Sharangovich, Mercer help Devils edge Sharks for third straight win

NEWARK, N.J. -- Yegor Sharangovich and Dawson Mercer scored in the second period, and the New Jersey Devils held on for their third straight win, 2-1 against the San Jose Sharks at Prudential Center on Saturday.

Mackenzie Blackwood made 21 saves for the Devils (3-2-0), who have won three consecutive games for the first time since Dec. 29, 2021-Jan. 2, 2022.
"We want to build our game all around our speed," Mercer said. "That's to our advantage ... flying around out there and creating those opportunities. We never got away from our game, and I think that paid off in the end."
Kevin Labanc scored for the Sharks (1-6-0), who will finish a four-game road trip at the Flyers on Sunday. Kaapo Kahkonen made 34 saves.
"They had a bit of a push in the second and we kind of weathered the storm," Kahkonen said. "We had a good effort there at the end, but just couldn't get one."
Sharangovich gave New Jersey a 1-0 lead at 13:21 of the second period. Following a turnover along the boards by San Jose defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Sharangovich skated into the slot, deked to his forehand and scored on a backhand.
"What a great goal," Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. "You watch the goal, you watch the move. That's what you want to see when you get that opportunity. They had a big turnover, and we took advantage of it."

Mercer pushed it to 2-0 with a power-play goal at 15:43, scoring on his own rebound in the low slot after Nico Hischier passed to him from behind the net.
"I found that open ice in the middle, and Nico's a playmaker," Mercer said. "He found me below the goal line, and lucky enough I got the rebound chance come back to me and had another shot at it. It was a great feeling."
Ruff said he likes what he's seen so far this season in Mercer, who has three points (two goals, one assist) in five games after getting 42 points (17 goals, 25 assists) in 82 games as a rookie in 2021-22.
"I think his wall play, his battles around the net, behind the net, have increased and he's creating on his own," Ruff said. "On his goal, he stayed with it, found a tight hole in front of the net. It was a great play for him to find his own rebound. That's the level we need to be at."

Labanc scored 32 seconds later to cut it to 2-1 at 16:15. He skated down the left wing on a 2-on-1 and scored on a wrist shot from the left circle.
"We kind of gave up two points," Labanc said. "We had a good 15 (minutes) and then the second, third period, kind of let the game go. We didn't create as many chances as we would like, but this game's behind us. We've got to get ready for Philadelphia and make sure everybody's ready. We can end this road trip on a pretty good note."
The Sharks had a chance to tie it late in regulation with Kahkonen pulled for the extra attacker, but Erik Karlsson hit the post with 2:00 remaining, and Blackwood denied Timo Meier on a slap shot with 12 seconds left.
"He's made the big saves when we needed them and, again tonight, those last couple of minutes," Ruff said. "He found some pucks through traffic that made the difference to allow us to win that game."
NOTES: Devils forward Jesper Bratt had the secondary assist on Mercer's goal, his eighth in five games this season. ... The Sharks were 2-for-3 on the penalty kill and are 22-for-23 this season. ... Blackwood has allowed four goals on 59 shots in the past three games after allowing four goals on 24 shots in a 5-2 loss at the Philadelphia Flyers on Oct. 13. ... Labanc, who was born in Brooklyn, New York, played his minor hockey with the New Jersey Rockets at Prudential Center before joining USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. "It's a pretty special building to score a goal for me," he said.