Sharks defeat Kings in season opener

SAN JOSE -- Defenseman Brent Burns and forward Logan Couture scored, and the San Jose Sharks defeated the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 in the season opener for each team at SAP Center on Wednesday.
Martin Jones made 21 saves for the Sharks, who opened the season four months to the day since they were eliminated in the Stanley Cup Final by the Pittsburgh Penguins with a 3-1 loss here in Game 6.

"It felt like four months ago and the playoffs were still on," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. "That was a man's game out there. It was physical, it was hard. They came obviously ready to play and to try and send a message that the playoffs last year wasn't something that they were happy about. I thought our guys responded."
The Sharks defeated Los Angeles in the Western Conference First Round last season in five games.
Kings starting goaltender Jonathan Quick left the game after the first period because of a lower-body injury and was replaced by Jeff Zatkoff, who made 15 saves. Quick stopped 14 of 15 shots.

Forward Tyler Toffoli scored for the Kings.
Burns put the Sharks ahead 2-1 at 3:20 of the third period, beating Zatkoff with a snap shot from the low slot.
The Kings took a 1-0 lead 1:22 into the game on a power-play goal by Toffoli, who led the Kings with a career-high 31 goals last season.
Couture scored a power-play goal at 14:05 of the first after forward Kyle Clifford went to the box for interfering with Sharks forward Joel Ward.
"We played the type of game we wanted to," Kings coach Darryl Sutter said. "We made a couple of mistakes on the boards. They are a big, heavy team in the O-zone. We handled it pretty well. We should have done more in their zone."

Goal of the game

The Sharks got a fortunate bounce when Burns scored the game-winner 3:20 into the third period. Sharks forward Joonas Donskoi sent a pass from left of the crease toward Burns, who was skating hard down the slot. The puck bounced off of Kings defenseman Drew Doughty, who was flat on the ice after making a diving try to block the pass, and went directly to Burns, who beat Zatkoff.

Save of the game

Jones didn't face many dangerous shots, but he came up big early in the second period when the Kings had a prime chance to take a 2-1 lead. The puck got past Sharks defenseman Justin Braun along the boards, igniting a breakaway by forward Kyle Clifford. Clifford headed toward the crease and sent a shot from close range, but Jones made a glove safe as Clifford crashed into him.

Highlight of the game

At 14:05 in the first period, Couture beat Quick on the power play with a wrist shot from the slot and the Sharks pulled even at 1-1. Couture lifted the puck over Quick's left shoulder. Sharks forwards Patrick Marleau and Pavelski created traffic in front of the net, making it tough for Quick to see. The puck came out of the net so quickly that it was initially waved off on the ice, but after a video review, it was ruled a good goal.

Unsung moment of the game

Trailing by a goal, the Kings pulled Zatkoff with 1:05 left to play for an extra attacker. The Sharks never let a shot get through to Jones the rest of the way, capping a strong defensive performance.

They said it

"We all know what Jonathan Quick] brings for our team and what he's done here. We can't be thinking about that, we have to be positive. [Jeff Zatkoff] played unbelievable coming into today. We're confident in what he has for our team." *-- Kings forward Tyler Toffoli*
"They always come out hard. That's the way they play. They come out, they're a physical team, they take pucks hard to the net. We knew what they were going to bring. But after the first 10 minutes, we started moving the puck a little quicker and getting pucks deep and behind their D." *-- Sharks goaltender Martin Jones
"Sharks fans were into it from the start. It was like the playoffs. We came out on the ice and it felt like a playoff game right away. Happy to win for our fans." -- Sharks forward Logan Couture
[Video: LAK@SJS: Shark baby brings good luck to San Jose*

Need to know

In a pregame ceremony, the Sharks raised the banner commemorating their 2016 Western Conference Championship. ... Kings forward Tanner Pearson served the third game of his four-game suspension, including two preseason games, for a hit to the head of Edmonton defenseman Brandon Davidson on Oct. 2. ... Forward Devin Setoguchi made his debut for the Kings. He had two shots on goal, two hits and a takeaway.

What's next

Kings: Host the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday (10:30 p.m. ET; CSN-PH, FS-W, NHL.TV)
Sharks: Visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday (7 p.m. ET; CSN-CA, FS-O, NHL.TV)