Devils 5, Kings 3
Steve Bernier scored for the second time on the power play to ignite a three-goal surge in a 1:08 span midway into the second period as New Jersey won the opener of its three-game road trip.
Mike Cammalleri netted his 250th career goal and added an assist for the Devils, who recorded their fifth win in 17 contests (5-8-4) despite playing without leading scorer Jaromir Jagr (flu). Michael Ryder scored and set up a goal, Martin Havlat also tallied and Cory Schneider turned aside 23 shots to improve to 4-1-0 in five career meetings with Los Angeles.
Justin Williams collected a goal and an assist, Marian Gaborik scored for the third straight contest and captain Dustin Brown also tallied as the Kings fell to 1-2-2 on their seven-game homestand. Jonathan Quick yielded two goals on seven shots in relief of Martin Jones (10 saves), who exited midway through the second period before returning to start the third.
Bernier banked a backhanded centering feed off Los Angeles defenseman Drew Doughty's skate and past Jones at 8:57 of the second period to give New Jersey a 2-1 lead. Havlat scored from above the faceoff circles 23 seconds later to initially chase Jones, Cammalleri greeted Quick by netting his team-leading 14th tally and Ryder cleaned up a rebound with 2:55 remaining in the session.
After the Kings failed on their first three power-play opportunities, the Devils made the most of their first as Bernier poked home a centering feed from Cammalleri with 14 seconds remaining in the first period to open the scoring. Los Angeles answered 76 seconds into the middle session as Doughty skated into the offensive zone and sidestepped New Jersey defenseman Jon Merrill before wiring a cross-crease feed to Brown for an easy conversion.
GAME NOTEBOOK: New Jersey C Scott Gomez set up a pair of goals to reach 550 assists for his career and Los Angeles D Brayden McNabb also set up two tallies. ... Cammalleri has scored a goal versus all three of his former teams this season. He tallied in a 5-4 loss to Calgary on Nov. 22 and also scored in a 4-2 setback to Montreal on Jan. 2. ... Kings All-Star C Anze Kopitar saw his assist streak halted at four games. ... Los Angeles LW Dwight King registered two shots while playing in his 200th career game.