In defeat, Sharks goalie Askarov shows he belongs

The Oilers’ Adam Henrique (19) can’t score against Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov (30) during the second period of Saturday’s game at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Canada. CODIE MCLACHLAN — GETTY IMAGES

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By Curtis Pashelka

Bay Area News Group

EDMONTON, Alberta >> It sure seems like goalie Yaroslav Askarov belongs in the NHL.

Whether Askarov stays with the Sharks for the rest of the season is another matter, as injured goalie Vitek Vanecek’s short- and long-term health outlook remains unclear. But Askarov appears ready to jump full time to the Sharks roster.

That much was made clear Saturday before a sold-out Rogers Place crowd, which saw Askarov make one brilliant stop after another in nearly leading the Sharks past the Edmonton Oilers despite the skaters in front of him giving up a tidal wave of scoring chances.

With the Sharks leading by a goal late in the third period and San Jose’s defenders looking exhausted as they tried to make a game-winning play, Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm scored with 17.3 seconds left in regulation to tie the game.

Then, just 18 seconds into overtime, Leon Draisaitl scored to hand the Sharks a 3-2 loss, their fourth one-goal defeat in six games.

Askarov, in his third NHL start this season, finished with 41 saves, including 23 in an exceptional second period when he stopped every shot he saw. That’s the second most shots a Sharks goalie has faced in a single period since Wade Flaherty made 24 on March 5, 1996, against the Colorado Avalanche.

“He looks like he’s going to be a really good, really good goaltender in this league,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said of Askarov, who was recalled from the Barracuda on Wednesday after Vanecek was injured.

“Every game he’s been in, he’s played amazing for us,” Sharks defenseman Cody Ceci said. “That’s tough to do as a young guy, especially in this league. To play as well as he did tonight is very promising.”

The Oilers could have easily won by four or five goals. As an example of how tilted the ice was Saturday, the Oilers had 81 shot attempts to the Sharks’ 41.

“When a goalie has a lot of shots, it’s easy to play,” said Askarov, adding that since he was playing against a great team, “you need to always stay sharp, because you have a lot of shots. But I need keep control and keep (my) focus.”