LOS ANGELES, CA — Despite the Los Angeles Kings holding their opponents at bay for about two periods, the San Jose Sharks managed to score goals to force overtime as Tomas Hertl scored the winning goal for the 4-3 win at Crypto.com Arena.
Sharks set the tone early as Brent Burns scored on a power play goal with an assist from Logan Couture for the 1-0 lead in the first period. In the latter portion of the period the Kings become aggressive on the offensive end as Phillip Danault scored on the assist from Trevor Moore, then less than thirsty seconds later Andreas Athanasiou scored as Los Angeles took a 2-1 lead.
Midway through the second period, Moore scored a shorthanded goal for his 11th of the season for the 3-1 lead. Bonino responded with a power play goal just getting around Kings goalie Jonathan Quick to slap in a bouncing rebound. Early in the third period Alexander Barabanov tied up the game, as the Sharks defense intensified to force overtime.
Hertl scored with 1:13 in the overtime period for the victory. Quick allowed four goals on 30 shots as the Kings three game winning streak was snapped by San Jose.
“It’s so nice because lately, the chances, I couldn’t bury them and help the team,” Hertl said. “This one, in overtime, for sure felt really nice, and hopefully I can get a little more going.”
The Kings were 0-for-4 on power play opportunities while the Sharks were 2-for-6 on their power plays.
Two positive notes for Los Angeles, they gained a point in the standings and Jordan Spence made his NHL debut on Thursday night. Spence has 42 points in the AHL and was second among defensemen in the AHL. Spence also made history as the first player with Japanese citizenship and the first Australian-born player to play in the NHL.
The Kings will travel to San Jose to face the Sharks on Saturday night at the SAP Center at 6:30PM PT.
