Excitement was brewing around the Sharks even before their third consecutive victory on Saturday night at SAP Center, and San Jose rode the Tank’s energy to a hard-fought 3-1 win over the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Star center Macklin Celebrini scored his 10th goal of the 2025-26 NHL season and goalie Yaroslav Askarov held it down in net with 38 saves, just one shy of his career high, against the Florida Panthers.

With seven wins across their last 10 games and five in their last six, the surging Sharks — and their fans — are feeling confident, and the team can hear the change in atmosphere.

“That was awesome,” Askarov told reporters about San Jose’s fans after the game. “That was awesome. I mean, I was like, ‘Jeez.’ Especially after the first goal. Oh my god, man. That was super loud. I mean, the boys love it. Team feels it.”

The Tank erupted after Celebrini gave the Sharks a one-goal advantage over the two-time Cup champions in the first period, with the Sharks center finding the back of the net after a perfect assist from Will Smith for the first score of the game.

After Adam Gaudette redirected a shot from Dmitry Orlov into the net to give the Sharks a 2-0 lead in the second period, it was mostly all Panthers from there until the game’s final seconds. Brad Marchand scored for the Panthers on a play that knocked Askarov’s helmet off and left the net open, and Florida went on to out-shoot San Jose 39-23 over the course of the contest.

Askarov and the Sharks held the Panthers scoreless on all five of their power-play opportunities during the win, setting up Alexander Wennberg’s empty-netter with under a minute left to seal the 3-1 victory and send fans into a frenzy.

With two assists, Smith extended his point streak to four games, and Celebrini’s goal extended his own point streak to three. The Sharks put together another impressive win in front of their home crowd, which Askarov called the “loudest ever” that he has heard during his time in San Jose.

Askarov’s performance followed up a 32-save game from Alex Nedeljkovic in the Sharks’ 2-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Friday night. After the game, Celebrini complimented the team’s goaltending in what has turned into a very promising stretch by the Sharks.

“They’re playing amazing,” Celebrini told reporters. “Asky tonight, Ned the other night. I think they’re doing such a great job for us, just making saves when we need them to on the PK. You say your goalie is your best penalty killer, and they have been. They’ve just been so great for us, stopping huge chances.

“They’ve just been a rock back there.”

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