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Coyotes-Sharks Preview

Mar 20, 2016 - 6:14 AM The San Jose Sharks are finally bringing some of the play that has resulted in the Western Conference's best road record to their home ice.

They'll try to post a season-high fourth straight home win Sunday night when they meet an Arizona Coyotes team they lost to three days ago.

San Jose (40-25-6) began a six-game homestand with Saturday's 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers. The Sharks snapped a tie with three third-period goals in a game they dominated with their highest shot total - a 52-26 advantage.

''We definitely stuck with it,'' said Joe Pavelski, who had a goal and an assist. ''It's a game where you look up at the end of two periods and we got (37) shots or whatever it's at, tied game. Sometimes those games can go the other way if you get a hot goalie. It's great to see guys come out and establish that body position.''

Pavelski took his season total to 68 points - one behind teammate Joe Thornton, who has five in a four-game run and 18 in his last 14 games. Tomas Hertl had three assists to give him six points in a four-game run.

The Sharks won twice over Arizona (31-33-7) this season before losing 3-1 on Thursday. They also lost Marc-Edouard Vlasic to an injury that night after the defenseman fought the Coyotes' Max Domi early in the second period. Vlasic sat out Saturday but could return for another shot at Domi.

With Vlasic out, Dylan DeMelo was recalled from the minors Saturday and saw his first action since Feb. 22.

"The guys that stepped in were ready to play," Pavelski said. "They filled in nicely. Mels (DeMelo) has done a great job all year so to see him go back in. It's good to see him play well."

Winger Tommy Wingels returned Saturday from a 14-game absence due to a sprained left shoulder, committing penalties in each of the first two periods.

"You do so much and you try and emulate what a game is like but you really can't," Wingels said. "But until you put yourself in those game-like situations, you don't know. But I felt good."

The Coyotes have played the last five games without top defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who has an upper-body injury. Ekman-Larsson, who leads the club with 49 points, will travel to San Jose and could return.

Arizona scored a power-play goal in its first four games without him before that unit was 0 for 6 in Saturday's 2-0 home defeat to Tampa Bay.

''The execution could always be a little better,'' coach Dave Tippett said. ''No. 23 (Ekman-Larsson) would help that.''

Ekman-Larsson leads all NHL defensemen with 27 points on the power play, with San Jose's Brent Burns second with 25.

San Jose will start either Martin Jones, who made 25 saves Saturday, or backup James Reimer. Arizona started Louis Domingue on Saturday and could turn back to Mike Smith, who had 27 saves beating the Sharks on Thursday.

A regulation victory by the Sharks would virtually clinch a playoff spot since it would give them a 19-point edge on the fourth-place Coyotes with 10 games left for both.