Streaking Golden Knights beat Kings 3-2 in OT thriller

LOS ANGELES — The Golden Knights showed a national television audience why they are starting to take control of the Pacific Division.

David Perron scored with 1:30 remaining in overtime as the Knights earned a 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday in a battle for first place at Staples Center.

“I thought this was probably our biggest game of the year, and we find a way to answer,” Perron said. “We get two points again, and we just keep rolling. … The way we battled back after the start we had (Wednesday) it was a positive sign and we followed it up tonight.”

Brendan Leipsic scored his first goal and Jonathan Marchessault added a goal for the Knights (25-9-2, 52 points), who improved to 8-2 in overtime and shootouts.

The Knights won their sixth straight game to set an NHL record for a team in its inaugural season and improved to 10-0-1 in their past 11 games, another NHL record for the longest point streak by a team in its inaugural season.

“We were happy with the way we played,” coach Gerard Gallant said. “For us to come on this road trip and play Anaheim and LA back-to-back nights and play the way we played, they should be proud of themselves.”

Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who appeared in his 700th NHL game, finished with 26 saves. He had key stops in overtime on Adrian Kempe and Tanner Pearson before Perron’s winner.

“They came out strong, and after that I thought we took over,” Fleury said. “They didn’t get many shots, many scoring chances. A little lonely back there, but it shows how well we played, how committed the guys were to the defensive game.”

The Knights were unable to convert on a 5-on-3 power play early in the third period before Leipsic picked the right time to break his scoring drought.

After Alex Tuch’s close-range shot was turned aside by Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, Leipsic pounced on the rebound and put it through a maze of legs to give the Knights a 2-1 lead with 8:50 remaining.

“He’s played really well for us, and I think the guys on the bench said it well,” Gallant said. “They were just so excited for him and everybody was jumping around on the bench. It was a big moment for him.”

Los Angeles (22-11-5, 49 points) tied it with 4:33 remaining when Drew Doughty redirected Jake Muzzin’s pass.

The Knights started slowly for the second straight night and fell behind 1-0 a little more than eight minutes into the first period when a shot by Kings defenseman Derek Forbort skimmed Marian Gaborik’s shoulder and fluttered past a screened Fleury.

The deficit could have been larger if not for Fleury, who had 10 saves in the period. But similar to Wednesday’s 4-1 victory at Anaheim, the Knights took control starting in the second.

The Knights outshot Los Angeles 15-3 in the period and finally solved Quick with 1:26 remaining before the second intermission.

Quick made a phenomenal stick save to deny Marchessault on the doorstep, but the rebound squirted free, and Marchessault jammed it in for his 13th goal and team-leading 33rd point.

“I thought we played unreal from the start,” Perron said. “Definitely the last 10 (minutes) and from then on, I thought we were the better team.

“I just don’t like that feeling we can lose that game after the way we were playing the whole 60 minutes.”

Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter.