The Sharks had already wasted four power plays when Jonathan Lekkerimäki gave them one more opening early in the third period. This time, San Jose used it. Will Smith scored 8 minutes into the final frame, then added an even-strength goal 2:39 later before Mason Marchment finished the rapid turnaround 11 seconds after that.
That sequence gave the Sharks a 3-2 victory over Vancouver at SAP Center, a result with a clean central idea: San Jose finally converted a numerical advantage, then showed enough at five-on-five to make the comeback real. The encouraging detail was the variety inside the rally. The power play began it. Regular play completed it.
The first 40 minutes had supplied very little evidence that such a finish was coming. Drew O’Connor opened the scoring with 6:39 remaining in the first period, and Liam Öhgren doubled Vancouver’s lead with 1:04 left in the second. The Canucks outshot San Jose 12-8 in the opening period, and the Sharks managed only seven shots on goal in the next one.
Vancouver held an 18-15 shot advantage after two periods while carrying a 2-0 lead.
San Jose’s power play had been just as unproductive. Its first four chances produced no goal, leaving the Sharks 0-for-4 while Vancouver’s penalty kill remained perfect. When Lekkerimäki was penalized for interference at 6:59 of the third, the next opportunity carried a little more weight than the previous four.
Smith’s goal, assisted by Dmitry Orlov and Marchment, arrived 1:01 later and reduced the deficit to one.
The finish itself mattered, but the timing mattered more. San Jose did not need to manufacture a new game plan in that moment; it needed the advantage already available to produce something tangible. The goal changed the score and altered the burden on Vancouver. Vancouver’s two-goal lead had lasted only since late in the second period. Smith’s goal cut it in half.
Smith’s second goal showed the Sharks were not dependent on another whistle. At 10:39, he scored at even strength with Macklin Celebrini and Michael Kesselring credited with the assists. The goal came through a different route from the first one: no man advantage, no special-teams setup, and no need to wait for Vancouver to commit another penalty.
Smith had tied the game 2:39 after his power-play finish.
Marchment then put San Jose ahead at 10:50. Kiefer Sherwood and Nolan Allan assisted on the goal, which arrived before Vancouver could answer the equalizer. Three goals in 2:50 had turned a two-goal deficit into a one-goal lead, but the contributions were spread across distinct situations.
Smith’s first goal came on the power play. His second and Marchment’s winner came at even strength. That is a more useful description of the comeback than simply calling it a late rally.