lead at 9:28 of the third
period, the Oilers evened the score at 17:23 when defenseman Justin
Schultz slipped a wrist shot from the right circle under the pads of
sliding San Jose goalie Antti Niemi.
Pavelski scored his team-leading 27th goal and second of the night
in dramatic fashion, dropping to a knee just to the left of the net
to line up a long shot-pass by Burns from the right point. Center
Joe Thornton, who had three assists on the night, picked up his
600th career assist as a Shark on Pavelski's goal.
It took San Jose only 3:49 of the final period to score twice and
tie the game.
Veteran defenseman Scott Hannan joined the rush to tap home his
first goal in 73 games thanks to a nice centering feed from Thornton
at 2:19. Hannan last scored on Nov. 23, 2013, against the New Jersey
Devils.
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Tennyson pounded his second of the season from the high slot past
Fasth, who complained to no avail that San Jose center Logan Couture
interfered. Edmonton defenseman Andrew Ference appeared to push
Couture into Fasth. "The first couple periods we could have played better," Tennyson
said. "To come back facing adversity was good. But at the same time,
we didn't get the second point." Fasth finished with 33 saves
through overtime, while Niemi stopped 36 shots.
"I think we played pretty good for 40 minutes -- and then we let
them in in the third and they tied it, and even took the lead, but
we came back, so that was a good thing for us to fight back," Fasth
said.
Edmonton (14-28-9) scored two goals during a dominating second
period to take a 3-1 lead. Eberle pounced on a rebound 22 seconds
into the period for his second of the game, and unmarked center
Derek Roy scored from the slot at 9:39.
The Sharks and Oilers traded first-period goals, but the hosts felt
slighted when an apparent tiebreaking score inside the final minute
was waved off. Sheppard was ruled to interfere with Fasth before
Hertl nudged a rebound left on a shot by Hannan into the net at
19:20.
The Sharks (27-17-7) jumped out first when Pavelski scored his
league-high-tying 14th power-play goal seven seconds into a hooking
penalty by Edmonton Ference. Left winger Patrick Marleau's centering
feed glanced off Pavelski's right skate and past Fasth at 11:50.
The Oilers tied it at 18:03 when Eberle first pulled the puck around
Marleau and then Burns before beating Niemi for his first of the
night.
NOTES: Injured Edmonton RW Tyler Pitlick (spleen) and D Nikita
Nikitin (shoulder) remain out. ... San Jose RW Tyler Kennedy was
back after missing the first two games following the All-Star break
due to back spasms. He replaced RW Tye McGinn, who sustained an
undisclosed upper-body injury against Chicago on Saturday. ... The
Sharks play the Flames in Calgary on Wednesday. ... The Oilers
return home to host Pittsburgh on Wednesday. ... San Jose was 19-3-4
in its past 26 games against Edmonton. ... RW Daniil Tarasov and D
Mirco Mueller were healthy scratches for San Jose. ... LW Luke
Gazdic was Edmonton's lone healthy scratch.
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