Brian Campbell notched his first point for San Jose, and the Sharks scored three goals in an eight-minute span of the second period to beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-2 on Wednesday night.
Jonathan Cheechoo ran his scoring streak to four games, Joe Pavelski had a goal and an assist, and Torrey Mitchell and Jeremy Roenick also scored for the Sharks, who won their third in a row and improved to 20-8-3 on the road.
Brian Campbell eludes Fredrik Modin in Wednesday's 4-2 Sharks triumph.
(Jay LaPrete/Associated Press)
Joe Thornton added two assists, and Evgeni Nabokov had 17 saves.
Campbell was playing his first game for San Jose, which solidified its hold on fifth in the Western Conference.
He was picked up, along with a seventh-round draft pick, on Tuesday from Buffalo for forward Steve Bernier and a first-round pick.
Columbus took the ice for the first time since trading captain Adam Foote and forward Sergei Fedorov.
They were dealt before Tuesday's NHL trade deadline for two draft picks and a prospect.
David Vyborny ended a 24-game goal drought by scoring twice for Columbus, which started the night in 11th place in the West.
The teams traded first-period goals.
The Sharks scored with the man advantage, with Cheechoo redirecting Pavelski's one-timer from the left circle.
Columbus countered with Gilbert Brule unloading a low slapshot from the left point that seemed to handcuff Nabokov.
The puck trickled behind him and, as he twisted to fall on it, Vyborny was there to backhand it into the net.
Vyborny, long rumoured to be trade bait before the deadline, and without a goal since Dec. 27, scored his fifth of the season with an almost identical shot in the second period.
Jan Hejda's shot from the left point got through traffic, but glanced off Nabokov.
Vyborny's high backhander then sliced past Campbell as he dove to block it.
The Sharks pulled even again at 10:51.
Matt Carle was not far from his bench, just a foot or two from the boards, for a hard shot that was redirected by Mitchell for his 10th of the season.
With Columbus' Rick Nash in the penalty box for roughing — and the crowd of 16,029 still booing the call — the Sharks scored their second power-play goal in three chances.
Thornton sent a pass across the slot to Roenick for a one-timer and a 3-2 lead.
Pavelski had the puck on a 2-on-1 rush at 18:52 off a pass from Campbell when his pass through the slot for Tomas Plihal ricocheted off the left skate of the Blue Jackets' Jiri Novotny and past Pascal Leclaire.
Pavelski was credited with his 13th goal.
