Kings hang on to edge Rangers, halt 4-game winless streak
Kevin Fiala had a goal and an assist to help the Los Angeles Kings end a four-game winless streak with a 4-3 win against the visiting New York Rangers on Tuesday night.
Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper stopped six of eight shots before leaving with an upper-body injury with 39 seconds left in the first period. Anton Forsberg replaced him and stopped 27 of 28 shots.
Adrian Kempe, Taylor Ward and Andrei Kuzmenko also scored for Los Angeles, which was 0-1-3 in its previous four games.
J.T. Miller scored two goals, Will Cuylle also scored and Jonathan Quick made 23 saves for the Rangers, who have lost seven of eight (1-6-1).
Quick, who was making his third start against the Kings after spending 16 seasons with Los Angeles, surrendered a goal 18 seconds into the game when Kempe got the puck back from Brandt Clarke on a give-and-go and scored from a sharp angle for a 1-0 lead.
The Rangers tied it 1-1 at 8:18 when Morrow's shot from above the hash marks was tipped by Cuylle and then hit Kuemper in the chest before slipping through his pads.
The Kings quickly answered when Fiala stole an outlet pass from Vladislav Gavrikov in front of the crease and lifted the puck into the net for a 2-1 lead at 9:00.
Mika Zibanejad extended his point streak to 10 games (nine goals, 10 assists) when he carried the puck through the right circle with speed and then centered a pass that Miller redirected into the net to tie it 2-2 at 16:36 of the first.
New York defenseman Braden Schneider failed to clear the puck and Ward swept it between Quick's pads, off the far post and across the goal line to give Los Angeles a 3-2 lead at 4:23 of the second period.
After the Rangers failed to capitalize on a 5-on-3 that lasted 1:36, Kuzmenko swept in a rebound to make it 4-2 at 12:37 of the second.
The Kings had a goal by Alex Laferriere disallowed at 10:06 of the third because of goalie interference.
Miller scored from above the right circle and along the wall with Quick pulled for the extra skater to cut it to 4-3 with 27 seconds left.
Kings defenseman Drew Doughty was a late scratch because of an illness.