Sharks at Flames
The San Jose Sharks have earned a point in four of their last five games but have been unable to secure a victory. San Jose looks to halt its winless streak when it visits the Calgary Flames on Tuesday. The Sharks appeared on their way to snapping the drought at Winnipeg in the opener of their five-game road trip Sunday, but Jets captain Andrew Ladd scored the tying goal with 1:43 remaining in the third period and the only tally of the shootout.
Calgary kicks off a three-game homestand after concluding its four-game road trip with three straight losses. The trek got off to a great start as the Flames posted a 3-2 overtime win at Chicago, but the club was unable to reach the three-goal mark again, totaling five tallies in losses at Minnesota, St. Louis and Colorado. Calgary failed on both of its power-play opportunities against the Avalanche and is 0-for-30 over its last nine contests.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, CSN California (San Jose), RSN West (Calgary)
ABOUT THE SHARKS (10-2-5): Dan Boyle scored a pair of power-play goals in Sunday's loss, marking the fourth time in franchise history a defenseman has tallied twice with the man advantage in a game. Boyle did it for the second time, while Jason Demers and current general manager Doug Wilson also have accomplished the feat. Antti Niemi has struggled during the winless streak, allowing a total of 18 goals.
ABOUT THE FLAMES (6-9-2): Lee Stempniak is inching closer to a return, as he participated in a full practice on Sunday. The right wing, who has been sidelined since Oct. 24 with a broken foot, possibly could be in the lineup Tuesday. "I felt pretty good," Stempniak said after practice. "I'm that much closer to playing in a game, hopefully." Stempniak has recorded four goals and five assists in 10 games this season.
OVERTIME
1. D Ladislav Smid is expected to make his debut with the Flames after being acquired from Edmonton on Friday.
2. Sharks captain Joe Thornton is 10 assists away from tying Pierre Turgeon (812) for 29th place on the all-time list.
3. Calgary assigned Chad Billins to Abbotsford of the American Hockey League on Saturday after the defenseman recorded an assist in each of his first two NHL games.