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Sharks 4, Kings 3

SAN JOSE -- Logan Couture scored two goals and Brent Burns continued to contribute as a forward as the Sharks beat the Kings 4-3 on Thursday night.

Couture's 12th goal of the season and second of the night 47 seconds into the third period was a backbreaker as the defending Stanley Cup champions lost for only the fourth time in 13 games.

The Sharks snapped a four-game winless streak with the victory.

Burns, the defenseman-turned-forward since returning from injury earlier in the week, keyed Couture's goal by stripping Los Angeles defenseman Drew Doughty and leading a 2-on-0.

Los Angeles captain Dustin Brown scored two goals. He scored his second of the night and 12th of the season at 12:48 of the third period before Dwight King scored at 16:40 to narrow the lead to a single goal.

The Sharks cashed in on a retaliation penalty to score consecutive power-play goals and take a 3-1 lead after 40 minutes following a spirited second period.

Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin drew minors for instigation and fighting with a visor after coming to the aid of teammate Colin Fraser, who got hammered with a clean, hard check behind the Los Angeles net by Sharks' fourth-line forward Andrew Desjardins.

Rookie defenseman Matt Irwin one-timed a Scott Gomez cross-ice feed, a shot that seemed to fool Kings goalie Jonathan Quick at 7:07. Just 1:27 into the second power play that followed immediately, Couture scored through a Patrick Marleau screen from the center of the blue line.

Kings coach Darryl Sutter replaced Quick with Jonathan Bernier. Quick surrendered three goals on 12 shots.

Los Angeles struck with a power-play goal of its own as Brown's sweeping shot from the left circle beat Sharks goalie Antti Niemi at 9:48 with San Jose defenseman Justin Braun off after hooking Kings forward Anze Kopitar 20 seconds earlier.

The Sharks scored the only goal of an opening period the Kings dominated in shots, 16-6.

Defenseman-turned-forward Brent Burns scored for the second time in as many games after missing all but six of the team's first 25 games. He punched home a rebound in close at 11:09 while Couture and Muzzin battled to the side of the goal.

NOTES: The division rival Kings and Sharks met for the first time this season in the first end of a home-and-home that concludes Saturday in Los Angeles. ... Injured Sharks forward Martin Havlat (lower-body injury) and backup goalie Thomas Greiss (neck) skated Thursday morning, but remain on injured reserve. San Jose coach Todd McLellan said Havlat is "almost at full speed." ... The Kings had not played past regulation in 19 straight games since Jan. 31 before Thursday. Only four of those contests were one-goal decisions. The Sharks have gone to overtime or into a shootout eight times over the same period. ... Sharks center Patrick Marleau was honored in a pregame ceremony for recently scoring his 400th career NHL goal. ... Forwards T.J. Galiardi, Tim Kennedy and defenseman Jason Demers were healthy scratches for San Jose. ... Forwards Brad Richardson, Tyler Toffeli and defenseman Davis Drewiski did not dress for Los Angeles.