Kings 4, Avalanche 3
All-Star Anze Kopitar scored for the third straight game as the Los Angeles Kings collected the contest's first four goals and held on for a 4-3 home triumph over the reeling Colorado Avalanche on Saturday.
Defenseman Drew Doughty netted his second goal in as many outings and fellow blue-liner Alec Martinez and Jarret Stoll also tallied as Los Angeles (35-23-4) won its third in a row and 11th in 15 games (11-1-3). The Kings have won five of their last six contests at the Staples Center and are 19-9-1 at home this season.
Jonathan Quick turned aside 14 shots to claim his sixth victory in as many career decisions against the Avalanche. The 25-year-old Connecticut native upped his season mark to 28-15-2.
Kopitar opened the scoring just 7:13 into the first period after cleaning up a loose puck on the doorstep for his 20th goal of the season. The 11th overall pick of the 2005 draft, Kopitar has collected four goals and six assists in his last eight contests.
Martinez doubled the advantage at 9:50 of the second period with a blast past a screened Brian Elliott. Doughty pushed the advantage to three with a power-play goal just two seconds before the end of the session for his fourth tally in seven games.
David Jones netted a pair of goals 39 seconds apart in the third period, Paul Stastny also tallied and Elliott finished with 38 saves for Colorado (26-29-7), which fell for the 12th time in 13 games (1-11-1).