Logan Couture had a chance late to record his first career hat trick. The puck glanced off a teammate before going into the net.
Not everything went his way.
Couture scored two of San Jose's team-record five goals in the first 14:47 as the Sharks beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-2 Wednesday night.
Benn Ferriero, Joe Pavelski, Andrew Desjardins, Brent Burns and Patrick Marleau also scored for the Sharks, who won their third straight.
''When you get two quick ones you assume you'll get more chances,'' Couture said. ''The puck was following me around all night. They didn't have much energy in the first period and we jumped on them. We scored, and then scored and scored and scored.''
Dominic Moore and Martin St. Louis scored for the Lightning, who had a two-game winning streak snapped and lost their eighth in 11 games.
''Everything that is a nightmare you don't want, happened in the first period,'' Lightning coach Guy Boucher said. ''That team is lethal around the net and they overpowered us, plain and simple.''
It was the Sharks' fastest time for five goals ever in a regular-season game and they finished with their highest scoring total of the season. Antti Niemi stopped 22 shots for his third straight win.
''It becomes a weird game when that happens,'' Burns said. ''It's a different feeling. A lot of bounces were going our way and not a lot their way.''
Tampa Bay's Dwayne Roloson stopped 31 of 34 shots in relief of starter Mathieu Garon.
''We've had some success when we've replaced the goalie before,'' Boucher said. ''I was looking for something but it was already too late.''
Ferriero, recalled from Worcester of the AHL to replace the injured Martin Havlat, gave the Sharks the early lead after taking a pass from behind the net from Joe Thornton less than four minutes into the contest.
''I was a little bit nervous at first but it was great to get a chance to play with two great players like that,'' Ferriero said. ''I couldn't ask for anything more on my first shift.''
Pavelski backhanded a rebound off a shot by Burns during a power play less than two minutes later to make it 2-0.
Desjardins rapped the puck off the post and into the net after Andrew Murray saved the puck behind the net, ending Garon's evening.
Couture scored an even-strength goal and one on the power play in a 1:34 span to set the team record.
Moore got the Lightning on the board late in the first with an assist from Eric Brewer.
''It was an awful way to start the game,'' Brewer said. ''They had their way in the first period and we were junk.''
Following a scoreless second period, Burns scored off a clean faceoff, won by Michal Handzus, 1:15 into the third.
After St. Louis scored for Tampa Bay, Marleau was credited for a goal when Lightning defender Marc-Andre Bergeron knocked the puck into the net and then broke his stick slamming it against the crossbar.
NOTES: St. Louis, who recorded his 801st point, played for the first time since getting hit in the face by a puck during a practice. He missed five games. ... Thornton moved into 69th place on the all-time points list with 1,029. ... Garon gave up three goals on eight shots before leaving the game with 13:39 remaining in the first period. ... The Sharks' previous mark for five goals was in the first 18:50 at Chicago in 1996. ... Desjardins scored his first goal since getting two in the season opener on Oct. 8.
