Sharks vs. Kings: Igor Chernyshov's Overtime Winner Caps Two-Goal Night as Macklin Celebrini Keeps Dealing

Macklin Celebrini pushed the puck up the middle of the ice and slid it to the left circle. Igor Chernyshov did not need to look twice. One-timer, glove side, ballgame.

Chernyshov's second goal of the night came 3:18 into overtime and gave the San Jose Sharks a 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night at SAP Center, after Los Angeles had erased a two-goal hole in the third period and spent most of overtime pushing for a winner of its own. Yaroslav Askarov made 31 saves, and Celebrini finished with two assists.

Kings Strike First, Sharks Answer in Bunches

Los Angeles had the early juice. With Nolan Allan in the box for hooking, Artemi Panarin floated a seam pass from the left circle and Adrian Kempe hammered a one-timer past Askarov's blocker at 15:50 of the first. It was Kempe's first of the season and the first of two power-play goals for Los Angeles.

The second period flipped the script, with the Sharks scoring three times in less than 11 minutes. Tyler Toffoli started it on the power play at 1:48, tapping in a perfect feed from rookie Ivar Stenberg, who walked down the left wing and found him alone at the right post. It was the first NHL point for Stenberg, the No. 2 pick of the 2026 NHL Draft, and Toffoli was already a fan.

"He's a great player," Toffoli said, per NHL.com. "He does everything on the ice."

Kiefer Sherwood made it 2-1 at 9:52 the hard way, picking off a cross-ice pass by himself and ripping it home from high in the slot. Allan atoned for his penalty at 12:32, taking a pass from Michael Misa along the left-wing boards and beating Anton Forsberg through the five-hole from the point.

Then a Celebrini slashing minor came back to bite. Quinton Byfield took a pass from Mats Zuccarello out of the right corner and roofed a wrister over Askarov's shoulder at 19:58, cutting it to 3-2 heading into the second intermission.

"Our power play wasn't great in the first game, so scoring two this game really boosts it, and then a late goal going into intermission helps," Byfield said.

The Turning Point: Los Angeles Will Not Go Away

Chernyshov looked like he had put it to bed at 4:08 of the third. Toffoli sprung him with a stretch pass from the defensive zone, and Chernyshov went in alone and beat Forsberg's blocker with a backhand for a 4-2 lead.

The Kings did not care. At 10:21, Erik Gustafsson's wrist shot from the left point deflected off Erik Haula's body as he crossed the front of the net and found its way past Askarov. At 15:00, Byfield pounced on a San Jose giveaway at the blue line and set up Panarin for a one-timer from the left circle, his second goal of the season. Tied 4-4, five minutes to play, and the momentum was wearing silver and black.

Overtime belonged to the Kings for long stretches, according to the AP, and coach Peter Laviolette summed it up perfectly afterward. "I really liked the way we played the overtime but hate the result," he said. Celebrini only needed one rush. His feed, Chernyshov's finish, and that was that.

"(Celebrini) did a lot. I mean, I think all our team did a lot in this game, and like that's why we won," Chernyshov said.

Stars of the Night

Chernyshov was the best player in teal. Two goals, an assist on Allan's goal and a plus-3 rating in 16:23, and the second goal ended it. Those were his first two goals of the season, and he picked a good night to get going.

Celebrini keeps stacking assists like he is farming points in a video game. He has five assists in two games, per the AP, and NHL.com noted he became the fifth player in franchise history to begin a season with consecutive multiassist games and the first since Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski did it in 2012-13. He also logged 21:42 and won nine face-offs while losing nine.

Toffoli had a goal and an assist, and his stretch pass on Chernyshov's breakaway was the best pass of the night not made by Celebrini. Askarov faced 35 shots and stopped 31.

For Los Angeles, Byfield, Panarin and Kempe each had a goal and an assist, and Byfield won 13 of 20 face-offs in 22:40. Brandt Clarke added two assists. Forsberg made 20 saves on 25 shots in his season debut.

"We had some really good looks early. It is nice to get on the board, nice for the whole line to get on the board," Kempe said. "I thought we were really good all night long."

Stats That Matter

• 35-25: The Kings' shot advantage, which is why this loss stings.
• 2-for-3: Los Angeles on the power play after struggling in its opener.
• 5: Celebrini's assists through two games, per the AP.
• 33: Overtime games the Kings played last season, an NHL record, per NHL.com.
• First: The Sharks had never before won their first two games of a season in overtime, per NHL.com.

What It Means

San Jose is 2-0-0 for the first time since 2021-22, according to NHL.com, and the AP noted the Sharks had not won any of their first five games in each of the past four seasons. Both wins have come in overtime, starting with a 4-3 victory over Florida in the opener on Thursday. Defenseman Darnell Nurse also played his 800th NHL game, per NHL.com.

Coach Ryan Warsofsky was not handing out participation trophies. "We won the game, that's good, but we gotta get going here," he said. "We can't just rely on skill." The Sharks visit Dallas on Monday night.

Los Angeles is 0-1-1 after an 8-4 loss at Colorado in its opener, so this was at least the first point of the season. The Kings host Florida on Tuesday night.

Closing Take

The Kings played an NHL-record 33 overtime games last season, so of course their first trip to extra time this year ended with somebody else celebrating. San Jose got a 19-year-old's first NHL point on the power play, a sniper finding his range and a franchise center who treats the neutral zone like an open-world map. Sharks fans have waited a long time for an October like this. Two games, two overtime wins, and an Igor Chernyshov one-timer that will be on loop in San Jose all week.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details from the Associated Press; postgame quotes and notes as reported by NHL.com.