The Kings raised their championship banner to the Staples Center rafters in a pregame ceremony commemorating their 26-game playoff run to their second title in three years. Los Angeles started that charge with a seven-game, first-round victory over the Sharks, who extracted a bit of belated revenge.

Patrick Marleau had a goal and an assist. Wingels and Matt Nieto scored 14 seconds apart in a three-goal second period that sent the Sharks to their NHL-best fifth straight season-opening victory.

Jonathan Quick stopped 23 shots for the Kings, but was replaced by Martin Jones in the third period.

The home team had won 20 of the last 22 games in this rivalry before this blowout win by the Sharks, who were an interesting choice of opponent for the Kings’ celebration night.

San Jose had a 3-0 series lead in the first round before the Kings stormed back to win the series in seven games, becoming the fourth NHL team to rally from such a deficit.

The Sharks stayed in their dressing room while the Kings celebrated their second championship in three years with an on-ice ceremony starring the Stanley Cup, which was lowered from the Staples Center scoreboard in a glass case as the Kings stood in a circle at center ice.

Former Kings Marcel Dionne and Rogie Vachon then brought out the new banner, and the Kings raised it to the rafters amid a lengthy standing ovation.

The Kings then lost on their banner night for the second time. Chicago beat Los Angeles 5-2 in January 2013.

Twenty-one players from last season’s title-winning team made the roster, which returns nearly intact for the Kings’ attempt to become the first team in a quarter-century to win three championships in four years.

Wingels put the Sharks ahead with a sharp-angled shot in the first period. Marleau then redirected Brent Burns’ shot during a power play early in the second, and Wingels scored again on a breakaway moments before Marleau caught Quick dawdling behind his net and got the puck to Nieto.

Niemi withstood a two-man advantage for the Kings in the final 1:07 of the third period.

The Sharks skated without a captain, putting the assistants’ “A’’ on Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Marleau. The club stripped the captaincy from Thornton in the offseason as part of its self-evaluation following another playoff disappointment.

ALREADY THIN BLUE JACKETS LOSE DUBINSKY

The hits just keep coming for the Blue Jackets.

Already down Boone Jenner (hand), Nathan Horton (back) and Ryan Murray (knee) Columbus is now also without center Brandon Dubinsky after he underwent abdominal surgery on Wednesday.

Dubinsky sustained the injury in practice Monday and was placed on injured reserve Tuesday. Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch reported Wednesday Dubinsky will miss around six weeks.

While Dubinsky has never been a big goal scorer — he’s managed 20 goals in his career just once — he has been an excellent all-around contributor, and has been a positive driver of possession throughout his career.

That leaves the Jackets thin at the center position, with Ryan Johansen’s status for the opener in question after he missed all of training camp without a contract. Johansen and the Jackets came to a deal Monday but, not surprisingly, he’s not in game shape.

That could mean Artem Anisimov, who looked to be headed to third line soon with Johansen under contract, is ticketed for a top-six forward role for a bit longer. That in itself isn’t terrible — Anisimov has generally been a decent player for most of his career in New York and Columbus.

The problem is all of these losses add up. Dubinsky, Jenner, Murray and Horton were positive possession players last season. Even if their replacements, like Anisimov, step up, there’s no guarantee the guys who now have to fill the replacements’ vacated roles will do as well. The hope is for a speedy return for these players, but for a team that figures to be grinding it out for a wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, losing points in October before these players return could doom their season by the time April rolls around.

The Blue Jackets open their season Thursday night in Buffalo. 

VERSTEEG WILL MISS THREE WEEKS

Blackhawks forward Kris Versteeg will be sidelined for about three weeks after he left practice on Tuesday with a lower-body injury.

Chicago coach Joel Quenneville says Versteeg’s injury “is not a surgical case,” and he doesn’t think the winger will be placed on long-term injured reserve.

Versteeg had 10 goals and 19 assists in 63 games for Chicago after he was acquired in a trade with Florida last November. He was coming off a strong training camp, and Quenneville said Wednesday that the forward was “very upset” about the injury.

Ben Smith will move up to Versteeg’s spot on the third line, beginning with Chicago’s season opener at Dallas on Thursday night. Smith had 14 goals and 12 assists in 75 games with the Blackhawks last season.

Contributors: Ben Valentine, The Associated Press