Pohlkamp’s Three-Shot Debut Couldn’t Outrun Sharks’ Bigger Problems

Eric Pohlkamp’s first NHL game came with three shots, no points and a minus-one. It also came inside a 7-2 San Jose loss to the Los Angeles Kings, a setting that made the debut worth noting and nearly impossible to judge in isolation.

The 22-year-old defenseman was recalled Tuesday from the San Jose Barracuda, where seven assists in 10 games had made him an intriguing option. By Wednesday, the Sharks had given him an NHL introduction, but not much of a clean audition. Los Angeles scored four times at even strength and three times with the extra skater.

The Sharks scored twice with the man advantage and not at five-on-five.

That is a far larger team problem than one newcomer’s box score.

Pohlkamp’s three shots provide a modest starting point. He was involved enough to send pucks toward the net, yet he did not register a point, and there is no sensible way to turn one difficult night into a verdict on his game. His college résumé and early AHL production explain why San Jose wanted to see him.

They do not answer whether his offensive instincts will translate against NHL pressure, nor whether he can help a defense that surrendered seven goals.

Those questions will require a larger sample. A debut in which the Kings kept extending the margin gave Pohlkamp plenty to handle beyond his own offensive contribution.

The penalty kill made the margin grow quickly. San Jose took five penalties, and Los Angeles converted three of five opportunities. Quinton Byfield’s first power-play goal arrived at 18:38 of the opening period after Tyler Toffoli was called for tripping at 17:19. That pushed the Kings ahead 3-0 before the first intermission and turned San Jose’s next mistake into an expensive one.

A second-period sequence was even more damaging. Bystedt was penalized for holding at 14:55, and less than a minute later Adrian Kempe scored from the left circle on a feed from Alex Laferriere. The goal made it 5-1.

Kempe did not need a complicated chance: Los Angeles moved the puck into a spot where its finisher could release quickly, and San Jose’s penalty kill paid for allowing the sequence to develop.

Kempe finished with three goals and an assist, his fifth NHL hat trick, after missing Saturday against Buffalo with illness. Byfield supplied the Kings’ last goal, tipping a Panarin shot with 14:28 elapsed in the third. Los Angeles scored three times with the extra skater.

Kempe’s night was exceptional, but San Jose repeatedly supplied the Kings with situations in which exceptional finishing could decide the game.

The Sharks’ power play did enough to keep the score from becoming even uglier, though it never threatened to redirect the night. San Jose failed on its first two chances in the opening period. With 5:07 elapsed in the middle period, Macklin Celebrini cut the deficit to 3-1 with a high-slot shot that found its way through traffic.

The Sharks later added another power-play goal, but the special-teams success was surrounded by four goals against at even strength.

That split says more than the final shot count. San Jose put 32 shots on Darcy Kuemper, while Los Angeles managed 27 against Yaroslav Askarov. The Sharks’ period totals were 11, 10 and 11; Los Angeles had thirteen, five and nine.

San Jose kept producing attempts, but the scoreboard reflected which team converted its better moments. Kuemper stopped 30 of 32 shots, while Askarov stopped 20 of 27.

Pohlkamp should not be made responsible for every breakdown simply because his debut arrived during a rout. Nor should three shots be treated as proof that he has solved anything.

Wednesday established only the outline of the evaluation: a young defenseman with enough offensive involvement to register a small positive signal, surrounded by a team that could not defend its own penalties or score at even strength.

More games will show whether Pohlkamp’s puck movement, positioning and attacking instincts hold up at this level. San Jose needs that sample before deciding what it has in him. Pohlkamp has an NHL game behind him. San Jose still has to address problems that preceded his arrival.

Sources

NHL: official game summary and completion time

NHL: official final box score

NHL: game report

San Jose Sharks: Pohlkamp recall announcement