Evander Kane doesn’t know why he keeps putting up big numbers against the Calgary Flames.
Kane had a goal and an assist to help the San Jose Sharks beat the Flames 3-1 Sunday night.
The 27-year old forward, in his 10th season with his fourth team, now has 10 goals and six assists in 12 career games against Calgary.
“I have no idea,” Kane said. “I’ve played in the (Eastern Conference) a lot of my career, too, we saw those guys twice a season. For some reason, the pucks seem to be going in when we play against these guys.”
Joe Pavelski had a goal and two assists, Joonas Donskoi also had a goal and an assist, and Martin Jones stopped 29 shots as the Sharks snapped a two-game skid.
Sean Monahan scored and Mike Smith had 26 saves for the Flames, who had won five of their previous six.
Kane put the Sharks ahead 50 seconds into the game with his sixth of the season. Donskoi scored less than a minute and a half into the second with is fourth.
Jones stopped a penalty shot from Sam Bennett with 7:38 left in the third period with Calgary trailing 2-1.
“It was frustrating because we played so well,” Bennett said. “It doesn’t feel good not getting the tying goal. I’ll try to think of something else the next time.”
Under persistent pressure in the third period, Jones had 14 saves.
“Jonesy made some phenomenal saves and you need that, their guy was making phenomenal saves too on high danger chances,” Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said. “Good teams need great goaltending, and he made timely saves for us.”
The Sharks were coming off an 0-2 road trip.
“Obviously it wasn’t a great road trip for us, so to come back and respond the way we did at home with the big win, that was huge for us,” Jones said.
The Flames capitalized on a turnover as Monahan scored a breakaway at 6:02 of the second to make it 2-1. Mark Jankowski assisted Monahan’s goal after taking the puck away from Erik Karlsson.
“I thought we generated some good looks in the third, we just weren’t able to put them in,” Flames defenceman Mark Giordano said. “We didn’t go to the net. They were more committed to putting the puck on the net and forechecking than we were.”
Pavelski scored an empty-netter in the final minute.
“It feels good to be home,” Pavelski said. “Right from the first ceremony tonight there was good energy in this building, I think the players felt it, and responded well too.”