from Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News,

The Sharks didn’t need a miraculous comeback Wednesday. They just had to hold on.

And after the drama that unfolded at SAP Center two weeks ago, the Sharks had another heart-stopper in Game 7 of their second round series against the Colorado Avalanche.

They found a way once again.

Joe Pavelski had a goal and an assist in his return to the lineup and Joonas Donskoi’s first goal since Jan. 8 proved to the game-winner as the Sharks beat the Avalanche 3-2 to win the series four-games-to-three and advance to the Western Conference final for the second time in four years.

The Sharks will face the St. Louis Blues, the same team they faced in the 2016 Western Conference final, in the third round in a series that will begin Saturday in San Jose.

Left for dead when they were in this same position two weeks ago against the Vegas Golden Knights, down three goals in Game 7 after being down 3-1 in the series, the Sharks are now halfway to their goal of bringing a Stanley Cup to San Jose.

“Excitement,” Sharks center Logan Couture said of getting back to this stage. “There’s four teams still playing and there’s 27 teams at home wishing they were in these spots. I’ve been lucky enough to play in a few Western Conference finals in my career and you realize that you can’t take them for granted because you never know when the next one’s going to come.

continued

Game highlights and handshakes are below.