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 Winger Dustin Brown scored the lone goal, and goaltender Jonathan
Quick made 28 saves as the Los Angeles Kings defeated the Vancouver
Canucks 1-0 Monday at Staples Center.
Los Angeles (28-14-5) finished its five-game homestand with a 3-1-1
record, but it won for only the third time in 10 games. Quick's
shutout was his second of the season and his second win in nine days
against the Canucks.
The Kings' fourth straight win in the season series is a primary
reason why Los Angeles remains ahead of Vancouver (24-14-9) in the
Pacific Division.
Kings coach Darryl Sutter believed the stakes were high for a
midseason game. Vancouver was looking to exact some payback after
the previous game in which Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo was injured
in a goalmouth scramble with Brown.
"Both are fighting for the same spot, between third in the division
and a wild-card spot," Sutter said. "Their mindset from the start
was to come out and play the way they did."
Even from his view from between the pipes, Quick witnessed the
physical intensity between the teams. The skirmishes extended to his
net, as he drew a goaltender-interference penalty on Vancouver
winger Dale Weise in the third period.
"It's usually like this when we play them," Quick said. "They are a
tough team, and a rivalry has developed over the past few years."
Vancouver, who got 19 saves from goaltender Eddie Lack, were shut
out for the first time this season. They have only one win in 10
games against the trio of California squads, Los Angeles, the
Anaheim Ducks and the San Jose Sharks.
Canucks coach John Tortorella made sure that his team sent a message
from the opening faceoff. Vancouver was the aggressor throughout.
"I thought we did a really good job as far as deciding that that ice
is ours also," Tortorella said. "It's something that's been
(missing) in our game a little bit here. That was a big part of our
game tonight."
Though the Canucks have yet to find a way to beat the Kings this
season, Vancouver center Henrik Sedin thought his team's effort
deserved a better fate Monday.
"We played a great game," Sedin said. "If you look at the way we
were battling, hitting and getting to the forecheck, everything we
do to win games, we did tonight."
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Brown broke the scoreless tie 24 seconds into the third
period with his 10th goal of the season. He finished off a
three-on-one break by batting home a rebound of a shot by center
Anze Kopitar.
The Kings thought they doubled the lead on a power-play tip-in
by center Mike Richards with less than 10 minutes left in
regulation. After a video review, the goal was disallowed
because the puck was struck with a stick that was higher than
the crossbar of the Vancouver net.
Los Angeles received a rare seven-minute power play less than
three minutes into the game when Canucks winger Tom Sestito was
tossed out of the game for instigating a fight with Los Angeles
winger Jordan Nolan.
Nolan was not penalized in the skirmish, but the Canucks'
league-leading power play held the Kings' 24th-ranked power play
scoreless, allowing few scoring chances.
Los Angeles got a subsequent five-on-three spell when Sedin went
off for hooking, but the best chance of the advantage was a
short-handed attempt by Vancouver center Mike Santorelli.
Despite having 11 minutes of power-play time in the opening
frame, the Kings were outshot 8-7.
The game continued to be a penalty-filled affair throughout the
second period with neither team mounting any offense. Weise
slew-footed Los Angeles defenseman Drew Doughty, and the
incident went unpenalized halfway through the period, though it
raised the tension between the teams.
NOTES: Vancouver scratched G Roberto Luongo (ankle) and LW David
Booth. ... Canucks D Alexander Edler was activated from injured
reserve and returned to the lineup after a 16-game absence.
Edler was sidelined due to a knee injury. ... The Canucks'
league-leading penalty kill surrendered only three goals over
the past 19 games . ... Los Angeles did not dress RW Matt
Frattin, C Colin Fraser and D Alec Martinez. ... The Kings face
the toughest part of their schedule starting with Thursday's
road game against the St. Louis Blues. Los Angeles will play
seven of the next eight games on the road, with the only home
game during the stretch being the Stadium Series tilt against
the Anaheim Ducks at Dodger Stadium. ... Kings C Mike Richards
is in the midst of one of the worst goal-scoring slumps of his
career. Though he is the team's second-leading scorer, he was
dropped to the third line, and he failed to register a goal in
his 22nd consecutive game.
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