The San Jose Sharks welcome the Tampa Bay Lightning into SAP Center.

Pavol Regenda scored a hat trick, but the Lightning lorded over the Sharks 7-3.

Period 1

2 in: Ferraro shows some nice patience with the puck in the NZ, before hitting Regenda with a pass for entry. Before, Celebrini probably doing too much, lost it skating up the gut in front of Askarov. Bad place to lose it.

Point goal: Just execution. Dellandrea got a bounce in OZ, had puck high, but couldn’t execute the next play. Not an easy one, tried to make a play, but high turnover, counterattack, and Point beats Askarov high one-on-one. Poor rush backcheck defense to leave Point alone.

3 in: Liljegren reads and plays Hagel one-on-one attack well.

Raddysh goal: San Jose Sharks need to wake up. Eklund slow to close on Raddysh at point? Think so, because the center Celebrini was helping low. Eklund also failed to get it out.

Notably early timeout by Warsofsky. Right time and place, but of course, you’ve only got one.

Hagel goal: Another OZ execution turnover, like Dellandrea, not wrong idea from Goodrow, but his centering pass goes off Reaves’s skate. This leads directly to a Lightning 3-on-2, and I think Reaves shades toward Mukhamadullin’s man Guentzel, leaving Ferraro with Hagel and Cirelli. Reaves and Ferraro end up in no man’s land, and Hagel lights up a one-timer.

Regenda goal: Celebrini just made a can’t-believe-it move through Guentzel, that was Globetrotters stuff. Celebrini double-shifting himself on the power play, and it works. Then cross-slot pass to Regenda, Vasilevskiy with Save of the Night material. But then Liljegren filters it through, Regenda all alone, and Pavol’s got three goals in four games.

8 left: Eklund with a good backcheck effort, negates a Tampa 2-on-1.

2 left: Sharks have righted ship a little, but they leave Goncalves open in the slot for a one-timer. Luckily, I don’t think he gets all of it, but Nedeljkovic also huge save.

Period 2

Raddysh goal: What a case study of development. Bounced around, mostly AHL, until he was 26, when he’s PPG for Crunch. Then becomes a Lightning regular, then this season, another level. Now up to 11-22-33 in just 35 games, wow. A little bit of same path as Gaudette, who was good in the AHL and promising in the NHL, then exploded for 40-plus goals with Springfield, and is now an everyday NHL’er.

James goal: Looks like Orlov leaves his man in the front to chase the puck. Liljegren already there. But then the puck goes to the front. San Jose Sharks just brutal sorting it out defensively today.

Chernyshov’s glove off, left hand/wrist being checked out on bench

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 3, 2026

This feels like a game that the San Jose Sharks aren’t being dominated in, though down 5-1. They’re serving the Lightning a few pizzas, and Tampa is just obliging by scarfing down.

8 in: Celebrini just sonned Canadian teammate Hagel twice, as Hagel tried to exit.

Liljegren goal: Another goal off Celebrini staying on longer. He springs Skinner and Regenda for a 2-on-1, leaves, Skinner shot, Liljegren cleans up the rebound.

Love it, Moser goes after Celebrini a second time tonight, and Eklund’s had enough

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 3, 2026

Actually a clean (though hard) hit by Moser on Celebrini, a rare time that I’ve seen Macklin blown up without him looking. But love Eklund taking the extra, down three anyway, standing up to somebody who’s got four inches and tons of weight on him.

Kucherov goal: Guentzel flash screen on power play, that was a textbook version of why you do that. Doesn’t change my mind about Eklund stepping up.

5 left: Reaves sees an opportunity on forecheck on Moser, goes in for the double-dip. Love that from Reaves, and hey, credit Moser too, good player, just signed a huge extension, he’s doing his job.

Reaves has been yelling at Lightning for over a minute, Goodrow gets in on it too pic.twitter.com/GUV49CteJE

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 3, 2026

Raddysh goal: Power play hat trick, but I think you live with all this, the team is staying together. Too bad it won’t be for a comeback. Broadcast says last Lightning hat trick by a d-man was San Jose Hockey Now Podcast co-host Dan Boyle, who’s doing radio tonight. Nice!

1 left: Now Orlov and Goncalves going at it. Third period will be interesting.

Period 3

Per Sharks, Mukhamadullin will not return tonight.

His last shift was 2:45 into first period

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 3, 2026

Actually not much for fireworks in the third, 5 minutes left.

Regenda goal: Now five goals in four lol. What a run! Gotta be up there for hat tricks in most lopsided losses.

In lieu of hats, Sharks fans throwing today’s giveaway item, mini San Jose Earthquakes soccer balls, onto the ice for Regenda’s hat trick pic.twitter.com/4NiwKYg9Ql

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 3, 2026

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