This is the end of the back-to-back back-to-back back-to-back back-to-back nightmare for the San Jose Sharks.

After this, what will that mean for their goaltending?

Tuesday night at the Tampa Bay Lightning will be the end of four consecutive back-to-backs for the Sharks. San Jose, impressively, has won five of these last seven.

Yaroslav Askarov and Alex Nedeljkovic have alternated starts, Nedeljkovic winning four and Askarov one. Askarov should get the net at Amalie Arena tonight.

This speaks to a recent trend between the pipes for the Sharks. Since Askarov’s torrid November, when he posted an 8-2-0 record and a .944 Save %, rightly seizing the No. 1 job then, Nedeljkovic has outplayed him.

Since Dec. 1, Askarov is 7-6-0 with an .866 Save %. Per Evolving Hockey, he has a -5.53 Goals Saved Above Expected. Nedeljkovic is 6-3-0 with an .895 Save % and a +3.47 GSAx.

Nedeljkovic hasn’t been dominant, but he’s clearly been better, especially in January.

After Tampa, the Sharks finish with six games before the Olympic break, no back-to-backs.

Will the veteran Nedeljkovic get his chance to run with the ball?

There’s no doubt that 23-year-old Askarov is the future in the crease for the Sharks, but San Jose needs wins now.

San Jose Sharks (25-20-3)

Askarov should start.

The only line-up change is Adam Gaudette for Igor Chernyshov, somewhat surprising because the winger notched two assists yesterday.

“Just back-to-back, it’s managing some minutes with Cherny,” Warsofsky told San Jose Hockey Now about the 20-year-old winger. “Played well. Not a negative whatsoever.”

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Askarov

Warsofsky says Kiefer Sherwood will fly to San Jose tomorrow and get his upper-body injury evaluated. Warsofsky will offer a more precise Sherwood timeline after that.

Tampa Bay Lightning (30-13-4)

Warsofsky says the Lightning are good at everything, so the Sharks will have to play a mature game: “We gotta stay away from the plays that get us beat, and that usually will be mental mistakes. We gotta make sure our minds are into it.”

Here’s how the Lightning lined up in their last game, a 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars on Sunday.

Where To Watch

Puck drop between the San Jose Sharks and Tampa Bay Lightning is at 4 PM PT at Benchmark International Arena. Watch it live on NBC Sports California. Listen to it on the Sharks Audio Network.