Los Angeles hadn't won a home playoff game since beating Vancouver in Game 3 of their 2010 first-round series. The Canucks won the next three games to advance.
Until Brown connected, the Kings put on a quiet offensive performance befitting the NHL's second lowest-scoring team, managing just 11 shots in the first two periods despite six power plays.
Emotions boiled when Brown steamrolled Sedin with a shoulder hit in the Canucks captain's chest early in the second period, sending Sedin crawling to the bench and sparking a fight between Anze Kopitar and Alex Burrows. The hit wasn't penalized, and Sedin returned from a brief trip to the locker room.
Afterward, Sedin confirmed the hit was legal, and Brown spoke of his respect for Sedin.
NOTES: The Los Angeles Lakers went to overtime to beat the Dallas Mavericks earlier Sunday, slightly delaying Staples Center's changeover from basketball to hockey. Kobe Bryant stuck around to watch the Kings with his two daughters, as did David Beckham after watching the Lakers from courtside. Will Ferrell also attended the game. ... After Vancouver's Ryan Kesler appeared to embellish a cross-checking penalty against Willie Mitchell in the second period, the Staples Center scoreboard showed the replay, followed by several clips of springboard divers. Kesler and a few Vancouver teammates have been accused of diving by numerous opponents.
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