Sharks at Blackhawks
THE STORY: With the offense the Chicago Blackhawks enjoy, they don’t need much out of their goaltender to earn a win. Still, top goaltender Corey Crawford has had a difficult time maintaining that minimum standard of late, leaving the door open for backup Ray Emery to earn a promotion. Emery has won his last two starts and has come on in relief of Crawford in two other games recently. The Blackhawks have won five of seven overall and have scored at least three goals in each of the last four contests. Attempting to poke holes in the Chicago goaltending situation on Sunday will be the visiting San Jose Sharks, who were shut out in St. Louis on Saturday night. The Sharks have dropped five of their last seven and are last in the NHL on the penalty kill.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CSCA (San Jose), WGN (Chicago)
ABOUT THE SHARKS (15-10-1): San Jose yielded another power-play goal on Saturday, this one coming with 26 seconds left in the first period in a 1-0 loss. The Sharks have allowed at least one goal on the penalty kill in each of the last four games. Antti Niemi has been the tough-luck loser in four of his last six outings despite not allowing more than three tallies in any of the games. Backup Thomas Greiss could get the call in net on Sunday. Greiss was torched for five goals in his last start.
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (17-8-4): Chicago has gotten plenty of production out of its offensive stars lately, with Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa combining for 27 points in the last four games. Hossa and Sharp recorded three points apiece on Thursday at the New York Islanders, with Sharp tallying the game-winner in overtime. Emery got the start in that game and made 31 saves, helping to kill off five penalties.
OVERTIME:
1. Emery has made three career starts against the Sharks, going 1-2-0 with a 4.00 GAA.
2. San Jose has won four of the last five meetings since the Blackhawks swept the Sharks on the way to the Stanley Cup in 2010.
3. The Sharks are in a 1-for-26 slump on the power play.