Kings bow to the Sharks, 3-1

The Kings had one of their whatcha gonna do nights.

A weird bounce off the boards resulted in a San Jose Sharks goal.

A Sharks player emerged from the penalty box for a breakaway.

And the Sharks, one of the top teams in the NHL, sauntered to a 3-1 victory Tuesday night.

Another box was crossed off the calendar and the Kings continued to play the role of weakling in the Pacific Division. The Sharks’ victory, in front of a sparse Staples Center crowd announced as 15,204, was their 15th in the last 18 games against the Kings.

Joe Pavelski scored two goals, giving him seven -- three against the Kings -- in his brief NHL career. The Sharks, with the second best power play in the NHL, cashed in on two of the seven power plays handed them.

“Sometimes you don’t take away from the other team,” Kings captain Mattias Norstrom said. “San Jose is one of the best teams in the league.”

The Kings’ main problem is they are not one.

They have struggled at times to keep their heads above the doormat level in a meaty division. The Kings have a 2-9-1 record against division toughs -- the Sharks, Ducks and Dallas Stars -- this season and already sit seven points out of a Western Conference playoff spot with 26 points, their fewest through 32 games since the 1998-99 season.

“You can’t get caught up in looking at the standings,” Kings center Derek Armstrong said. “If you start doing that, it gets to be a long season. We just need to find a way to get points every time we play.”

Those looking at the standings could note that the Kings are in hot pursuit of the Chicago Blackhawks for 11th place in the Western Conference. That chase isn’t going to get any easier with a rematch against San Jose on Thursday and an afternoon meeting with the Stars on Saturday.

“You have to get most of the breaks against teams like San Jose,” Norstrom said.

The Kings didn’t get them Tuesday.

They played about as well as possible, with the one flaw the inability to stay out of the penalty box. Goaltender Dan Cloutier was serviceable, and pretty much without blame on all three goals. The Sharks, meanwhile, seemed on a pleasure skate through much of this one, banking on the wide gap in talent being enough, while waiting for opportunities.

“There not a team that is going to need a lot of chances,” Cloutier said. “They’ll wait for them.”

The Kings provided them, giving the Sharks seven power plays.

A bounce off the boards put the puck on Steve Bernier’s stick. Cloutier made the first save, but Bernier pounced on the rebound for a power-play goal and a 1-0 lead 13:23 into the game.

Pavelski was serving time for hooking midway through the second period, but came out of the penalty box just in time to get the puck for a breakaway that made the score 2-0.

His second goal came with the Sharks on a two-man advantage early in the third.

“We played with a lot of energy, but we can’t be satisfied with a game where we didn’t get any points,” Coach Marc Crawford said.

*

Forward Alyn McCauley, who has not played this season while rehabilitating from two knee surgeries on his left knee, said that he would begin practicing with the team today.

*

chris.foster@latimes.com