The San Jose Sharks brought a relatively comfortable 3-1 lead into the third period on Sunday night and the Colorado Avalanche were unable to mount a comeback. The third's lone goal was an empty-netter scored by Patrick Marleau; the goal completed a hat trick for Marleau.

Unofficially, the Avs out-shot San Jose 37-17 on the night and had 14 shots in each of the last two periods, but they couldn't solve Sharks goaltender Thomas Greiss. Matt Duchene was responsible for Colorado's lone goal, which came in the game's first ten minutes.

With the defeat, Colorado falls to 9-11-1 on the season. They will return to action on Wednesday night when they host the Vancouver Canucks.

For more updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Denver. For more coverage, visit our Avalanche blog Mile High Hockey or our Sharks blog Fear The Fin. For news and notes from around the league, head over to SB Nation's NHL news hub.