LOS ANGELES – Two goals from Jeff Carter in the second period powered the Kings to a 3-0 win over the Calgary Flames Thursday night at STAPLES Center.
With the victory, the Kings tied a franchise record for wins in a season with 46, a mark they’ve hit on four previous occasions, but have never surpassed. Jonathan Quick, in recording his fifth shutout of the season and 42nd of his NHL career, tied his career-high for wins in a season with 39, also a franchise record for Kings goaltenders.
The key to Kings’ win? “We were able to find that first goal,” Milan Lucic said. “[Joni Ortio] made some pretty good saves on us in the first period, and once we started getting the puck behind the D and play that down-low game, that started playing to our favor.”
The two points earned Thursday also swung the Kings back into first place in the Pacific division. “We want to finish first, we want home ice,” said Jeff Carter. “It’s what you play for, to get into April and play meaningful games and gearing up for a playoff run.”
Jeff Carter buried the first goal of the evening 46 seconds into the second period while the Kings were working on their first power play. Carter redirected a low Drew Doughty shot from high in the slot that bounced its way past a baffled Calgary netminder.
Drew Doughty, with the assist on the opening goal, surpassed Steve Duchesne for second on the Kings’ all-time points list among defenseman with 316.
Six minutes into the second, Jeff Carter struck again, giving the Kings a 2-0 lead when he jammed home an outstanding feed from Milan Lucic, who spun off a defenseman to find Carter driving hard to Calgary’s net.
In the third, with 7:22 minutes left in regulation, Andy Andreoff had a Jeff Carter pass deflect off of his skate, a Flames defenseman, and into the net to give the Kings a 3-0 lead.
Jonathan Quick has now stopped 68 of the 70 shots he’s faced against Calgary this season, posting a 3-0-0 record against the Flames.
The Kings have now earned points in 11 of their last 12 games at STAPLES Center (10-1-1).
Jeff Carter (2G, 1A) led all Kings players in points scored (3), Dustin Brown in shots taken (4), Luke Schenn in hits delivered (5), eight different players in shots blocked (1), and Drew Doughty in minutes played (23:11). Jonathan Quick made 21 saves in the win.
The Kings will close out their two-game home stand Saturday afternoon when they host the Dallas Stars at STAPLES Center, where the puck is scheduled to drop just after 1:00 PM PST.
