The San Jose Sharks and Philadelphia Flyers don’t meet that often, but the two teams lived up to rivalry night with a bitter affair. Call it a mean-spirited version of quality over quantity.
Maybe those bad feelings powered the Sharks in the end; after falling behind 2-1 early in the third period, the Sharks stormed back with three unanswered goals to win the game 4-2.
Joe Pavelski was the ultimate difference-maker on Wednesday, scoring the game-winning goal and the insurance dagger. His captain’s “C” may also be short for “clutch.”
.@SanJoseSharks captain Joe Pavelski (2-0—2) scored his NHL-best 7th GWG of 2015-16. He also hit 20-goal mark for the 7th time in his career
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 31, 2015
Here’s his game-winner:
Another plus for San Jose: Logan Couture didn’t just return from his latest injury issues, he also contributed to the win with two assists.
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Again, there was plenty of nastiness to go around in this one.
Chris VandeVelde stood out by giving and receiving some of the biggest hits of that contest:
VandeVelde says he is OK. Took a nasty hit to head from Burns.
— Sam Carchidi (@BroadStBull) December 31, 2015
The Flyers might feel beat up as a group right now, as they’ve lost the first two games of their tough road trip through California with matching 4-2 losses (they wrap it up against the Kings in Los Angeles on Saturday).
That’s not to say it’s all about news for Philly, though, as Claude Giroux may feel rejuvenated by breaking his five-game pointless streak with a goal.
So that’s a plus ... and there’s also the perk of not having to visit the Sharks in San Jose again this season.