Zubrus In, Hertl Out for Sharks in Game 3

SAN JOSE — The San Jose Sharks will be without injured first-line left wing Tomas Hertl for Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Pittsburgh Penguins at SAP Center on Saturday.

Hertl will miss the game with a lower-body injury.

“He’s out tonight,” Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said after San Jose’s optional skate. “He’s arguably been our best player through the first two games. Injuries are no excuse this time of year. We’ve got someone that will go in for him, and we’ll roll out there and be ready to play.”

Dainius Zubrus, a healthy scratch in Game 2, will replace Hertl in the lineup and will likely skate on the fourth line. Melker Karlsson is expected to move from the fourth line to the top line and take Hertl’s spot with center Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski. That’s the way the Sharks lined up for practice Friday.

“We’ve got a couple guys that have played in that role before,” DeBoer said. “Melker has before and so has Zubrus. I think the one thing with those two guys, you’ve got a guy that will hound the puck and work for it. [Thornton and Pavelski] take care of the rest. I think we’ve got a lot of options because of who we’re sticking them in with. I think it should be fairly seamless.”

Hertl has six goals and five assists during the playoffs. Against Pittsburgh, he scored a power-play goal in Game 1 and hit the post three times during Game 2.

“He’s been a big, big part of this team, especially the second half,” Pavelski said. “You saw the smile on his face the last few rounds. He’s really enjoyed playing, and he brings that energy. It’s tough to miss a guy like that if you have to, but somebody steps in. We’ve done it. We’ve done it for a while. We still expect a good effort from whoever …

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