Kessel wins it in OT in 900th consecutive NHL game, Coyotes top Sharks

Phil Kessel scored 2:30 into overtime and had two assists in his 900th consecutive NHL game for the Arizona Coyotes in a 5-4 win against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center in San Jose on Saturday.

Christian Dvorak scored two goals, Jan Jenik scored his second goal in as many NHL games, and Adin Hill made an NHL career-high 44 saves for the Coyotes (24-26-6), who swept the two-game set to finish their season.
The Coyotes didn't qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs after reaching them last season for the first time since 2011-12.
"These games are definitely tough to play when you know there's nothing really to look forward to afterwards," forward Conor Garland said. "You play hockey to get to the playoffs and have a chance to play for the Cup, and we didn't do that this year."
Kevin Labanc had a goal and an assist, and Alexei Melnichuk made 27 saves in his first NHL start for the Sharks (21-27-7), who lost their 13th in 16 games (3-10-3).
"There were large portions of the game that I felt we were the better team, but they found a way to get the goals they needed," Sharks coach Bob Boughner said. "We had a lot of chances, especially in the beginning of the game, in the middle of the game, but their guy [Hill] stood up to the challenge."

Kessel had a three-point game one night after getting a goal and an assist for the 900th and 901st points of his NHL career. He scored 20 goals during his 12th 20-goal season, with 10 in eight games against San Jose.
"He's been a money player his whole career," Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet said. "He didn't like his year last year (14 goals in 70 games), but this year he came in and put up some points for us. (43 in 56 games)"
Sharks forward Patrick Marleau (909) and Kessel rank 4-5 respectively on the all-time consecutive games played list, behind Doug Jarvis (964), Keith Yandle (921) and Garry Unger (914).
"It's good to win, but it wasn't the greatest defensive effort from both teams," Tocchet said. "But it was an overtime win for us. It's always good to win."
Garland chipped the puck to himself and cut across the crease to give the Coyotes a 4-3 lead at 16:07 of the third. The Sharks pulled Melnichuk for an extra attacker, and Alexander Barabanov tied it 4-4 at 19:11.
"We kept going, and that's good to see," Boughner said. "Obviously, points really don't matter for our club right now, we're concentrating on the things we're working on, and guys are fighting hard."

Dvorak skated from the right face-off circle into the slot for a wrist shot to give Arizona a 1-0 lead at 3:32 of the first period.
Rudolfs Balcers tied it 1-1 at 6:44 with a shot that slid between Hill's pads.
Dvorak's power-play goal on a wrist shot off Christian Fischer's pass from beyond the goal line made it 2-1 at 11:36, but Kevin Labanc's second goal in 15 games tied it 2-2 at 15:28.
Timo Meier's third goal in four games gave the Sharks a 3-2 lead 5:26 of the second period.
"It was a great pass [from Labanc] and I was coming in with some speed and just took it to the net," Meier said. "That's kind of my strength."
Jenik's angled shot from along the goal line tied it 3-3 at 6:20. Jenik and Fischer are the only two Coyotes players to score in their first two NHL games since the relocation to Arizona in 1996.
NOTES: Kessel has 12 goals in his past nine games against San Jose and 18 in 28 career games. … Garland has seven points (two goals, five assists) in his final four games after returning from a six-game injury layoff. … Sharks forward Jeffrey Viel left with an upper-body injury in the second period. … San Jose finishes the season at home against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday. … Barabanov has seven points (three goals, four assists) in eight games since being acquired in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 12. …
Coyotes defenseman Aaron Ness had one shot on goal and two hits in 12:50 in his season debut. He had been on the taxi squad and hadn't played an NHL game since Feb. 25, 2020. … Sharks forward Tomas Hertl had an assist and has scored nine points (four goals, five assists) in the past five games. … San Jose forward Evander Kane had an assist to give him 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in the past nine games. … Arizona won the season series 5-2-1. San Jose was 3-4-1.