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 Three goals in the opening six minutes of the second period
rallied the Rangers to a 4-3 victory over the Kings on Thursday
night before an announced crowd of 18,230 at Staples Center.
"Speed is very dangerous around the league because it is pretty hard
to contain," said Rangers center Derick Brassard, who had two
assists in the win, giving him a team-high 22 this season. "A lot of
times trying to contain us means you are going to take a lot of
penalties. It is not anything different than last year. We use our
speed, which makes us pretty hard to handle."
A power-play goal by right winger Martin St. Louis at 8:17 of the
second period was the difference as the Rangers (23-11-4) won their
fourth in a row and their 12th in 13 games. It was their first sweep
of Southern California clubs -- the Rangers defeated the Anaheim
Ducks 4-1 Wednesday night -- since 2008.
New York opposed the Kings for the first time since June 13, when
the Rangers fell in five games for the Stanley Cup at Staples. This
time, the Rangers reversed the outcome.
"To be honest, it was a little weird walking into the building, but
after a few minutes in the dressing room, you kind of forget about
it," Brassard said. "Before the road trip, a lot of guys were
looking forward to coming here. There's nothing better than a
California trip, but we wanted to compare ourselves to some of the
best teams in the league."
 The Kings (19-13-9) dropped their second straight and their fourth
in five games despite a four-day break after Saturday's wild 7-6
overtime loss to the Nashville Predators.
Rangers goalie Cam Talbot turned away 28 of the 31 shots, while
Kings netminder Jonathan Quick recorded 22 saves on 26 attempts.
"I can't say enough about the guys and how we battled back and
showed a lot of character," Talbot said.
Right winger Justin Williams' second goal of the game with 4:03 left
pulled the Kings within 4-3, but the Rangers held on for the win.
Los Angeles had a two-man advantage in the final 36 seconds after
left winger Rick Nash was sent to the box for tripping, and the
Kings already had pulled Quick. However, New York prevented Los
Angeles from scoring.
"We seem to be in a funk," said Kings right winger Justin Williams,
who scored twice in defeat.
It didn't look that way early. Left winger Tanner Pearson put the
Kings on the board, gathering a pass from center Jeff Carter on a
rush and ripping a shot past Talbot for a 1-0 lead at 4:12 of the
first period. It was Pearson's 12th goal of the season.
Los Angeles struck again less than two minutes later, when Williams
blasted a winner from the right circle past Talbot for a 2-0
advantage at 5:49.
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The Rangers answered with a couple of assists from the Kings. After
Los Angeles center Mike Richards skated off for interference,
defenseman Dan Boyle struck just five seconds later on the power
play.
Boyle fielded a puck after a faceoff and fired a long-distance
rocket that ricocheted off the stick of Los Angeles center Jarret
Stoll and dribbled past Quick and into the net, cutting the margin
to 2-1 at 10:27 of the first.
New York wiped out the deficit early in the second period and seized
the lead. Defenseman Kevin Klein scored his eighth goal at 2:31, and
right winger Lee Stempniak delivered 19 seconds later with his
sixth, boosting the Rangers to a 3-2 lead.
The power-play goal by St. Louis made it 4-2.
"They capitalized on a couple of our mistakes early on, but we just
stuck to what we wanted to do, which was to try and play a fast
game," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said.
NOTES: Although players from both clubs downplayed any significance
in their first meeting since the Kings captured the Stanley Cup,
Rangers leading scorer Rick Nash admitted the defeat would always
haunt him. "I think, for the rest of your life, whenever you visit
L.A., that memory will come up," Nash told the New York Times
earlier this week. ... Kings D Brayden McNabb, C Andy Andreoff and C
Jordan Nolan were scratched. ... Rangers scratches: LW Tanner Glass
and D Matt Hunwick. ... The teams clash again March 24 at Madison
Square Garden. ... New York caps its three-game West Coast swing at
the San Jose Sharks on Saturday. ... Los Angeles resumes its
seven-game homestand Saturday night against the Winnipeg Jets.
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