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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) – It was a good way for Jani Hurme to get
back into his game.
The rookie goalie, making his first start since Feb. 22, stopped
32 shots as the Ottawa Senators handed the slumping San Jose Sharks
their fifth straight loss with a 2-1 victory Thursday night.
|  | | Sens goalie Jani Hurme gets some help from Shane Hnidy during the first period. Hurme shut out the Sharks until Partick Marleau scored with 14 seconds left in the game. |
Hurme had been sidelined for six games with an injured right
knee. Since then, he's backed up Patrick Lalime but hasn't had a
start.
"The first period was very busy, and I felt nervous. But once
it was over, I felt OK out there," he said. "My legs were a
little shaky, but I just got better and better in the crease."
Alexei Yashin and captain Daniel Alfredsson each scored for the
Senators, who have lost just six of 20 games against Western
Conference opponents.
"Our goaltending gave us the win," Alfredsson said. "He's so
quick and mobile when he's on his game."
The Sharks, who have won only one of 13 games, avoided the
shutout when Patrick Marleau scored with 14 seconds left.
Ottawa, battling the New Jersey Devils for the top spot in the
Eastern Conference, has already clinched a playoff berth. The
Senators have won four of five.
San Jose is clinging to seventh place in the Western Conference.
"It's frustrating," Sharks defenseman Brad Stuart said.
"We're getting the chances. We're just not putting the puck in the
net."
Hurme made some spectacular saves, including a diving stop with
about three minutes left that knocked off one of his gloves. He
also had a little luck.
A San Jose shot in the first period hit both goal posts but did
not make into the net.
"We're working hard, we're moving it around," Sharks captain
Owen Nolan said. "We're just not making quality shots."
San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov faced 17 shots.
Yashin scored 20 seconds into the third, with a shot that
caromed of Nabokov's shoulder, hit the post and ricocheted into the
net. It was his 34th goal of the season.
Alfredsson knocked the puck up and over Nabokov's leg with less
than three minutes to go in the first period to put the Senators up
1-0. It was one of just seven shots Ottawa had in the first.
Five minutes into the game, Nolan and Ottawa's Andre Roy earned
five-minute fighting penalties for a heated punching match. Nolan
dropped his gloves after Roy's hard hit on Sharks winger Alex
Korolyuk.
Sharks defenseman Bryan Marchment and Ottawa counterpart Wade
Redden also drew five-minute penalties for a scuffle in the second
period.
San Jose was 0-for-7 on the power play.
Game notes
San Jose's Marco Sturm played his 300th career game. ...
San Jose has not scored a power-play goal against Ottawa in six
games dating to 1997. ... California's power crisis prompted San
Jose Arena to warn fans about the possibility of rolling blackouts
on the video scoreboard before the game. ... Nolan has 28 points
against Ottawa in 22 games. ... Yashin and Marian Hossa have
combined for 151 points this season, breaking the club record for a
duo since Yashin and Shawn McEachern combined for 150 points in
1998-99.
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ALSO SEE
NHL Scoreboard
Ottawa Clubhouse
San Jose Clubhouse
RECAPS
Boston 3
Montreal 2
Detroit 4
Minnesota 2
Atlanta 2
Tampa Bay 0
Nashville 2
Chicago 1
Colorado 3
St. Louis 1
Calgary 3
Philadelphia 1
Ottawa 2
San Jose 1
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