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NHL Playoffs 2014, Kings at Sharks final score: Sharks Hang On

By Michael Straw

April 17, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau (12) is congratulated by his teammates for scoring a goal against Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) during the first period in game one of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
April 17, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau (12) is congratulated by his teammates for scoring a goal against Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) during the first period in game one of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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April 17, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau (12) is congratulated by his teammates for scoring a goal against Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) during the first period in game one of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
April 17, 2014; San Jose, CA, USA; San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau (12) is congratulated by his teammates for scoring a goal against Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) during the first period in game one of the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

It’s Northern California one, Southern California zero after the San Jose Sharks took a major bite out of the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night in the battle of California. The Sharks beat the Kings 6-3 in front of a sold out crowd at the SAP Center in San Jose in game one of their best of seven series in the NHL playoffs.

From start to finish, it was clear that San Jose was the better prepared team on this night. It took just three minutes for the Sharks to open the scoring when Joe Thornton beat Jonathan Quick with a backhand shot.

Two goals in a 48-second span from Tomas Hertl and Patrick Marleau with less than a minute left in the first put the game away for San Jose early.

Raffi Torres and Marc-Edouard Vlasic would add markers in the second period to put the game completely out of reach as the Kings now have to go back to the drawing board before the puck drops on game two on Sunday in San Jose.

The Kings would finally get on the board in the third period, putting enough pressure on the Sharks with three goals to bring the game to 5-3. Unfortunately for Los Angeles, the three markers by Jake Muzzin, Slava Voynov and Trevor Lewis proved to be just too little, too late.

Brent Burns added an empty net goal with 54 seconds left to ice it.

Antti Niemi stopped 31 shots for the Sharks while Quick allowed five goals on 28 shots before being pulled in favor of Martin Jones. Jones stopped all five shots faced.

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