Game 79: Sharks 6, Kings 1

To peep out all the videos online about this game, check out today's Hockeywood Dailies.

Don't act like you're surprised. The Kings are without their top two offensive weapons, and can't rely on their goaltending and defense to win every game.

Sometimes, you need to get out there and outscore the other team, instead of trying to clamp down defense. They say the best offense is a good defense, but that's not really the case when you are facing a team in the top 10 in goals scored, goals against and power play. (Much like it didn't against the juggernaut Canucks. Or is it jugger-nucks?)

Don't get me wrong, I like the goaltending of Jonathan Quick and the D-core. They both have been pleasent surprises. The Kings just don't have the weapons to match an all-out assault like the one in Vancouver or San Jose.

How bad was the beatdown? Jonathan Quick got pulled in the second period. Coach Terry Murray never pulls a goaltender, like when the Kings lost to the Blues in a blowout. But Quick wasn't right, allowing four goals on 16 shots. It was just one of those games.

The Kings were actually in this game when Michal Handzus scored to make it 2-1 to start out the second period. Again, the Kings allowed a goal less than a minute later to drastically shift the game to the point of no return.

Not much else to say about this game, other than it's a reminder that when/if the Kings make the playoffs, they're going to need certain players to step up and fill the scoring void. Losing Kopitar and Williams at this late date, I'm not sure there's enough time to draw out that leadership.

• AP: Sharks clinch division with 6-1 win over Kings

Jonathan Quick was knocked out early in the second period after allowing four goals on 16 shots and Jonathan Bernier didn’t fare much better as the Kings allowed six goals for the second time in three games in San Jose this season.

• LA Times: Kings' defense goes missing in 6-1 loss to San Jose

The Kings' clinching number remains at two: any combination of two points they earn or two points the Dallas Stars don't earn will put the Kings into the playoffs for the second straight season. The Stars face Columbus at home Tuesday; the Kings play host to Phoenix on Wednesday.

• LAKings.com:  Kings topped in the Tank, lose to Sharks

After starting the game with shaky defensive play, the Kings allowed two goals in the game's first nine minutes and simply couldn't handle the firepower of the Sharks, who scored two more early in the second period and went on to a 6-1 victory at HP Pavilion.

• NHL.com: Sharks clinch Pacific with win over Kings 

The Sharks prevented the injury-ravaged Kings, their Pacific Division rivals, from clinching a playoff spot. The Kings would have been in with a win, but they remained stuck on 96 points, virtually tied for fourth in the West with Phoenix and just one point ahead of Nashville and three ahead of Anaheim.

They said it

“Our fundamentals weren’t very good, stopping and starting, staying at home plate. Our defensive game wasn’t very good, and our puck management made it pretty difficult on especially the D. They had a lot of 3-on-2s. We don’t normally give up 3-on-2s or 2-on-1s, but it seems like every rush they had (was), and that’s a result of puck management. When we’re good, our puck management is good and our D-zone is good. Neither one was really good tonight.” – Dustin Brown, on the game.

“It was one of those games where you felt you had two or three good shifts in a row, and got some pressure going, and then you give up two grade-A chances in a span of 30 seconds from each other. It’s frustrating. You think you can build some momentum and it doesn’t happen that way, and it’s all on us. It’s completely on us. … Tonight, I just think they played a good game and we weren’t up to par, or anywhere close to where we need to be to get into the postseson.” – Matt Greene, on the disparity between shots and scoring chances.

“When you come into this building, you know you have to play good. You’ve got to show up and compete real hard. We gave up that first goal, and it’s the goals I don’t like. You’ve got to show up against a real good hockey club, and play well, and we didn’t do they. They came right back, after we made it a 2-1 game, and that’s just the way they approach business. They come right back and score, and after that it was all their game.” – Terry Murray, on the game.