The Los Angeles Kings have capped an historic comeback by beating the San Jose Sharks 5-1 to reach the second round of the NHL playoffs in one of three games sevens on Wednesday.
Goaltender Jonathan Quick made 39 saves for the Kings who joined a select group by becoming just the fourth team in league history to rally from 3-0 series deficit to win in seven matches.
Meanwhile, Daniel Carcillo and Benoit Pouliot scored second-period goals as the New York Rangers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 to win their first-round series.
Nino Niederreiter scored twice, including the series clincher in overtime, as the Minnesota Wild defeated Colorado 5-4 to edge the Avalanche four games to three.
The Kings joined the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, the 1975 New York Islanders and the 2010 Flyers as the only teams to complete the shocking comebacks.
Quick, a former Conn Smythe winner as the most valuable player of the playoffs, showed why he is the Kings' best player.
Drew Doughty, Anze Kopitar, Tyler Toffoli, Dustin Brown and Tanner Pearson all scored for the Kings, who advanced to take on the cross-town rival Anaheim Ducks. Game one is set for Saturday.
Matt Irwin scored the only goal of the game for the Sharks, who lost a game seven for a second year in a row to the Kings.
The Sharks led 1-0 on Wednesday before the Kings scored five unanswered goals. San Jose also went zero-for-six on the powerplay.
The Wild will next face defending Stanley Cup champions the Chicago Blackhawks, while the Rangers will take on the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round.
The final second-round series is an Original Six match-up between the Boston Bruins and the Montreal Canadiens.
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