Karri Ramo hurt in wild Flames win over Sharks
Joonas Donskoi came barreling in on Karri Ramo late in the third period of a 5-5 game between the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames.
Donskoi was tripped by Calgary defenseman Mark Giordano and slammed into Ramo. The same shift San Jose defenseman Paul Martin had been elbowed by Flames forward Sam Bennett. The Sharks were about to embark on a two-minute 5-on-3 power play with three minutes left and to make matters worse for the Flames, Ramo was also writhing in pain on the ice.
Jonas Hiller entered the game and stopped the 5-on-3 to help the Flames win 6-5 in a shootout. Hiller played eight minutes and made eight saves in relief of the injured Ramo. He also stopped three of four Sharks shooters in the shootout.
“We really needed these points and I want nothing more than to help the team win,” Hiller said after the game.
Said Calgary coach Bob Hartley, “Gutsy effort from our guys. I’m very proud of our team.”
The Sharks came back from a 4-1 first period deficit to take a brief third period 5-4 lead at the 5:55 mark. Though they got a point there was a sense of disappointment and missed opportunities
Along with the 5-on-3, early into overtime forward Logan Couture hit the goalpost. The Sharks also scored the first goal of the shootout to put the pressure on the Flames.
“I don’t know where to start,” said Sharks coach Peter DeBoer according to the San Jose Mercury News. “I liked the fact we didn’t pack it in. It would have been easy to after one with the way the first period went. We stuck with it, found a way to get a point and probably should have had two at the end.”
The Sharks praised Hiller after the game as a main reason why the Flames were able to sneak out of SAP Center with a win.
“He played unbelievable,” Couture said. “Kudos to him. He stepped in in a very-difficult situation in a 5-on-3 and made some unbelievable saves in overtime. We were all over him. He did a great job for them. He basically saved them a couple of points.”
At 25-25-3, the Flames have 53 points – five away from the Nashville Predators for the final Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. Though they’re also four points clear of the Edmonton Oilers for the worst record in the West. The Sharks (61 points) remained one point clear of the Anaheim Ducks for second place in the Pacific Division.
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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
