Things couldn't have gotten off to a worse start for the Los Angeles Kings in their season opener Wednesday night, as star goalie Jonathan Quick left the game and could miss significant time with a lower-body injury.
"It's not good," Kings general manager Dean Lombardi said after a2-1 loss to the host San Jose Sharks.
Quick left after stopping 14 of 15 shots in the first period. He hurt himself stretching to get to the post to stop a chance by Joe Pavelski late in the period.
Lombardi said Quick would undergo an MRI Thursday.
Los Angeles backup Jeff Zatkoff replaced Quick and limited the Sharks to one goal on 16 shots.
"It's my job to be ready when Quickie needs a break or he goes down," Zatkoff said. "So I have to make sure the team doesn't miss a beat."
Tyler Toffoli said the Kings would rally around their backup goaltender.
"We all know what Quickie brings for our team and what he's done here," Toffoli said. "We can't be thinking about that. We have to be positive. Zat's played unbelievable coming into today. We're confident in what he has for our team."
The Kings play their home opener Friday against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.