Kings extend win streak with victory over Red Wings

LOS ANGELES — The Kings wore their church white jerseys for the first time Saturday and the power play shouted “amen,” as they beat the Detroit Red Wings 4-3 at Crypto.com Arena to polish off a flawless four-for-four homestand.

Defenseman Sean Durzi scored two goals, both of which were assisted by center Phillip Danault and winger Arthur Kaliyev. Wingers Kevin Fiala and Carl Grundstrom also lit the lamp for the Kings. Cal Petersen turned away 18 bids. In all, the Kings scored twice on the power play and again an instant after a Detroit penalty had expired.

Winger Dominik Kubalik, center Dylan Larkin and defenseman Filip Hronek all tallied a man up for Detroit. Hronek and Kubalik each added an assist and forward David Perron contributed two. Alex Nedeljkovic had a forgettable night in net, making 17 of 21 saves.

In collecting eight of a possible eight points while holding court, the Kings were especially strong five-on-five, even before their power play came alive. They allowed neither a five-on-five nor a four-on-four goal in their past three outings.

“Tonight, there wasn’t an even-strength goal. It was two power plays and a six-on-five,” Kings Coach Todd McLellan said. “Power plays in the last game and a shutout (before that), so we haven’t given up much five-on-five.”

Detroit pulled Nedeljkovic for the extra attacker with around four minutes to play. Kubalik had a sterling opportunity six-on-five but he missed the net. Hronek hit it squarely, however, with a point shot that halved the Kings’ lead with 2:01 to play. Suddenly, a game that the Kings led 4-1 turned into their fourth one-goal win in a row.

The power play gave and the power play took on Saturday, as the Kings surrendered a second goal while shorthanded less than two minutes into the final frame. Larkin set up between the circles and finished a tic-tac-toe play that left him tied for the team lead in goals with seven.

“I thought we should have control of this third period better than we did today,” McLellan said. “We tried to be cute with it, we went to the penalty box, now it’s 4-2 and it gives them a chance to pull their goalie.”

Detroit promptly came close to reducing the Kings’ edge to a single goal but defenseman Matt Roy cleared a puck as it teetered on the goalline.

The Kings already added an insurance marker on the power play. It was Durzi’s second goal of the night and third of the season with a blast through traffic from the middle of the blue line with 6:19 left in the second period.

Winger Gabe Vilardi had two brushes with glory in the first 25 minutes of the game. After narrowly missing an open in the first period, he hit the crossbar in the second during a power play.

Yet the Kings scored mere seconds after that opportunity expired, when Danault recovered a rebound in tight quarters and alertly dished to Durzi for a short-side tally 6:23 into the stanza.

The first period saw the Kings score five-on-five and both teams notch a power-play goal, with the Kings’ man-advantage marker at 13:21 giving them a 2-1 lead as Fiala finished a play that built off sustained pressure.

Defenseman Drew Doughty was particularly active and his cross-ice pass fed Fiala for his fifth goal as a King, a backhand shot that dribbled through Nedeljkovic’s pads. A secondary assist for winger Adrian Kempe was his first point in his last six games and his 100th career assist

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“Dewey, on the left side there, made a really nice seam pass,” Durzi said. “Obviously it was a fortunate bounce for Kevin, but I’m sure he’ll take those.”

Detroit had wasted little time in getting the game back to even, counterpunching with a power-play goal four minutes after the Kings opened the scoring.

It was Kubalik with a one-timer from the right faceoff circle. He now leads the team in goals (tied with Larkin), assists and points. Kubalik was originally a seventh-round draft pick by the Kings, but as the Czech’s profile rose in the Swiss National League, the Kings were unable to sign him and ultimately traded him.

The Kings debuted their newest reverse retro jerseys Saturday and they appeared to be feeling their new threads as they scored a goal nine seconds into the game.

Rasmus Kupari won the opening faceoff to defenseman Alex Edler, who sent the puck ahead to Kupari. He forced two Detroit defenders to commit before his fluttering backhand saucer pass set up Grundstrom’s fourth goal of the year.

In contrast to that auspicious beginning, the Kings may have lost winger Brendan Lemieux for a substantial period of time. He went to the dressing room, followed soon by a concerned trainer, and did not return to action.

“Quick report after, they’ll look at him in the morning,” McLellan said. “I think he’s probably going to be out for a while.”