Sharks lose in OT

Both Evgeni Nabokov and Anderson were locked in on this night after allowing a combined 11 goals in Game 2.

Nabokov didn’t have much a chance on the winner. He was hugging the post when Boyle tried to send the puck around the boards as O’Reilly pursued him. The puck wound up sneaking in between Nabokov and the post.

Game 4 is Tuesday night in Denver.

Anderson is used to seeing a large volume of pucks, leading the NHL in shots faced and saves this season.

He never blinked, even when being outshot by a 42-7 margin in the final two periods. He was sprawling and diving all over the ice the entire game.

"It’s remarkable,” Anderson said. "The guys just battled hard.”

The Sharks are a team with heavy expectations, especially after a string of early postseason exits in recent years.

The weight just became a little heavier.

As Devin Setoguchi skated off the ice, he swatted in disgust at an object that had been tossed onto the ice.

The Sharks were missing a big piece of their offense as Dany Heatley sat out with an unspecified injury. Heatley has been on the same line with Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton, a pairing that scored 40 percent of San Jose’s goals in the regular season.

So far this series, they’ve been stymied, failing to find the net.

Taking Heatley’s place on the line was Manny Malhotra.

The Avalanche lost a valuable offensive contributor early in the game as well when Milan Hejduk went out with an injury to his upper body. He was hurt in a collision with teammate Paul Stastny as they drifted into the Sharks’ zone.

Hejduk was helped off the ice and straight into the locker room.

San Jose pounced all the Avalanche in the second period, outshooting them 21-3.

Try as they might, the Sharks couldn’t sneak anything past Anderson. Setoguchi, who scored the overtime winner in Game 2, tried to ram in a puck on the doorstep of the goal, only to have Anderson quickly close the opening with his right skate.

It was just one of many highlight-reel worthy saves the two netminders turned in during the period.

Although Nabokov didn’t face many shots in the second period, he had a sensational save on a breakaway by T.J. Galiardi. Nabokov held his ground with Galiardi bearing down, waiting for the Avalanche rookie to make his move.

When Galiardi did, Nabokov was in proper position, sending the shot — and Galiardi — careening off to the side of the net.

For a scoreless first period, there sure was a lot of action, including plenty of chippiness and chirping.

Thornton found the net for the first time in the series, only it didn’t count. Not by a long shot.

Already whistled for offsides, Thornton fired the puck into the net, infuriating the Avalanche. Stastny and Brandon Yip briefly tangled with Thornton before being separated.

That was marked the beginning of a testy period. There was plenty of pushing and yelling.

In between all that, there was also some solid scoring chances. The best, though, was when Cody McLeod had the puck on his stick and tried to jam it in, only to have Nabokov glide over and stop it with his right pad.

Colorado forward Ryan Stoa was in the lineup as he filled in for Kevin Porter, who suffered an upper-body injury in Game 2. Stoa was the 11th different Avalanche player to make his postseason debut in this series.

That youth has served Colorado well against the older, more experienced Sharks. The Avalanche have brought a healthy dose of speed and spirit to the ice.

Try as they might, the Sharks haven’t found a way to rattle or rankle those youngsters.

In fact, it’s the Avalanche’s crew of kids who are getting under the skin of San Jose. No one more than Galiardi, who’s been a pest all series.

Galiardi was at his agitating best again Sunday, getting into the face of Dan Boyle late in the first period.

Boyle delivered a hit at center ice to Galiardi, who then grabbed Boyle by the jersey and uttered a few choice words as the two skated toward the corner.

These two have a little bit of history, Galiardi badgering Boyle in Game 2 to the point where Boyle’s face filled with rage.

NOTES: Once a fan favorite, San Jose’s Rob Blake was heavily booed each time he touched the puck. Blake knew he’d be viewed as the villain by Avalanche faithful. "They’re very loyal fans,” said Blake, who helped Colorado hoist the Stanley Cup trophy in 2001. ... The Sharks recalled Dwight Helminen from Worcester of the American Hockey League to take the place of Heatley. Stoa suffered a lower body injury in the second period.