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Rissmiller, Sharks top Kings

Tue 18th, March 2008

Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Patrick Rissmiller tallied the game-winning goal and Brian Boucher was solid with 29 saves in his second start of the season, as the San Jose Sharks defeated the Los Angeles Kings, 2-1, at Staples Center.

Joe Thornton also scored for red-hot San Jose, which has won 12 of its last 13 games and maintained its lead atop the Pacific Division with 95 points, five ahead of Anaheim. The Sharks, whose win streak of 11 games was halted on Sunday by Edmonton in a 2-1 shootout loss, will now return home for two straight.

"We play everybody tough," said Thornton. "We always earn it. We scored when we needed it -- we realize how crucial every game is."

Lubomir Visnovsky scored the only goal for the Kings, who fell to 2-5-2 in the month of March. Dan Cloutier allowed two goals on 23 shots in the loss.

Trailing by two goals in the latter stages of the third period, the Kings cut their deficit in half on Visnovsky's goal with 4:47 remaining in regulation. Derek Armstrong carried the puck behind the net and passed out to Visnovsky atop the left circle. Visnovsky's slap shot flew past Boucher's left shoulder for his seventh goal.

The Kings had several quality scoring chances in the final minutes, including a hard wrist shot by Michael Cammalleri with 2:10 to go and a slap shot by Tom Preissing with Cloutier on the bench for the extra skater. Both were turned aside by Boucher, but the best chance for LA to tie was when Alex Frolov missed the net on a partial breakaway with eight seconds remaining.

"Our effort was decent, but I wish I didn't have to push to get that effort," said Kings coach Marc Crawford. "We pushed and pushed in the third period, but you have to do that all the time. I'm not disappointed with our effort, we just have to get to another level."

Boucher, a journeyman netminder, shut out the St. Louis Blues in his only other start of the season on March 1. In late February, he was signed to a one-year contract by San Jose after he played for Philadelphia's top minor league club for most of the 2007-08 campaign.

"It feels good -- my first two starts have gone well," said Boucher. "I don't know when I'm going to get in the game, so I put my work in (during practice) and I felt really good tonight."

The Sharks opened the scoring with a power-play goal at the 17:09 mark of the first period. With Matt Ellis in the penalty box for hooking, the Kings went to work with the extra skater. Thornton held control of the puck along the goal line to the right of the net and passed into the goal mouth, where the disc deflected off the skate of LA blueliner Rob Blake. Joe Pavelski poked the puck back to Thornton, who was all alone at the right post and punched home his 20th goal of the season.

In the latter stages of the mostly defensive second period, Frolov nearly tied the score with a wraparound attempt at the left post, but was denied by Boucher's pad with 4:15 to go.

Shortly after, the Sharks grabbed at two-goal lead on Rissmiller's eighth goal. Torrey Mitchell carried the puck over the blue line and feathered a pass between the skates of Visnovsky for Rissmiller, whose backhander from the bottom of the right circle was saved by Cloutier. The rebound kicked loose, Rissmiller followed the shot and, with Preissing draped on his back, lit the lamp with a wrister from in close near the right post with 3:37 to go before the second intermission.

Game Notes

Thornton now has eight consecutive seasons with at least 20 goals...San Jose is now five points behind idle Detroit for the top seed in the West...The Sharks won their ninth straight road game and improved their NHL-best road record to 26-8-3... The Sharks were 1-for-2 with the extra skater and held the Kings scoreless on their four power-play chances... Attendance was 16,784.

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