SAN JOSE -- It wasn't pretty at the end but the Sharks dominated the game for the first two periods.

The Sharks held off the Kings 6-3 to win Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals.

Veteran netminder Jonathan Quick was beaten on a shot he couldn't stop because of a great set up by Brent Burns and a backhand that was tipped in by Joe Thornton. Adding insult to injury, Quick was pushed aside by Mike Brown moments later and the ensuing scrum behind the net might have rattled Quick who was never the same after that.

His teammates didn't help either who were slow to backcheck and as a result, nearly all of the Sharks goals were grade A scoring chances.

His reward was sitting out the third period after giving up five goals,something that rarely happens, especially someone of his caliber.

On the other side of the ice, Antti Niemi was nearly perfect until a breakdown in the third period where the Sharks couldn't clear the zone on the first of what ended up being three Kings goals as the Sharks sort of lost their mojo for a stretch.

If the Sharks play any period as flat as they did in the third, they'll be outsed in the first round. The stats also don't tell the whole story.

The Kings dished out 69 hits to the Sharks 52. San Jose also had 17 giveaways to Los Angeles with only six. Still, it was a great statement to the start of what should be a very competitive series that will go at least six games.

Once the Kings got the deficit down to two, Los Angeles was forced to pull backup Martin Jones to try and tie the game. It didn't work as Brent Burns scored on the empty net to make it a 6-3 final.

Said Joe Thornton after the win, "We thought it might be a 2-1 or 1-0 game and we thought that might be the goal to win it so, it was nice to get the lead, get everyone settled down and go from there."

After the game, Kings defenseman Willie Mitchell said it best. "We want to play our best hockey... we feel we can beat anyone so we're just looking to get our shit together."

Game highlights



Contenders

Tomas Hertl - the rookie phenom who missed 45 games after being injured playing against the Kings at Staples Center. Hertl collided with Dustin Brown on a knee on knee hit. Hertl scored one of the five goals and he could be a difference maker in this series.

Raffi Torres - after he was unfairly suspended for most of the second round of last year's series against the Kings he had redemption on his mind and his goal also provided a big lift to the team.

Joe Thornton - for the captain who is always pass first, his goal set the tone on what ended up being a high scoring game.

Pretenders

Coach Darryl Sutter - For a guy who has the experience and first hand knowledge of the Shark Tank having coached here for many years, he did not do his job as a coach getting his team prepared for facing a Sharks team that had more jump from the start. He was also very upset when I asked him how Jonathan Quick played given all the odd-man scoring chances for the Sharks. He said, "I think I could have made the decision (to pull him) earlier."

Jonathan Quick - gave up five goals on 28 shots. Just a terrible performance in net no matter how you dissect it.

In memoriam

Before heading down to the rink, I got the unfortunate news that my friend and longtime Sacramento TV and radio sportscaster Ken Gimblin passed away. Ken did not cover the Sharks but he used to cover California Golden Seals games. Gimblin did his best to promote the game of hockey to the residents of the Sacramento valley back in the late 1960's and early 1970s.. He will be missed .

Tweets by @RyanLeong

Join the Discussion: » 25 Comments » Post New Comment

» General Manager Doug Wilson already making moves for next season

» The Sharks are now history, literally

» The Sharks fail to close out the Kings

» Sharks smell blood leading LA three games to none

» Sharks open up a can of whoop you know what on LA