Coyotes 3 - 5 Sharks
Final
  for this game

Sharks' Marleau scores two more, including winner vs. Coyotes

Jan 25, 2013 - 7:55 AM San Jose, CA (Sports Network) - Patrick Marleau continued his torrid start to the season, scoring two of the Sharks' four third-period goals, and San Jose rallied to beat the Phoenix Coyotes, 5-3, in its home opener at HP Pavilion.

Marleau's fifth goal of the young season started the comeback and his sixth put the Sharks ahead with 1:53 remaining. Joe Thornton supplied the empty-net, power-play goal in the waning seconds to go along with three assists.

"They're clicking," Sharks head coach Todd McLellan said of Marleau and Thornton. "They had big nights tonight. Teams are going to count on their big guys to get the job done. Ours are producing right now."

Joe Pavelski had three helpers for the Sharks, who opened the season with wins at Calgary and Edmonton.

Steve Sullivan had a goal and an assist for Phoenix, which squandered a 3-1 lead in the third. Jason LaBarbera, starting in place of Mike Smith, stopped 30 shots.

"It's a shame because we played so well for most of the game," Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett said. "In the third period we made a couple of errors and it cost us.

Smith missed the game with a lower-body injury suffered in Wednesday's home win over Columbus.

Antoine Vermette broke a 1-1 tie with a power-play goal five minutes into the period. Lauri Korpikoski then beat San Jose goalie Antti Niemi with a sharp- angle shot at 7:28.

But the Sharks fought back, beginning with Thornton feeding Marleau on the doorstep at 9:15. Martin Havlat pulled San Jose even nearly four minutes later after he took a couple of whacks at the side of the net.

On the winning goal, Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic forced a turnover in the neutral zone. Thornton jumped on the puck, spun and sent a long pass to Pavelski. He then chipped the puck ahead to Marleau, who beat LaBarbera with a wrister from the right circle.

San Jose, which couldn't convert on a lengthy two-man advantage in the early stages of the game, opened the scoring on a power play late in the first period. Logan Couture was able to redirect Pavelski's point shot past LaBarbera.

Sullivan, fresh off his eighth career hat trick against the Blue Jackets, lit the lamp on a 5-on-3 power play at the 7:11 mark of the middle stanza.

Game Notes

Niemi made 32 saves ... The Coyotes were 4-1-1 against the Sharks in 2011-12, with Smith recording three shutouts ... San Jose forward Adam Burish played in his 300th NHL game.






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