Galchenyuk, Kuemper lead Coyotes past Sharks in shootout
SAN JOSE, Calif. --Alex Galchenyuk broke out of his drought with two goals in regulation plus the only one in a shootout, and the Arizona Coyotes defeated the San Jose Sharks 4-3 on Sunday.
Conor Garland also scored to help the Coyotes win their second consecutive game after losing three straight and seven of eight. Darcy Kuemper made 35 saves for Arizona.
Tomas Hertl scored twice and Tim Heed had a goal for San Jose, which lost its third straight after winning a season-high five in a row.
Galchenyuk, acquired in a June trade with Montreal for Max Domi, hadn't scored in 16 games and had just three goals all season going into Sunday.
The 24-year-old center, drafted third overall in 2012, scored on a 5-on-3 power play to snap a 1-all tie at 12:21 of the second period. Galchenyuk got his first goal since Nov. 11 when he flicked a backhand past Sharks goalie Aaron Dell on a breakaway at 15:31 of the first.
Hertl recovered the puck behind the net and scored on a wraparound to tie it 3-all at 13:53 of the third. Hertl also scored early in the third to even the game at 2 before Garland gave the Coyotes a 3-2 advantage at 6:06.
Heed scored on the power play in the first period, his first goal of the season in his third game for San Jose.
Dell turned back 23 shots.
NOTES: Sharks D Erik Karlsson was handed a two-game suspension by the NHL for an illegal check to the head of Los Angeles Kings forward Austin Wagner on Saturday. Heed took Karlsson's spot in the lineup. ... Sharks C Joe Thornton got his 1,041st assist on Heed's goal, passing Hall of Famer Marcel Dionne for 10th place on the NHL's career list.
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Coyotes play at the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday.
