The Los Angeles Kings completed a quick home-and-home series sweep against the rival San Jose Sharks with a 3-2 victory on New Years Eve at Staples Center and a 2-1 victory on Tuesday at the SAP Center.
Pearson scored 58 seconds into overtime to help the Los Angeles Kings rally from a one-goal third period deficit in order to complete the sweep.
The Kings first win came last Saturday night at Staples Center in the year 2016 when they recorded their first win of the season over the Sharks as it was once gain Tanner Pearson and Jeff Carter who scored.
Carter, who assisted on the game-winning goal, tied it early in the third with his 21st goal and then set up the winner after San Jose lost possession in the offensive zone.
Carter came in on a 2-on-1 and passed to Pearson for the one-timer that gave the Kings their league-leading seventh overtime win of the season, and first victory of the 2017 new year.
Home-and-home series sweep. pic.twitter.com/TzH7x3BPjk — #LAKings (@LAKings) January 4, 2017
Peter Budaj made 26 saves and Los Angeles followed up a 3-2 win at home over first-place San Jose on Saturday night with another on the road to even the season series at two games apiece.
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Logan Couture scored the lone goal for the Sharks, who lost for just the second time all season when leading after two periods. Martin Jones made 33 saves.
Finding the net. #SJSharks pic.twitter.com/8ZW373bXpe — San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) January 4, 2017
Trailing 1-0, the Kings tied the game early in the third with a power-play goal by Carter. With Justin Braun in the box, Jake Muzzin fired a pass from the point that Carter re-directed past Jones for his seventh goal in the past seven games.
Each team had chances after that, but San Jose's Brenden Dillon and Los Angeles' Nic Dowd hit posts and the goalies came up with key stops, including a point-blank save by Jones against Jordan Nolan late in the third.
Los Angeles was all over the Sharks at the start but was unable to break through against Jones despite a 16-6 edge in shots in the first period. San Jose steadied things in the second period and ended up getting the lead.
Kevin Labanc fed Couture with a nice pass in the neutral zone and Couture skated toward the net with the puck. He fired a wrist shot that Budaj partially stopped, but the puck trickled under his arm and rolled in for Couture's fourth goal of the season against Los Angeles.
The Kings nearly tied it a few minutes later when they got a power play on a holding penalty by Brent Burns. Alec Martinez took a point shot that Jones stopped. The rebound popped into the air and was knocked in for an apparent goal by Marian Gaborik. But it was wiped off after replays showed that the puck was hit by Gaborik's glove.
Los Angeles had another good chance late in the period but Anze Kopitar was stopped on a short-handed breakaway by Jones in the closing seconds of the period to keep the game at 1-0.
UP NEXT
Kings: Open seven-game homestand against Detroit on Thursday night.
Sharks: Host Minnesota on Thursday night.
