This Kings vs Sharks preview centers on a Los Angeles team trying to fix its defense. The Kings visit the San Jose Sharks on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT) after allowing eight goals in an 8-4 season-opening loss at Colorado on Sept. 30.
San Jose is 1-0-0 after a 4-3 overtime win over Florida on Thursday. Los Angeles is 0-1-0 and looking for its first win.
Kings vs Sharks preview: game information
- Date: Saturday, Oct. 3
- Time: 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT)
- Venue: SAP Center, San Jose, California
- TV: NBC Sports Bay Area, ABTV (check local listings)
Can the Kings’ defense recover after the 8-4 loss?
Colorado scored eight times in the opener, the first time the Avalanche have scored that many goals in a season opener, according to NHL.com. Our Avalanche-Kings recap has the full breakdown.
The Kings did score four goals themselves. Joel Armia and Trevor Moore each scored shorthanded, and Brian Dumoulin and Artemi Panarin also scored. Coach Peter Laviolette said afterward that staying out of the penalty box and execution are “things in our control.”
Anton Forsberg gets the start in goal for Los Angeles, according to the team’s pregame notes. Darcy Kuemper played the opener.
Is Yaroslav Askarov ready to anchor San Jose’s crease?
Yaroslav Askarov stopped 23 of 26 shots in Thursday’s overtime win over the Panthers, CBS Sports reported. The Sharks controlled play for two periods but struggled defensively in the third. Luca Cagnoni scored the winner 3:14 into overtime.
CBS Sports said Askarov appears positioned to earn the starting role over Alex Nedeljkovic if he keeps playing well. Our Panthers-Sharks coverage looks at that opener in more detail.
Players to watch in the Kings vs Sharks preview
Will Smith scored twice against Florida and assisted on the overtime winner, giving him three points. Macklin Celebrini had three assists.
For Los Angeles, Panarin scored in the opener, and Armia and Moore provided the shorthanded goals. The Kings scored two road shorthanded goals in a game for just the second time in 14 years, per NHL.com.
Injuries
FOX Sports lists Alex Barre-Boulet, Kyle Keyser, Adam Gaudette and Quentin Musty as injured for San Jose. For Los Angeles, it lists Jakub Dvorak, Kevin Fiala, Jan Jenik and Otto Salin, according to FOX Sports.
Corey Perry is expected to play for Los Angeles, and defenseman Erik Gustafsson has a good chance to make his Kings debut, according to the team’s pregame notes.
How the two teams got into this Kings vs Sharks preview matchup
San Jose finished last season 39-35-8 and scored 249 goals, an average of 3.0 per game, according to FOX Sports. Los Angeles finished 35-27-20 with 220 goals, including 38 on the power play and seven shorthanded.
Forward Mason Marchment scored in his Sharks debut against Florida. Cagnoni’s overtime goal came in his 10th NHL game, NHL.com reported. Florida’s Eetu Luostarinen scored twice on the power play and Matthew Tkachuk also scored.
The Kings are coming off a loss in which Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon scored twice and goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood made 27 saves. Los Angeles went without a power-play goal, but its two shorthanded goals kept the game competitive.
What to watch Saturday
Special teams could decide this game. Los Angeles scored twice shorthanded in the opener, while San Jose allowed two power-play goals to Florida’s Luostarinen. Staying out of the penalty box is the clearest way for either side to avoid a repeat.
The other storyline in this Kings vs Sharks preview is goaltending. Forsberg is a different option than Kuemper for Los Angeles, while Askarov looks to build on his debut. Whichever team gets steadier play in net will have a clear edge in a game between two clubs that each scored four goals in their openers.
