Up next for Kings: Saturday at San Jose

When: 7:30.

Where: HP Pavilion.

On the air: TV: Channel 13; Radio: 1150.

Records: Kings 40-27-14, Sharks 42-29-10

Record vs. Sharks: 2-1-2.

Update: The Kings clinched a playoff spot not long before they took the ice Thursday and that knowledge ended up taking the edge off all those weeks of desperation. “It was a little bit of a deflater,” Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi. “Because you had that attitude that you are on edge, you are on edge the whole time and then the score comes in and, maybe subconsciously, you take your foot off the gas a little bit. I can only speak for myself. Not to say I was lackadaisical or didn’t care about the game, but I didn’t have that same edge that I had the last 15-20 games where you know that every single mistake you can make can result in dropping a point.” Injured forward Jeff Carter (ankle bone bruise) skated before practice on Friday and will presumably need a full practice or two before returning to the lineup. Carter, injured on March 28 in the third period at Calgary, has sat out the last four games.