The San Jose Sharks have already moved past the L.A. Kings. They are now on the verge of a berth in the Western Conference final, after defeating the Nashville Predators in a blowout on home ice in Game 5 on Saturday.
The Sharks lead the series 3-2, following a dominant 5-1 victory over the visiting Predators. All that separates San Jose from a spot in the NHL’s Final Four is one more victory. They have the chance to wrap up the series Monday back in Nashville.
If there were any concerns about how the Sharks would respond from losing in triple overtime on Thursday -- having what they thought was their winning goal disallowed after a review on a controversial call -- they put them to rest in convincing fashion.
Patrick Marleau opened the scoring for San Jose. Mike Fisher, the OT hero in Game 4, countered less than five minutes later to tie the game. The Sharks, however, wouldn’t be deterred.
Logan Couture started the second period with a goal and Joe Pavelski finished it with his second of the game and eighth of the playoffs, as San Jose completely took over. For good measure, Melker Karlsson gave San Jose its fifth goal, scoring on Carter Hutton, who replaced starter Pekka Rinne with less than four minutes remaining in the game.