Tomas Hertl, Sharks Take 3-2 Series Lead with 2-1 Win vs. Avalanche

Tomas Hertl scored twice and goaltender Martin Jones added 21 saves as the host San Jose Sharks beat the Colorado Avalanche 2-1 in Game 5 of their NHL Western Conference second-round playoff series.

Tyson Jost scored the lone tally for the Avalanche, who trail the Sharks 3-2. Philipp Grubauer made a playoff-high 37 stops.

Hertl and Jones were the Sharks' clear stars on a night where their team outshot the Avs 39-22 but held on for a one-goal win.

Hertl, who had a game-high eight shots (no one else had more than four), came through in the clutch during a second period where his team briefly lost momentum.

That occurred when Jost put the Avs on the board at 17:01 of the second thanks to being in the right place at the right time on a rebound:

Undeterred, the Sharks went on the power play at 18:54, which eventually led to a beautiful Hertl deflection in the slot off a Logan Couture slap shot:

It was a big goal for a few reasons. First, it tied the game at one. Second, the score couldn't have been much more timely given that it occurred 20 seconds before the end of the period. Third, it stopped a long scoring slump, as Kevin Kurz of The Athletic noted:

The period ended tied at one, but both teams took moral victories into the third:

Once there, San Jose continued the pressure, which eventually led to Hertl's tally at 6:26 off a rebound:

Pierre LeBrun of ESPN.com gave credit to the Sharks' performance prior to the goal:

From there, Jones made sure to form a brick wall to put the Sharks up 3-2. He made six saves, including two fantastic saves on Tyson Barrie after a defensive-zone turnover.

The Sharks were clearly happy upon that result:

The Avs pulled the goalie late and sustained pressure in the Sharks' zone, but they could not muster a shot on goal before the final horn.

Colorado will host San Jose for Game 6 on Monday at 10 p.m. ET. NBCSN will televise the contest.