SAN JOSE, Calif. _ IIya Kovalchuk scored his second of the game in overtime to hand the Sharks their second straight loss on home ice.
Kovalchuk scored on a breakaway at 2:29 of overtime, clinching a 3-2 win for the Los Angeles Kings, who entered the game with the fewest points in the Western Conference.
The Sharks battled back from a 2-0 deficit in the second half of the third period to earn a point for the eighth time in 10 games.
Joe Pavelski tied the game at 2 with 30 seconds left in regulation, redirecting a point shot from Brent Burns. Erik Karlsson earned his second point of the night with the secondary assist.
Lukas Radil made it a 2-1 game at 10:18 of the third, punching in a Timo Meier feed from the sideboards for his third goal of the season. The goal marked Radil's sixth point in seven games since he rejoined the Sharks lineup on Dec. 8.
Karlsson earned the secondary assist, extending his point streak to eight games, his longest with the Sharks.
The Sharks got caught snoozing in the first, giving up 10 of the first 11 shots, along with the opening goal. Kovalchuk scored just 4:32 into his first game since Nov. 29, blasting in a one timer from the left circle on a Kings power play. In doing so, the Kings big offseason acquisition scored his first goal since Nov. 6 after missing 10 games with an injury.
The Kings appeared to go up 2-0 at 8:09 of the second when Oscar Fantenberg beat Martin Jones with a slapshot from the high slot. But the NHL Situation Room overturned the goal after a coach's challenge, head coach Pete DeBoer's second of the season, determining that Dustin Brown impaired Jones' ability to play his position within the crease as he battled with Brenden Dillon in front of the net.
Alex Iafallo added an insurance goal at 5:15 of the third, one timing a pass from Dustin Brown in the left circle.
Jones made 28 saves on 31 shots
The Sharks won't need to wait long to get a chance to turn things around. They'll play their last game before the NHL's three-day Christmas Break Sunday, competing in the third game of a four-game homestand, against the Arizona Coyotes.
