Sharks' home slump ends against Wild

Marcio Jose Sanchez, Associated Press

San Jose's Joe Pavelski (8) collides with Minnesota's Mark Parrish in the first period of Tuesday night's NHL game.

San Jose hasn't been dominant in its own rink early this season, but that changed against Minnesota.

By MICHAEL RUSSO, Star Tribune

Last update: December 12, 2007 - 5:53 PM

SAN JOSE, CALIF. - The San Jose Sharks, the NHL's best road team, had a lousy start this season at the Shark Tank (league-low four home victories), but make no mistake, this is a West power.

And just like when the Wild faced West powerhouse Detroit to start this five-game road trip last Friday, the Wild was overmatched and exposed in every way possible Tuesday night by the Sharks during yet another lopsided loss, this time by a 4-1 score.

"It tells you a little bit about our team," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said. "These are good teams. When you do play a good team, you've got to play at your best. ... It tells you that maybe you're just not strong enough. That's what it tells you. You can't hide this. It's right there.

"Every time you play a good team and you can't win, it means you're not strong enough."

The Wild, looking more and more lifeless and perhaps badly in need of some sort of wakeup call from General Manager Doug Risebrough, lost for the third time in four games. It was the Wild's fourth loss by three or more goals in its past six defeats.

"It's getting ridiculous," center Eric Belanger said. "When we fall behind, we put our heads between our legs and say, 'This is over. It's 2-nothing.' ... I do think we made a step in the right direction in the third period. We played hard, and that's what we need to do."

Steve Bernier scored two goals and Joe Pavelski and Mike Grier had one apiece. The Sharks penetrated deep into the Wild's zone all night to make Niklas Backstrom flop around like, well, Manny Fernandez.

Three of San Jose's goals came from directly in front of the goal mouth. The fourth, by Grier, came from between the circles.

"That's how goals are scored these days," Wild forward Brian Rolston said.

In fact, the Wild's lone goal -- a third-period power-play goal by Branko Radivojevic -- came from right in front of the crease.

Defense partners Kim Johnsson and Nick Schultz had a terrible night. They watched the Sharks celebrate a goal right in front of them three times.

The Wild scored two goals or fewer for the 10th time in 14 games, fifth game in a row and 16th time this season. It's scored 18 goals in the past 10 games.

So far this season, the San Jose Sharks have been a one-man show.

Joe Thornton, the NHL's Hart Trophy winner and leading scorer two seasons ago, had accounted for 49.3 percent of his team's offense heading into Tuesday's game.

So it didn't bode well for Minnesota when Sharks coach Ron Wilson decided to dress seven defensemen so he could double-shift Thornton.

While Thornton helped set up Pavelski's first-period goal, his teammates buzzed in the second. The Sharks, who entered with a league-low 18 second-period goals, managed to score three times.

Things turned bad for the Wild after referee Don VanMassenhoven didn't see Sharks defenseman Kyle McLaren sneakily hammer Aaron Voros in the head on a backcheck. A bloody Voros, who sustained a broken nose on the punch, skated to the bench for repair.

"The referee told us he didn't see it," Lemaire said.

By the time Voros' next shift came, you could tell he was infuriated. He first hammered Grier at the side wall, then tried to take a run at Torrey Mitchell just as he gave up the puck to a wide-open Grier, who brushed off the hit, for a 2-0 Sharks lead.

Voros fought McLaren in the third period, but four minutes later with the Wild scrambling, Brent Burns put Bernier's own rebound back on the forward's stick for a second-chance goal and 3-0 lead. Later, with Burns in the penalty box for slashing, Bernier scored again.

The Sharks didn't waste any time forcing the Wild to play behind the eight-ball. Pavelski scored his sixth goal 2 minutes, 39 seconds into the game.

A series of ill-fated events occurred to the Wild to create this San Jose tally. First, Dominic Moore lost a faceoff cleanly. Then, Thornton wound up and took a shot off a pained Radivojevic. With Radivojevic fallen on the ice, Stephane Veilleux cheated over to cover for Radivojevic.

Of course, the sharp-eyed Thornton spotted that and fed defenseman Craig Rivet with a pass across the zone. After Veilleux lost Rivet on the pinch, Backstrom overplayed Rivet despite the fact Schultz had the shot pretty well defended.

With Backstrom five feet out of his net, Veilleux didn't pick up a wide-open Pavelski, who buried Rivet's deflected pass.

Carney OK

Defenseman Keith Carney, hit behind the left knee by a Alexei Semenov snapshot in the third period, only sustained a bruise and is expected to practice in Anaheim on Wednesday.