Igor Chernyshov's game-winner lifts Sharks past Kings in another OT thriller originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Two nights after an overtime classic against the Florida Panthers, the Sharks did it again.
San Jose beat the Los Angeles Kings 5-4 in overtime on Saturday, with Igor Chernyshov scoring twice — including the game-winner with 1:42 remaining in the extra period — to give the Sharks consecutive overtime victories to open the 2026-27 NHL season.
The winning goal came off a defensive play first. Macklin Celebrini recovered the puck deep in San Jose’s own zone before springing Chernyshov the other way, and Chernyshov beat Anton Forsberg clean.
Asked by NBC Sports California’s Sheng Peng what he saw on the game-winner, Chernyshov kept his answer characteristically short.
“Net,” Chernyshov said.
The goal capped a wild, back-and-forth game at SAP Center. Chernyshov had given San Jose a 4-2 lead earlier in the third period on a breakaway, only for Los Angeles to answer twice — Erik Haula cut the deficit to one, and Artemi Panarin tied it with 5:01 remaining after a poor clearance attempt by Sharks defenseman Nolan Allan sent the puck right back to the Kings.
The night also included a milestone for rookie Ivar Stenberg, who recorded the first point of his NHL career with a second-period assist on a Tyler Toffoli power-play goal, with Celebrini picking up the second apple on the play.
Toffoli, who has centered Stenberg alongside Alexander Wennberg to begin the season, did not hold back his praise for the rookie afterward.
“He’s a great player — he does everything on the ice,” Toffoli said. “I think there’s a reason he’s playing with Wenny and playing against other teams’ top lines. Obviously, yeah, very happy — selfishly — that he made that pass to me.”
Toffoli was equally complimentary of Chernyshov’s night.
“Unbelievable, he’s been a beast,” Toffoli said. “He skates super well, and obviously that goal was pretty nice as well.”
Allan’s turnover was not the full story of his night — the Sharks defenseman also scored a goal of his own, assisted by Michael Misa and Chernyshov, as eight different Sharks factored into the scoring column. Yaroslav Askarov made 31 saves on 35 shots for the win, and the Sharks improved to 2-0 while the Kings fell to 0-2.
Two games into the season, Toffoli said the team’s chemistry already feels different than it has in his first two years in San Jose.
“We’ve had it for the two previous years that I’ve been here — we just haven’t been as lucky,” Toffoli said. “We’re building off the same vibes and having fun, and now we’re getting wins. Everybody’s starting to produce.”
Three seasons ago, this same franchise tied an NHL record by losing its first 11 games. The year after that, it lost its first nine, then first six last campaign. San Jose has opened recent seasons with losing streaks long enough to make history for all the wrong reasons — which is exactly what makes two overtime wins to start this year feel different.
For a young core that has only ever known where this team has been, a 2-0 start is the first real sign of where it actually might be headed.
