Kings at Bruins
THE STORY: The Los Angeles Kings have had enough of their low-scoring ways and finally made someone the scapegoat on Monday, firing coach Terry Murray. The Kings, who have dropped four straight and rank last in the NHL in scoring, will turn to assistant John Stevens on an interim basis. General manager Dean Lombardi was quick to point at the players, holding them accountable for the move. Los Angeles has the task of facing one of the toughest teams in the league when it visits the Boston Bruins on Tuesday. After posting back-to-back losses for the first time since October and scoring one goal in the process, the Burins came from behind for a 5-3 triumph over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday. Aside from the fact that Tim Thomas had to be replaced and Zdeno Chara missed the last period with an injury, all was well for Boston again. Thomas should be back in net soon, but Chara reportedly will miss a week because of a leg injury.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FS West (Los Angeles), NESN (Boston)
ABOUT THE KINGS (13-12-4): Los Angeles has not scored more than two goals since a 3-2 victory at St. Louis on Nov. 22, a span of eight games. The defense and goaltender Jonathan Quick were able to bail out the offense out in wins over San Jose and Florida on Nov. 28 and Dec. 1, but the Kings haven't won since, most recently suffering a 2-1 setback at home against the Dallas Stars on Saturday. Center Mike Richards has missed the last four games with a head injury and Jarret Stoll has been dropped to the third line.
ABOUT THE BRUINS (18-9-1): Boston looked destined for its third straight loss and had to be questioning its offense early against the Blue Jackets when they went down 2-0. But the Bruins bridged the first and second periods with three goals in less than three minutes. Defenseman Joe Corvo scored his first two goals and Chara added a power-play tally before exiting. Boston is making a brief stop at home during a stretch of five of seven games on the road.
OVERTIME:
1. Anze Kopitar has gone eight games without a goal for the Kings.
2. Thomas has never beaten Los Angeles, going 0-1-4 despite a solid 2.39 goals against average.
3. Milan Lucic snapped a three-game pointless streak with three assists on Saturday for Boston.