Sharks rally late, defeat Leafs in shootout to snap eight-game skid
Fabian Zetterlund scored in the fourth round of the shootout as the San Jose Sharks battled back from a two-goal deficit in the third period to stun the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Monday night and snap an eight-game slide.
Tyler Toffoli and Jack Thompson scored in regulation for last-place San Jose. Alexander Wennberg added two assists. Alexandar Georgiev made 25 saves through 65 minutes of action.
John Tavares, with a goal and an assist, and Matthew Knies scored for Toronto, which saw a five-game winning streak snapped. Anthony Stolarz stopped 20 shots.
Toronto forward Calle Jarnkrok suited up for the first time in 2024-25 — and the 700th regular-season game of his career — after getting hurt in training camp. He then had groin and sports hernia surgery in November.
Takeaways
Leafs: Played at Scotiabank Arena for the first time since Feb. 22 and now hit the road again for another trip that won't see Toronto back again until March 13 — a stretch of one home game in 18 days.
Sharks: Timothy Liljegren faced the Leafs for the first time since being dealt to San Jose in October. Selected 17th overall at the 2017 NHL draft, the Swede put up 75 points in 243 regular-season games with Toronto, but was never able to solidify a blue-line spot.
Key moment
After William Nylander scored for Toronto in the third round of the shootout and Toffoli tied it, Tavares was denied by Georgiev before Zetterlund won it for the Sharks.
Key stat
Macklin Celebrini is tied for second behind Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson in the rookie scoring race with 44 points in 50 games. The 18-year-old forward picked No. 1 by San Jose at the 2024 draft missed 12 games this season with a hip injury.
Up next
The Sharks continue a seven-game road trip Tuesday against the Sabres. The Maple Leafs open a three-game road trip Wednesday against the Golden Knights.
