LOS ANGELES -- After being on the road for the second half of December, the Los Angeles Kings rang out 2016 in style by defeating a rival who has mastered them throughout the year.

Tanner Pearson had a goal and an assist and Alec Martinez registered two assists as the Los Angeles Kings defeated the San Jose Sharks 3-2 on Saturday night.

The Kings (18-15-4) broke a three-game losing streak and won for the first time in three meetings with the Sharks this season. Goalie Peter Budaj made 18 saves to post his 16th victory of the season. He boasts a .955 save percentage and 1.28 goals-against average with two shutouts in his last seven starts (3-3-1).

San Jose (23-13-1) had a four-game winning streak snapped. Martin Jones stopped 24 Los Angeles shots and had his three-game winning streak ended.

"It's a big win for sure. It's always a battle against them," Budaj said. "We tried to jump on them early knowing they played last night."

The Kings played strong positional hockey during their three-game losing streak but suffered three one-goal losses. Saturday's victory was achieved in the same manner, controlling the play throughout and limiting the opposition's chances. Despite that advantage, the game was still contested until the final horn.

"There are three or four teams that have separated themselves because they won twice as many as everyone else," Kings coach Darryl Sutter said. "There's no weak teams anymore, it's tight, it's close."

San Jose made a push in the third period but it was a sub-par performance, uncharacteristically turning over the puck in their own zone and generating little offense through two periods.

"They were desperate and they needed the win," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. "There's no doubt the better team won tonight."

Sharks captain Joe Pavelski agreed that the effort left a lot to be desired but felt good that his team had a chance to steal a point at the end.

"Getting home, the Kings always come out with a good start. The first period wasn't our best. By the end of the second, we were going a little bit better," Pavelski said. "As poorly as we played at times, it was the game that you found yourself at the end of the third period feeling like you can win."

The Sharks made it a one-goal game at 3-2 when Kevin Labanc notched his seventh goal of the season at 13:57 of the third period. Labanc converted a rebound of Brenden Dillon's shot from the point that deflected off Mikkel Boedker.

Jeff Carter re-established the Kings' two-goal lead at 3-1 with his 20th goal of the season at 3:56 of the third period. Carter took a lead pass from Tanner Pearson and sped down the wing to deliver a snap shot that that beat Jones from 30 feet.

Brent Burns got the Sharks within 2-1 on a power-play goal, his 15th goal of the season, 12 seconds into the third period. Burns' snap shot from the blue line eluded a screened Budaj with Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau getting assists.

Los Angeles extended its lead to 2-0 on a power-play goal by Drew Doughty, his eighth goal of the season, at 1:31 of the second period. Doughty took a cross-ice feed from Nic Dowd and beat Jones cleanly with a slap shot from the top of the right faceoff circle.

The Kings took a 1-0 lead on Pearson's ninth goal of the season at 4:17 of the first period. The Sharks failed on a clearing attempt inside their own zone and Pearson penetrated into the deep slot to rifle a wrist shot past Jones, with Martinez drawing the lone assist.

The goal was Pearson's second in three games after a 15-game streak without a goal.

NOTES: San Jose scratched D Marc-Edouard Vlasic, C Tommy Wingels and LW Matt Nieto. Vlasic did not travel with the team after being struck in the face by a puck in Friday's 2-0 victory over Philadelphia. ... Sharks G Martin Jones returned to the crease after given the night off against the Flyers. Backup G Aaron Dell got the call after eight straight starts by Jones, who posted 7-1-0 record in that stretch. ... Sharks C Joe Pavelski had a five-game scoring streak in which he registered two goals, five assists and a plus-4 rating end Saturday. ... Los Angeles did not dress D Matt Greene, D Tom Gilbert and C Andy Andreoff. ... Kings C Jeff Carter scored 10 goals since Dec. 1, the most in the Western Conference. His four power-play goals in the month tied him with Chicago's Artemi Panarin for the most in the NHL. ... Los Angeles entered the game as the most physical team in the NHL, registering 1,103 hits, 105 hits ahead of the Arizona Coyotes.