EDMONTON, Alberta — The streak of shame came to an end after 24 days.
By holding the Edmonton Oilers to just two goals, the Sharks ended a streak in which they surrendered three or more goals in 11 straight games, posting a 4.27 goals-against average over that span.
With the win, the Sharks improved to 31-0 on the season when surrendering two or fewer. Captain Joe Pavelski spelled out the big difference in plain terms, tipping his cap to backup goalie Aaron Dell.
“Deller was great for us. Made some key saves,” Pavelski said.
The captain is right: the Sharks finally received some quality netminding as Dell made 25 saves on 27 shots, including a nifty-blocker stop on Leon Draisaitl’s 32-foot rocket in the middle of the third.