Burns scores in overtime as Sharks outlast Rangers
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Both the New York Rangers and San Jose Sharks clinched playoff spots on Tuesday, but only the latter skated out of SAP Center feeling satisfied.
Brent Burns broke a 16-game goal drought with his career-high 28th of the season at 3:10 of overtime to give the Sharks a 5-4 victory.
The visitors scored twice early in the third period to cap a three-goal comeback before San Jose's Chris Tierney scored his second of the game at 17:45 to tie it at 4.
New York's Jesper Fast forged a 3-3 tie with a redirected goal at 1:24 of the third period. J.T. Miller converted on a power play for his second of the game and 22nd of the season at 4:44 to put the Rangers on top.
The Sharks were playing without center Logan Couture, who needed emergency dental repair after taking a puck to the mouth on Saturday. Couture's return is uncertain, and the hosts sure paid for his absence as they couldn't hold a lead and surrendered two power-play goals.
San Jose backed into the Stanley Cup playoffs thanks to Los Angeles' 2-1 loss at Edmonton on Tuesday. New York only needed one point to clinch for a seventh straight season.
Jannik Hansen scored his first goal in his ninth game with the Sharks at 1:44 of the first period when he poked a loose puck from the side of the net behind Henrik Lundqvist, who over-committed on a Mikkel Boedker chance in close to start a scrambling situation in his goal crease.
But New York tied it when Miller first won a battle on the boards from San Jose's Paul Martin and Melker Karlsson, then beat Martin Jones with a shot from the right circle that caught a piece of Brent Burns' stick on the way into the upper corner of the net. Miller's 21st goal of the season came at 13:30.
The Sharks went ahead when Karlsson converted a 2-on-1 short-handed break with a wrist shot from the edge of the left circle while using Tierney as a decoy.
Returning after missing eight games with an injury, Karlsson became only the Sharks' fifth double-figure goal-scorer with his 10th at 18:01.
The teams traded goals in the second period as the Sharks took a 3-2 lead to the third.
San Jose built a two-goal edge at 11:38 when Tierney stickhandled through the slot, took the puck off Jimmy Vesey's stick and punched home his career-high eighth goal of the season in close with Lundqvist down and out.
But the Rangers struck back on the power play in the final minute to draw within a goal.
With Patrick Marleau off for interference, Derek Stepan capped a tic-tack-toe passing play to score his 16th goal of the season from the bottom of the left circle with 22.4 seconds left in the period.
NOTES: D Dan Girardi replaced D Kevin Klein alongside D Ryan McDonagh on New York's top pairing. Girardi missed 12 games with an ankle injury before returning Saturday. Klein was out 16 games before playing in Anaheim on Sunday. ... San Jose C Micheal Haley served a one-game suspension on Tuesday. ... Rookie LW Kevin Labanc was recalled from the San Jose Barracuda of the AHL and slipped into the top line while Jannik Hansen moved to a third line alongside C Tomas Hertl and RW Mikkel Boedker. ... LW Matt Puempel replaced LW Pavel Buchnevich on the fourth line. ... LW Marcus Sorensen and D Dylan DeMelo were San Jose's healthy scratches while D Adam Clendening, LW Tanner Glass, D Steven Kampfer and RW Brandon Pirri did not dress for New York.