from Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News,

Perhaps there was only one sight uglier than the Sharks’ start to Game 4 of the Western Conference Final against the St. Louis Blues on Friday.

It was the one of defenseman Erik Karlsson on the Sharks’ bench late in the third period, lurched over in obvious discomfort.

Karlsson returned late the third after the Sharks had pulled Martin Jones, attempting to tie the game with the extra attacker on the ice. But the Sharks couldn’t beat Blues goalie Jordan Binnington a second time and lost 2-1, setting up a pivotal Game 5 at home on Sunday with the series now tied 2-2.

Sharks coach Pete DeBoer didn’t have a health update after the game on Karlsson, who missed a handful of shifts after he left the ice at a stoppage in play with 9:24 left in regulation time. Karlsson came back with just under two minutes left, a good sign for the Sharks that he was able to gut it out for one final push.

Still, for a player who missed 27 of the Sharks’ final 33 games due to groin and leg injuries, there has to be some concern for how effective Karlsson might be for the rest of this series.

continued