The three combined for 40 points in 51 playoff games: Karlsson had 16 points (two goals, 14 assists) in 19 games; Hertl had 15 points (10 goals, five assists) in 19 games; and Pavelski had nine points (four goals, five assists) in 13 games.
Despite the losses in the lineup, Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said they gave everything they had.
"I was proud of our group tonight," he said. "I don't think the score reflected the work we put in. I know what the scoreboard said at the end of the night, but I felt we made them earn it tonight. We showed up under tough circumstances and we got efforts from everybody. That's all you can ask."
Indeed, the Sharks got to within 2-1 when Gambrell scored 6:40 into the second period.
But again, San Jose felt the absence of its injured players. Karlsson and Hertl weren't on the penalty kill, and Brayden Schenn scored a power-play goal at 12:47 of the second to give the Blues a 3-1 lead.
"Big goal to cut it to one. It was unfortunate to give up another power-play goal there," Sharks forward Evander Kane said. "If we're going into the third period down 2-1, it's a little bit different than them having a two-goal lead."