The Sharks fans that showed up to Monday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers didn’t have much love for Evander Kane, showering him with boos every time he touched the puck.
What was missing from the announced crowd of 11,153 at SAP Center were opportunities to cheer for their own team, as the Sharks’ offense was stifled in a 3-0 loss to Kane and the Oilers on Valentine’s Day.
The Sharks, coming off a 12-day break between games, finished with just 20 shots on net on Oilers rookie goalie Stuart Skinner who earned his first career shutout.
Kane, who played for the Sharks from 2018 to 2021, had four shots on net in 18:51 of ice time. Warren Foegele, Darnell Nurse and Connor McDavid all scored for Edmonton. which handed the Sharks their sixth loss in seven games dating back to Jan. 20.
Sharks goalie James Reimer had 36 saves in the loss. San Jose’s three-game homestand continues with games against Vancouver on Thursday and Vegas on Sunday.
The Sharks were playing their first game since Feb. 1 and although they recorded the first six shots of the first period, still looked like a team that was coming off a long layoff. Some passes through the neutral zone were off target and the Sharks failed to score on their first two power-play tries with just three shots on net in the process.
Some rust, though, might have affected Reimer’s game in the first period, as the Oilers scored twice on their first four shots.
Warren Foegele scored off a Derek Ryan assist at the 6:05 mark of the first period on the Oilers’ first shot of the game. Just 65 seconds later, Darnell Nurse’s shot from just inside the blue line, which appeared to be deflected in front of the Sharks’ net, got past Reimer for his fifth goal of the season and a 2-0 Edmonton lead.
The Sharks in the first two periods killed off 5:07 of Oilers’ power-play time but managed just nine shots on net at even strength.
Kane, who began the game on a line with Leon Draisaitl and Kailer Yamamoto, had 12:39 of ice time in the first two periods with two shots on net.
Kane was booed every time he touched the puck by the announced crowd of 11,153, absorbed hits from Lane Pederson and Nicolas Meloche and dished one out to Tomas Hertl.
Ultimately, though, it was a fairly uneventful night for Kane, who was playing in his seventh game for the Oilers since he was officially signed by the team to a one-year contract on Jan. 27.
“It’s funny, the coaches asked me that (Sunday), and I really haven’t given it much thought to it,” Kane said when asked about his return to San Jose. “I’m just looking forward to getting out there and getting a win.”
Monday’s game also marked a return to San Jose for Jay Woodcroft, who was named the Oilers' interim coach last Thursday, replacing the fired Dave Tippett.
Woodcroft was a Sharks assistant from 2008 to 2015 on coach Todd McLellan’s staff. He went with McLellan to Edmonton in 2015, coaching there until 2016 before he became the head coach of the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL.
_____
