The final said 6-2. The shot totals said something else: Ottawa 43, San Jose 28. The difference between those two sets of numbers was Yaroslav Askarov, who stopped 41 shots Thursday night at Canadian Tire Centre. After five wins that all needed more than 60 minutes, the Sharks finally won one in regulation.
It was the most saves of the 24-year-old's NHL career. His NHL game log shows a previous high of 39, made in an overtime loss to Edmonton on Dec. 21, 2024. The Associated Press recap credited him with 39 saves Thursday, but the official NHL box score shows 41 on 43 shots.
San Jose improved to 6-4-1.
Under siege
Askarov came in winless in four straight starts. He also came in facing a team that was 7-3-0 and had beaten Florida 5-1 the night before.
Ottawa scored first. Tim Stutzle, on as the extra attacker during a delayed penalty, went five-hole at 6:16 of the first period. Carter Yakemchuk then rang a shot off the post and crossbar, and video review confirmed it never crossed the line. Nolan Allan tied it at 11:04.
The second period was the stretch that decided it. Ottawa put 18 shots on Askarov in those 20 minutes, and he turned away all of them. While he held, San Jose scored three times in 4:05: Tyler Toffoli on the power play, Collin Graf shorthanded off a Ty Dellandrea return pass and Jacob Trouba on a tap-in from in front.
The save that drew the most attention came at 18:04 of that period, a diving glove stop on Drake Batherson with the Sharks up three.
"That was a super-quick play," Askarov said, according to NHL.com. "I know I was late, and I was like, 'Just dive to the right side.'" Dellandrea, who saw it from a few feet away, told NHL.com it was "unbelievable."