Sharks Eat Blackhawks Alive

February 2, 1999 / 1:44 AM EST / AP

Jeff Friesen scored twice, including a goal in the opening minute of the game, as the San Jose Sharks broke out of a scoring slump with a 5-1 win Monday night over the Chicago Blackhawks.

Joe Murphy, Marco Sturm and Alex Korolyuk also scored for the Sharks, who had been shut out in their two previous games. Mike Vernon stopped 22 shots for San Jose, allowing only a third-period goal by Ethan Moreau.

Friesen's first goal ended a scoreless streak of 160 minutes, 38 seconds for the Sharks, who lost 3-0 to St. Louis and 5-0 at Colorado in their first two games after the All-Star break.

That goal came 55 seconds into the game when Friesen slid a loose puck past Jocelyn Thibault, who came into the contest seeking his 100th career NHL win.

Friesen made it 2-0 with 31 seconds left in the second period when the puck deflected high off Chicago defenseman Chris Chelios' stick and bounced right to Friesen. Friesen slid the puck past Thibault for his 14th goal.

Murphy scored with 12:19 left in the third period on a power play, his 12th. Moreau then broke Vernon's bid for his fourth shutout of the season on a slap shot from the top of the faceoff circle.

But Sturm, the Sharks' only player selected for the All-Star game, scored about a minute later to give San Jose back its three-goal margin. It was Sturm's 12th goal.

Korolyuk scored the final goal with 41 seconds left as the teams skated 4-on-4 after a series of penalties.

Chicago was playing the fourth game on its seven-game road trip. The Sharks now begin the longest uninterrupted road trip in NHL history, a 10-game sojourn that will last through the last week in February. San Jose's next home game is Feb. 24.