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Pavelski leads Sharks past Red Wings

Jan 10, 2014 - 7:52 AM San Jose, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Joe Pavelski potted a pair of goals to help the San Jose Sharks claim a 4-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday at SAP Center.

Dan Boyle and Andrew Desjardins each scored once, while Antti Niemi made 24 saves for the Sharks, who have won three of their last five games.

Tomas Tatar tallied Detroit's lone goal, while Jimmy Howard allowed all four goals on 23 shots before being replaced by Petr Mrazek to start the third.

Mrazek stopped the only three shots he faced in relief for the Red Wings, who have lost three of their last four games.

"With this group we need good discipline and good goaltending and we didn't get it," Detroit head coach Mike Babcock said.

After Pavelski and Tatar exchanged goals in the first period, the Sharks struck three times in the second stanza to assume control of the contest.

Desjardins started the flurry with a nice individual effort near the midpoint of the period, as he chipped the puck to himself off the left boards to get around a defender at the red line before beating Howard short-side from the low left circle to make it 2-1 at 9:44.

Pavelski extended the margin less than three minutes later when he buried a rebound from the low left side for a 3-1 lead at 12:25.

"He's been really good," Sharks head coach Todd McLellan said of Pavelski. "We need to keep him that way. When the team really needs him, he elevates his game."

With the Sharks skating on the power play just over four minutes later, Boyle beat Howard to the far side with a wrister from the low right circle, capping San Jose's second-period outburst.

Niemi turned aside all five shots he faced in the third.

Game Notes

San Jose center Joe Thornton tallied two assists to give him 45 on the season ... Pavelski has 21 goals this season, marking the fifth time in his career that he's scored 20-or-more goals ... San Jose's Bracken Kearns recorded his first career assist ... Detroit has lost four straight to San Jose ... The Red Wings went 0-for-5 on the power play.