Sharks blow chance to close out Predators in Game 6

The San Jose Sharks held several advantages in Game 6 against the Nashville Predators before losing in overtime.

They held a 2-0 lead through most of the first period. They held a 3-2 lead midway through the third period. But they still struggled in an area that’s troubled them in recent years. The Sharks simply couldn’t close out an opponent in a series clinching game and now will be forced to try to do so in Game 7 at SAP Center on Thursday.

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“They were stronger than us – that was the key,” Sharks forward Logan Couture said. “They were winning more puck battles down low there and at the blue lines. They pinched, we weren’t strong enough on the boards to get it out and they won the game.”

After the Sharks took their first period advantage, they allowed two goals by the Predators, one late in the first and another early in the second period, which tied the game at 2-2 by the 1:25 mark of the second.

In the third period, San Jose went up 3-2 at the 10:04 mark on a power play goal by Couture. The Predators then tied the game when the Sharks left Nashville leading playoff scorer Colin Wilson wide open in front of the net for an easy tap-in goal off a James Neal feed at the 12:44 mark.

In overtime Viktor Arvidsson fired what at first looked like a harmless backhand at goaltender Martin Jones. The shot kept rising and took off to beat Jones high to the glove side to give Nashville the win.

“We didn’t have our best game, but we had our chance to go out and score our goal and win a series. Unfortunately, we didn’t,” captain Joe Pavelski said when asked about the overtime. “They were better than us tonight; that’s just the game. We weren’t good enough, so we’re going to need to be a lot better in Game Seven.”

Going back to their seven-game loss to the Los Angeles Kings in 2013 in the playoffs, the Sharks are 1-6 in their last seven chances to eliminate an opponent. This includes blowing a 3-0 lead to the Kings in 2014.

In this game, the Sharks were tentative. San Jose attempted 45 shots to Nashville’s 76.  Overall the Predators fired 32 shots on goal to 18 shots on goal for the Sharks.

When San Jose went up 2-0, they silenced the Predators' home crowd of 17,292. Then when Roman Josi scored an unassisted goal at the 15:27 mark of the first period to bring the game to 2-1, the Predators got life and Bridgestone Arena, known as one of the NHL’s loudest, started to roar.

“It gave them a jolt. I thought it got the building energized and changed the momentum for sure,” coach Peter DeBoer said. “We lost (Matt) Nieto at the end of the first period, which kind of affected our lines. We basically had to go down to three lines, which hurt our depth a little bit. It hurt our push the rest of the game I felt. You know, it is what it is, we had some chances we could have won the game. They did a little bit more than us tonight and we have got a game at home which is what you play all season for.”

Throughout the playoffs, the Sharks have continuously said this group is different than past teams that failed in the postseason. Pavelski supposedly brought a different attitude as captain. DeBoer brought fresh ideas as a coach. Now it comes down to proving this in one game to punch a ticket to the Western Conference Final.

“It’s been tough. They (Nashville) beat Anaheim, you know? So, this is a good hockey team we’re playing,” DeBoer said. “I think we’re a good hockey team. The momentum has shifted back and forth, everybody has won all of their home games. Like I said, based on how the series has been played, this should come down to one game in Game Seven. That’s what hockey is about and like I said we’re excited that it’s in our building. We worked all year for home-ice advantage in this situation and we intend to take advantage of it.”

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper