Sharks look to get offense going vs. Ducks (Nov 20, 2017)

After the Sharks' most recent game, San Jose coach Peter DeBoer said there were more positives than negatives to take away. The team just isn't translating it into goals or wins.

Looking to jumpstart the league's most sluggish offense, the Sharks play host to the Anaheim Ducks on Monday night.

This is the second of four meetings between the Pacific Division rivals and the final one in Northern California for 2017-18. On Nov. 4, Joel Ward scored midway through the third period and Joonas Donskoi came through in the sixth round of a shootout as the Sharks won 2-1.

Each of the past nine matchups was decided by one goal, with Anaheim winning six.

Following a two-week stretch in which San Jose won six of seven, DeBoer's team has dropped two straight heading into the finale of a three-game homestand. After a 2-0 loss to the Florida Panthers on Thursday, the Sharks got an early goal from Timo Meier before falling 3-1 to the Boston Bruins on Saturday.

Though San Jose held a 37-20 advantage in shots against Boston, Sharks backup goaltender Aaron Dell allowed markers from two rookies with a combined 55 games of experience. Still, DeBoer was not frustrated with what he saw.

"We played a better game tonight, top to bottom. ... Our game was much better tonight," he said. "We're in one of those things where you've got to stay positive. We're doing more good than bad. We're just not getting rewarded, and we've got to stick with it."

San Jose (10-8-0) is last in the league with 44 goals.

"Just got to keep working. We got to be a little harder around the net," Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said. "It's close. Just got to keep working. It's going to come."

The milestone watch for the 12-year veteran forward continues. Pavelski appeared to finally record his 300th career goal early against the Bruins, but it was overturned by video review.

Since posting the game-winner in a 4-1 victory over the Nashville Predators on Nov. 1, the Wisconsin native has just two assists in the past six games. Pavelski has just four goals this season after averaging 27 per campaign coming into 2017-18.

Martin Jones (8-5-0, 2.13 goals-against average, .926 save percentage, one shutout) should be back in goal for the Sharks. The 27-year-old stopped 25 shots in the win over the Ducks earlier this month, and he is 3-3-0 with a 1.33 GAA, a .944 save percentage and one shutout against Anaheim while playing with San Jose.

This contest continues a grueling stretch for the Ducks, who will play 11 games in 17 days, highlighted by three sets of back-to-back games and a six-game road trip.

Anaheim (9-7-3) has a quick turnaround after a 3-2 home win over the Florida Panthers on Sunday. John Gibson made a season-high 50 saves -- one shy of his career high -- to help the Ducks record consecutive wins for the first time this month.

"He was the first star. He saved our butts," Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle said. "We got a stellar performance from our goaltender, simple as that."

Gibson is 2-1-0 with a 3.33 GAA and a .900 save percentage in four road starts this season. He lost his only career start in San Jose in 2016.

With Ryan Miller day-to-day due to a lower-body injury, Reto Berra has moved into a backup role, but he hasn't started a game this season. Berra is 0-1-0 with a 2.68 GAA in 67 minutes over three contests.

The native of Switzerland has surrendered eight goals on 68 shots while posting an 0-2-1 career record versus San Jose. Berra hasn't faced the Sharks since April 1, 2015, while playing for the Colorado Avalanche.

The Ducks have a slew of stars on injured reserve, including Ryan Kesler (hip), Ryan Getzlaf (face), Patrick Eaves and Cam Fowler (lower-body injuries), yet the team is getting offense from some unlikely sources.

Defenseman Josh Manson celebrated his 200th NHL game on Sunday by scoring in consecutive games for the first time. Manson has never scored more than five goals in any of his four seasons.

Defenseman Brandon Montour also scored on the power play against the Panthers, and he has two goals in his past four games to give him six on the season. Forward Rickard Rakell found the back of the net as well with the man advantage Sunday, and he has a team-leading seven goals in 2017-18.

Anaheim has five power-play goals in its past four games, matching its total from the first 15 games.

"We've been working on it a lot in practice. We're feeling more comfortable and not as stressed throwing pucks away. Everybody is trying to be a threat all the time," Rakell said. He has two goals and seven assists in eight games this month after breaking out with a club-best 33 goals last season.

The Ducks have gone to shootouts in each of the second games in back-to-back situations this season, beating the Carolina Hurricanes on Oct. 29 before losing to the Sharks earlier this month.