KINGS OVERCOME PENS IN OVERTIME SCHNEIDER'S GOAL OUTSHINES LEMIEUX'S 2 ASSISTS KINGS 3, PITTSBURGH 2.

Byline: Rich Hammond  Staff Writer

Mario Lemieux continued his torrid scoring pace with two assists Saturday night, and maybe some of Lemieux's magic rubbed off on the Kings.

Lemieux, the Pittsburgh Penguins' Hall of Fame center, had a strong Staples Center debut, but Mathieu Schneider scored on a slap shot with 38 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Kings a 3-2 victory in front of 18,184.

Lemieux, who retired for three full seasons and has been limited by injury the last three years, now has 55 points in 28 games. Boston's Joe Thornton is second in the scoring race, and Lemieux's assist total alone (39) matches Thornton's total scoring output.

But the Kings, who entered the game on the strength of back-to-back shutouts, would not be beaten by Lemieux alone. His two assists were on relatively simple plays, and the Kings managed two points out of the game behind a strong third period.

The Kings put pressure on Pittsburgh goalie Johan Hedberg throughout the third period, and it paid off at the 8:28 mark, when Hedberg couldn't control a loose puck in front of the net and was flat on his stomach in the crease.

Craig Johnson poked at the puck once but couldn't get it past the goal line, and got his stick free again, jabbing it past a lunging Hedberg. Johnson had zero goals and two assists in 26 previous games.

In contrast to the third period, the opening 20 minutes could hardly have been more dismal for the Kings' offense, which registered just three shots on goal until the final minute and five in the period.

Pittsburgh wasn't exactly dynamic either, but the Penguins capitalized on a set play behind the Kings' net 9:24 into the period. Alexei Kovalev controlled the puck behind the net, with Kings defenseman Mattias Norstrom standing guard in front of the goal.

Kovalev cut in front and tucked in a backhand that appeared to deflect off the inside of the stick of Kings goalie Felix Potvin for a 1-0 Penguins lead.

The Kings couldn't generate much traffic in front of the Pittsburgh net, even when they went on the power play with 4:37 remaining when Alexander Frolov battled behind the net and drew a holding penalty on Pittsburgh's Wayne Primeau.

Less than 30 seconds into the advantage, the Penguins had a shorthanded 2-on-1 chance but couldn't get a clean shot on net. A minute later, Ziggy Palffy lost control of the puck while cutting to the net and Mike Cammalleri's centering pass went to nobody and it left the Pittsburgh zone.

The Kings' best chance of the period came with 35 seconds remaining, when a slap shot by Johnson deflected out in front of the net and Erik Rasmussen nearly put a backhand past Hedberg on the rebound. Rasmussen later left the game with a lower back strain.

The Kings finally broke through in the second period when Pittsburgh's Ville Nieminen went off for tripping, ending the Penguins' power play and giving the Kings a man advantage for 1:23. They needed all but 12 seconds of it.

Palffy dropped a pass for Jason Allison behind the Pittsburgh net, and Allison returned the puck to Palffy, who was even with the goal line. Palffy took a stride toward the net and fired a wrist shot at a tough angle that beat Hedberg 11:22 into the period.

Pittsburgh needed just 74 seconds to reclaim the lead. With Mikko Eloranta in the penalty box for goaltender interference, Lemieux took a hard shot from the left faceoff circle. Potvin made a pad save, but Jan Hrdina pounced on the rebound and beat Potvin with 7:24 left in the period.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) Pittsburgh's Mario Lemieux fends off the Kings' Dmitry Yushkevich on Saturday at Staples Center.

(2) Felix Potvin makes a save as Randy Robitaille looks for a rebound.

Edna T. Simpson/Staff Photographer