San Jose Sharks forward Joel Ward scored two goals to help the Sharks defeat the visiting St. Louis Blues, 5-2, Wednesday night and advance to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in their history.
The Sharks coasted to the victory, grabbing a 4-0 lead before the Blues could break San Jose's shutout bid with a goal at 11:39 of the third period. Ward's goals were his fifth and sixth of the postseason. He also netted two in the Sharks' 6-3 triumph over the Blues in St. Louis on Monday. Logan Couture also had a big night for San Jose Wednesday, notching three points -- two assists and an empty-net goal. He assisted on Ward's second goal, which gave the Sharks a 3-0 lead early in the third. Couture then assisted on the Sharks' fourth goal, scored by Joonas Donskoi, his fifth of the postseason. Couture's goal, at 19:40 of the third period, was his eighth of the postseason. He also has 16 assists. Joe Pavelski opened the scoring at 3:57 of the first period with his 15th goal of the playoffs. The Sharks won the Western Conference Final in six games. They will face the Eastern Conference Final winner -- the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Tampa Bay Lightning -- in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Ward, 35, had 21 goals and 22 helpers in the regular season. He posted a career-best 52.7 Corsi For Percentage and -1.3 Relative Corsi For Percentage at Even Strength
Source: Rotoworld.com