The Kings are finding that the going is tougher this year, especially on the road. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

An annotated guide to this morning’s must-read hockey stories:

• The Kings are finding the road to the 2013 Stanley Cup is a lot more difficult than the one they took last season.

• Joe Thornton came up big when his Sharks needed him most. Which, according to my calculations, was the first 30 minutes of last night’s game. After that, all they needed was Antti Niemi.

• Brent Burns showed off both sides of his game last night. One of ‘em wasn’t so great.

• Mike Richards says the Kings embarrassed themselves with their poor start in Game 4.

• Henrik Lundqvist never saw the shot that beat him for the winning goal on Tuesday night. He didn’t see much help from his teammates, either.

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Brent Burns has all the makings of a star, and probably would be one anywhere else. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP)

By Allan Muir

It might have been the most impressive period yet of these 2013 playoffs. Led by their captain, Joe Thornton, the San Jose Sharks pinned the Los Angeles Kings in their own zone virtually from the opening face-off, outshooting the champs 15-3 and dominating in every facet of the game. If not for the heroics of Kings’ goalie Jonathan Quick, this one might have been a rout.

But at the end of 20 minutes, the Sharks had mustered just a one-goal lead on Brent Burns’ second tally of the postseason. And that set up a white-knuckle ride for the fans at HP Pavilion who watched as a furious rally by the Kings fell just short, allowing San Jose to escape with a 2-1 win. The series is headed back to L.A. tied up at two games each.

If the storyline sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve seen this one before. For the third game in a row, the Sharks dominated the first period, swapped chances in the second, and then held on for dear life as the Kings fought back with everything they had in the third. The formula has worked twice now for the underdogs, but it’s going to take more than a 20-minute effort to eliminate the champs.

Some thoughts and observations from tonight’s contest:

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Sharks defenseman Brent Burns, now a forward, had great success against the Kings this season. (Ben Margot/AP)

By Allan Muir

Snapshot

The Sharks barely broke a sweat in sweeping the Canucks in the first round, while the Kings outslugged the Blues in a grueling and physical six-game series that left L.A. battered and bruised. San Jose comes into this meeting with fresher legs and three lines, anchored by Joe Thornton, Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski, that are capable of carrying the offense on any given night. Los Angeles had to peck and scratch for goals against St. Louis, but the Kings have gotten their defensive swagger back. The defending champs look like a very tough out.

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Joe Thornton was justifiably happy after two of his shots led directly to San Jose goals in Game 4. (Getty Images)

By Allan Muir

This time it wasn’t the goaltender. Or a snake-bitten offense. Or a “so-called Canadian” opponent beguiling the officials with craven attacks on the integrity of the game.

No, by the time the red light went on to signal Patrick Marleau’s decisive goal in Game 4, it was clear: the Vancouver Canucks, all of them, just weren’t good enough to beat the San Jose Sharks. Not even close.

San Jose’s 4-3 overtime win Tuesday night ended a season that, cruelly, lasted just four games more than those played by the Florida Panthers and the Colorado Avalanche and the rest of the dregs of the league. It’s a miserable fate for the Northwest division champs, but one they deserved, just as surely as the Sharks deserved to move on to the next round as one of the NHL’s elite eight.

Here are some observations from tonight’s series clincher:

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Still chasing Lord Stanley’s sacred chalice, Joe Thornton and Henrik Sedin are in each other’s way. (Getty Images)

By Brian Cazeneuve

For many players, the playoffs present a new opportunity to rewrite history and amend their legacies. But being an All-Star or, in some cases, a future Hall of Famer offers no guarantee of postseason success. Simply getting there in the first place can be an elusive goal. Just ask defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, a two-time All-Star who finally made his postseason debut after a deadline trade to St. Louis. He’d endured an NHL-record 764 games over 10 seasons with perennial also-rans Calgary and Florida before getting a chance to display his considerable skills in the bright spring spotlight.

PREVIEW: Players to watch | Staff picks | X-factors | More

Here are some of the other notable players who are trying to burnish résumés that may look individually scintillating, but still lack one important thing: a Stanley Cup.

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The last time the Hawks met the Sharks, Jonathan Toews and Joe Thornton squared off. (Charles Rex Arbogast/AP)

By Allan Muir

Sharks at Blackhawks: 7:30 CST, NHL Network (US), CSN Chicago, CSN California

The set-up

The Blackhawks can lay claim to the best start in NHL history against the Sharks tonight. Their shootout win over Vancouver on Wednesday gave Chicago a point in 16 straight games and a share of the current mark set in 2006-07 by the Anaheim Ducks. They’ll face a feckless San Jose side that finally snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 2-1 win over St. Louis on Tuesday. After going unbeaten in their first seven games, the Sharks have seen their offense go cold, but they’re coming off two days of practice time that allowed them to work on the power play and at generating chances five-on-five.

This will be the third meeting between these two teams in 18 days, so familiarity may breed contempt. It’ll be worth watching to see if any hostilities carry over from their last get-together, when captains Jonathan Toews and Joe Thornton dropped the gloves.

Keys to the game

• Blackhawks: Get a lead and stomp down hard on the gas pedal. They allowed the Canucks to dictate the pace early on Wednesday, then coasted through the third period after a thoroughly dominant second, ultimately coughing up a point with sloppy play and lazy penalties as the game wore down. They can’t afford to let the Sharks circle and wait for them to let up.

• Sharks: Commit to ugly, goalmouth hockey. There’s no offensive flow on this team right now. They’ve scored two goals or less in regulation in nine of their last 10 games and the power play that propelled their hot start has just two goals to show for its last 42 chances. So forget pretty and fight off the instinct to make that one last pass. Get as many pucks on net as possible and follow them to the crease with grim purpose.

• Probable starting goalies: Ray Emery (6-0-0, 2.27 GAA, .925 save pct.) vs. Antti Niemi (7-2-3, 1.86, .933)

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By Allan Muir

Don’t know what got into Chicago captain Jonathan Toews Friday night, but he clearly had enough of his San Jose counterpart, Joe Thornton.

First, Captain Serious decided to board Thornton. Cheap shot all the way. Play continued on the delayed penalty call, but Toews was still fired up. He ignored the puck to chase down Thornton, who was parked on the end boards in the Chicago zone. Toews laid the lumber multiple times on Thornton, who looked like he wasn’t quite sure that Toews was serious until the Hawk dropped his gloves.

Probably not his best decision.

It was just the third fight of his career, but you probably could have guessed that from his technique-free and completely failed attempt to teach Jumbo Joe a lesson. Decision, Thornton.

Toews ended up with nine minutes for his troubles. Amazingly, he avoided taking the rap for instigating and for instigating with a visor. If those penalties are going to be on the books, you’re not going to get a more clear-cut reason to call them than this.