Joe Thornton scored 2:22 into overtime Monday night to give San Jose a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings and send the Sharks to a first-round series win.
Kyle Wellwood, Jason Demers and Dany Heatley also scored for the Sharks, who wrapped up the all-California series in six games.
Justin Williams, Ryan Smyth and rookie Trevor Lewis scored for the Kings, who lost in the opening round for the second straight year and have won just one playoff series since their run to the 1993 Stanley Cup finals with Wayne Gretzky.
Antti Niemi made 26 saves for the Sharks after being pulled in two of the last three games.
Jonathan Quick stopped 31 shots for Los Angeles. He gave up 16 goals in the team’s three home games.
The Sharks next opponent depends on Tuesday's game between Vancouver and Chicago. If Vancouver wins at home over the Blackhawks, then Detroit will be the Sharks opponent.
Yet, if Chicago wins, they will be headed to San Jose to start a series that will be a rematch of last season's Western Conference Finals.
