Kovalchuk scores twice in return, Kings top Sharks in OT

SAN JOSE --Ilya Kovalchuk scored his second goal of the game at 2:29 of overtime to give the Los Angeles Kings a 3-2 victory against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Saturday.

Kovalchuk, who returned to the lineup after missing 10 games with an ankle injury, scored on a breakaway after tracking down a long rebound.
"He was flying today," Kings forward Alex Iafallo said. "That gives us momentum. He's got a great shot and he proved it today. A really good game out of him."
WATCH: [All Kings vs. Sharks highlights]
Joe Pavelski tied it 2-2 at 19:29 of the third period, redirecting Brent Burns' point shot.
Jonathan Quick made 29 saves, and Iafallo had a goal and an assist for the Kings (13-20-3), who have won consecutive games for the third time this season.
Martin Jones made 28 saves, Lukas Radil scored and Erik Karlsson had two assists for the Sharks (19-12-6), who have lost two straight (0-1-1).

"We're happy to scrape a point away," Pavelski said. "If you think about the other night (5-3 loss to Winnipeg Jets), we play pretty good and come away with nothing. I think we'll take this one over the other night."
Kovalchuk gave the Kings a 1-0 lead at 4:28 of the first period on the power play, taking a pass from Jake Muzzin and scoring top shelf on a one-timer from the left circle. It was his first goal since Nov. 6 (12 games).
"Muzzin, he made a great pass," Kovalchuk said. "He was waiting, waiting and it opened up for a one-timer, so it was good."
Oscar Fantenberg appeared to give Los Angeles a 2-0 lead at 8:09 of the second period, but Sharks coach Peter DeBoer challenged for goalie interference, and the call was reversed after a video review.

Iafallo extended the lead to 2-0 at 5:15 of the third period with a one-timer from the left circle. He has eight points (three goals, five assists) during an NHL career-high six-game point streak.
"We definitely get a vibe in the room when everybody's going at the same time," Iafallo said. "If we just keep doing that and getting momentum every game, it's going to be huge for us."
Radil cut it to 2-1 at 10:18 when he redirected a cross-crease pass from Timo Meier.
"It wasn't our best game," DeBoer said. "We probably got what we deserved. Our execution wasn't great, I thought our energy was just OK. We've been pretty good for a while here, but it was an off night. We found a way to get a point. That's probably the silver lining."
Kings rookie forward Austin Wagner left at 2:41 of the second period after sustaining an upper-body injury on a hit in the neutral zone by Karlsson, who will have a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety on Sunday.

They said it

"I feel good, actually. Obviously, my linemates helped me a lot, but I just want to say thanks to all the trainers and doctors, they did a great job. I think we trained really well, and I feel even better than before I got injured." -- Kings forward Ilya Kovalchuk

"He works hard off the ice. He's excited for every shift. He's excited to get out there. He was good. He got two big goals for us. That power play, it was nice to get a power-play goal, too. We haven't been scoring on that. And then to get something in overtime was great, too." -- Kings coach Willie Desjardins on Kovalchuk
"We came back at the end. That's good, but we know we had better. You don't like to leave points on the table. It was good coming back and then tying it, but you've got to get two points every night. It's just the way everything's going right now." -- Sharks defenseman Brent Burns

Need to know

The Kings played their 4,000th regular-season game. … Los Angeles placed defenseman Dion Phaneuf (upper body) on IR, retroactive to Dec. 11. Phaneuf missed his fourth straight game. … Karlsson has 10 assists during an eight-game point streak. … Pavelski's goal was his 23rd of the season, one more than he had in 82 games last season.

What's next

Kings:At the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; ATTSN-RM, FS-W, NHL.TV)
Sharks:Host the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, FS-A PLUS, NHL.TV)