SAN JOSE – Goalies for the slumping San Jose Barracuda, the Sharks’ top minor league affiliate, are having difficulty staying healthy right now.
Yaroslav Askarov, considered the Sharks’ top goalie prospect, was being examined Thursday after he left the previous night’s Barracuda game against the Ontario Reign with a lower-body injury.
Barracuda general manager Joe Will said, via a spokesperson, that the team was still assessing Askarov’s injury and would provide an update “as more becomes known.”
Askarov allowed two goals in the first 8:05 of the first period as the Reign took a 2-0 lead over the Barracuda at Tech CU Arena in San Jose. After the second goal, Askarov appeared bothered by his left leg but remained in the game.
Just over a minute after San Jose fell behind 3-0 at the 9:50 mark of the first, Askarov, during a media time-out, went to the team’s bench to talk with head athletic trainer Jaime Garcia, then left the ice and returned to the team’s dressing room.
That completed an otherwise forgettable night for Askarov, who allowed three goals on 14 shots in 11:08. He was also penalized early in the first period for playing the puck outside the restricted area, leading to an Ontario power play goal, and his giveaway later in the first led to the Reign’s second score.
Gabe Carriere replaced Askarov with 8:52 left in the first and allowed three goals on 21 shots as the Barracuda lost 6-4.
It was not immediately clear whether Askarov, who took part in the AHL All-Star Classic earlier this month, would have to miss any games. The Barracuda (25-18-2-3) play at Ontario on Saturday and Coachella Valley on Sunday before returning to San Jose and starting a four-game homestand next week.
An extended Askarov absence could put the Barracuda in a tough spot with their goaltending. Fellow Russian-born goalie Georgi Romanov was injured on Feb. 11 in San Jose’s game against the Colorado Eagles and is still considered week-to-week.
Along with Carriere, San Jose also has veteran goalie Aaron Dell on its roster.
The 22-year-old Askarov, acquired from the Nashville Predators last August, now owns a 10-7-1 record and a .922 save percentage with three shutouts in 19 AHL games with the Barracuda. He has also played 13 games with the Sharks this season, going 4-6-2 with a .896 save percentage.
Askarov played two NHL games in November and was also on the Sharks roster from Dec. 18 to Feb. 2 as goalie Vitek Vanecek recovered from a fractured cheekbone. Once Vanecek was deemed fit to play in NHL games again, Askarov was returned to the Barracuda and took part in the AHL All-Star Classic from Feb. 3-4 in Palm Desert, helping represent the Pacific Division.
Since his return to the AHL earlier this month, Askarov had gone 1-3-0 with a .878 save percentage.
Danil Gushchin, Tristen Robins, Luca Cagnoni, and Andrew Poturalski all scored Wednesday for the Barracuda, who now own a 2-5-1 record this month as they’ve fallen into sixth place in the Pacific Division with 55 points. Against the Reign, San Jose trailed 6-1 before scoring three goals in the third period.
“I think there’s inconsistency,” said Poturalski, who has an AHL-leading 49 points in 44 games. “Some nights we play great and we beat good teams, and the next night, we lose to teams we shouldn’t lose to. We’re not playing our game and dominating the way we should.”
The goals by Poturalski, Cagnoni and Robins all came on the power play.
“Our 5-on-5 game is where we need to make strides; we’re getting outscored and out-chanced, so we’ve got to fix that,” Barracuda coach John McCarthy said. “Our power play’s been good all year. Our 5-on-5 game, we’ve got to find a way to get inside. We’re too perimeter; we’re too spread out. We’re too outside.”