San Jose, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Logan Couture and Patrick Marleau each scored in the shootout and Antti Niemi turned away both Colorado shooters to send the San Jose Sharks to a 5-4 victory over the Avalanche on Monday at SAP Center.
San Jose led 3-2 with just under two minutes left in regulation before Erik Johnson and Jamie McGinn lit the lamp 12 seconds apart to put the Avalanche on top.
However, Joe Pavelski tied the game with 19.6 seconds remaining in regulation to force an extra session, and despite failing on a power-play chance in overtime, the Sharks were able to escape with two points.
"It would have been nice to grab two (points) and not give them any, but that's the way it works sometimes," said San Jose center Joe Thornton, who finished with three assists.
Brent Burns notched a goal and two assists, Matt Irwin added a goal and a helper, and Jason Demers donated his second goal of the season for the Sharks, who improved to 11-0-4 over their last 15 games against the Avalanche.
Niemi backstopped the victory with 29 saves.
Johnson tallied a goal and an assist, while McGinn, Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog each scored once for Colorado, which has lost two straight and six of its last nine games.
Semyon Varlamov turned aside 41 shots in the setback.
With Colorado trailing by a goal and just under two minutes remaining in the third, Johnson blasted a one-timer from the right point that snuck through Niemi's five-hole to tie the tilt at 18:09.
After the Avs won the ensuing faceoff, John Mitchell won a race to the puck along the left midboards and threw a shot on net that McGinn tipped past Niemi for a 4-3 lead at 18:21.
Pavelski pulled the Sharks even with just under 20 seconds left in regulation when he buried a one-timer from in front off a nice behind-the-net feed from Thornton.
"We scored two big goals and took the lead 4-3 and they made a pretty play at the end to tie the game," Colorado head coach Patrick Roy said.
Early on, MacKinnon and Demers exchanged power-play markers just past the midpoint of the first to keep the game tied before Landeskog lit the lamp with 49 seconds left in the frame to give Colorado a 2-1 lead.
However, the Sharks struck twice in the second to take a one-goal lead, with Burns notching his 10th of the season at 5:53 before Irwin potted a power-play tally at 13:02 to make it 3-2 in favor of San Jose.
Game Notes
The Avs have lost 11 straight in San Jose, with their last win coming on Feb. 6, 2008 ... Colorado's last regulation win against San Jose came on Oct. 1, 2009 ... San Jose posted back-to-back wins for the first time since a six-game run from Nov.21-Dec. 3 ... Colorado's Ryan O'Reilly registered two helpers.
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