Brandt Clarke scored with 2:18 left in overtime for the Los Angeles Kings, who edged the New York Islanders 3-2 Thursday night in Elmont, N.Y.
The Kings controlled play for much of overtime before Clarke beat screened goaltender Semyon Varlamov with a shot over his shoulder.
Artemi Panarin scored twice in the first period for the Kings, who have won two straight since opening the season 0-4-2. Goalie Darcy Kuemper made 41 saves.
Victor Eklund and Matthew Schaefer scored for the Islanders, who extended their point streak to five games (3-0-2). Varlamov, seeking his first win since Nov. 14, 2024, recorded 24 saves, including a stop on Adrian Kempe’s second-period penalty shot. The goalie missed last season after undergoing double partial knee replacements.
The Kings were outshot 15-6 in the first but took a 2-0 lead thanks to Panarin’s goals.
The Kings nearly turned the puck over before Panarin opened the scoring at 5:51 of the first period. Alex Laferriere couldn’t corral a pass from Brandt Clarke in the neutral zone, but Clarke shoved it back to Laferriere before the right winger dished it to Panarin.
The former New York Rangers star eluded Logan Stanley, then waited for Schaefer to drop to one knee before firing a shot from the right faceoff circle over Varlamov’s glove.
Panarin scored an unassisted goal to double the lead with 3:23 remaining when his first shot glanced off Bo Horvat, and he buried the rebound as Varlamov was surrounded by teammates.
Varlamov kept the score at 2-0 by stopping Kempe with 9:09 left before Eklund began the Islanders’ comeback bid by scoring on the power play under four minutes later. Eklund and Tony DeAngelo exchanged pucks at the top of the slot before Eklund, stationed above the left faceoff circle, fired a shot under Kuemper’s glove with 5:54 remaining.
Schaefer tied the score with his first goal of the season 7:06 into the third, when he took a pass from Logan Stanley, moved into the middle of the right faceoff circle and beat Kuemper stick side.
