Kempe's Hat-Trick Return Powers Kings to 7-2 Rout of Sharks

A return marked in 83 seconds

Adrian Kempe needed only 83 seconds to show the Los Angeles Kings what they had missed. Back in the lineup after sitting out Saturday's 3-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, Kempe took a pass from Artemi Panarin, broke clear and beat Yaroslav Askarov to open the scoring at 1:23 of the first period at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night. It was the first statement of an evening that belonged almost entirely to the home side, and it set the tone for a 7-2 win over the San Jose Sharks.

Kempe doubled the lead at 16:09, driving a one-timer from the right circle off a pass from Erik Gustafsson, and Quinton Byfield added a power-play goal at 18:39 to send Los Angeles into the first intermission ahead 3-0. The Kings had started the season 0-4-2, but on this night they played like a team that had found its footing, moving the puck quickly and punishing every San Jose mistake.

The power play takes over

The second period belonged to the Kings' power play. Erik Haula restored the three-goal cushion at 11:10, finishing a backhand from the slot to make it 4-1, and Kempe completed his hat-trick at 15:51, burying a one-timer from the left circle off a feed from Alex Laferriere for a 5-1 lead. The goal was Kempe's fifth NHL hat-trick, and it moved him into a tie with Charlie Simmer and Jimmy Carson for ninth in Kings history.

It was also Kempe's 37th career multi-goal game with Los Angeles, moving him past Dustin Brown for sole possession of ninth place on the franchise list. The crowd rained hats onto the ice, and the Kings went into the second intermission firmly in control, having converted three of their five power-play chances on the night. Panarin, who set up Kempe's opener, finished with four assists, while Byfield scored twice on the power play.

San Jose's reply falls short

The Sharks did not go quietly. Macklin Celebrini and Ivar Stenberg each scored on the power play for San Jose, and the visitors kept pressing even as the scoreboard drifted away from them. But every time San Jose found a foothold, Los Angeles answered. Joel Armia redirected a puck home at 2:12 of the third period to extend the lead to 6-1, and after Stenberg pulled one back at 9:41, Byfield tipped in a Panarin shot at 14:28 to complete the 7-2 final.

Darcy Kuemper made 30 saves for the Kings, stopping 30 of the 32 shots he faced, while Askarov made 20 saves for San Jose. The Sharks finished 2-for-6 on the power play, but their special teams could not keep pace with a Los Angeles unit that scored three times. The game also marked the NHL debut of San Jose defenseman Eric Pohlkamp, called up from the American Hockey League before the game.

What the night means

The result left the Kings at 5-7-2, winners of five of their past eight games after that winless start, and winners of two of their first three games on a seven-game homestand. For a team that took seven attempts to record its first victory of the season, the rout was the most convincing performance of the campaign so far, and it arrived on the night the club debuted its new Hometown Remix uniforms.

For San Jose, the defeat was harder to take. The Sharks fell to 7-9-1, losers of three straight games and five of their past six, and they held a players-only meeting after the defeat, having been outscored 24-11 over that six-game stretch. A team that had shown promise early in the season now faces a test of its resolve, with little time to dwell on a night when its goaltending and its discipline were both exposed.

What comes next

The Kings will look to build on the momentum when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night, still early in their long homestand and still climbing after a slow start. The Sharks, meanwhile, travel to face the Minnesota Wild on Friday night, needing a response before a losing run hardens into something more damaging. Kempe's return gave Los Angeles its cutting edge back; whether it lasts will be decided by how the Kings follow up a night when almost everything went right.