Kings hand Stars first home loss
Rookie defenseman Slava Voynov is making his case for staying with the Los Angeles Kings.
Voynov scored his first two NHL goals, including the go-ahead tally with 6:52 remaining, and the Kings handed the Dallas Stars their first home loss of the season with a 5-3 victory on Thursday night.
With the game tied at 3-3, Voynov took a shot from the right point that got past screened goaltender Kari Lehtonen.
Voynov, who added a power-play goal in the second period, was called up from Manchester of the AHL on Oct. 18 when top Kings defenseman Drew Doughty went on injured reserve with a right shoulder problem.
Doughty has missed five straight games, but is set to be activated this weekend, forcing Kings management to either keep Voynov or move another defenseman.
''Voynov's got a big shot, a nice skill you don't coach,'' Kings coach Terry Murray said. ''He's got incredible composure, he sees the ice well and makes plays. So there are some decisions to be made.''
Jonathan Quick's shutout streak ended at 202 minutes, 11 seconds for Los Angeles.
Scott Parse and Justin Williams also scored for the Kings, who improved to 3-0-1 on the road this season.
Michael Ryder and Eric Nystrom notched third-period goals as Dallas rallied from a 3-1 deficit.
Ryder set up in front of the net and swept a loose puck by Quick for Ryder's third of the season at 3:03 of the final period.
Nystrom's shot from the low slot went through Quick's pads at 7:20 of the third to draw Dallas even at 3-3, Nystrom's first goal since he was acquired from Minnesota in a trade on Oct. 12.
With less than two minutes left, Dallas pulled Lehtonen for a sixth attacker to try and tie the game, but Dustin Brown had an empty-netter with 26.3 seconds left and added two assists for the Kings.
''We battled back in the third, showed some character, but in the end, another seeing-eye single (Voynov's goal from the blue line) that goes through found its way to the back of the net,'' Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said.
Trevor Daley's first-period power-play goal ended Quick's shutout streak.
Los Angeles managed only three goals in its previous three games and was coming off Tuesday night's 3-0 home loss to New Jersey.
''We knew if we kept generating chances, the floodgates would eventually open,'' said Kings center Anze Kopitar, who added two assists. ''We came through at the right time and needed it. That's a step in the right direction.''
Dallas had won its first four at home.
Mike Richards had three assists for the Kings. Daley knocked in a rebound at 14:01 of the opening period for his first goal of the season.
The Kings failed to capitalize on 1 minute and 23 seconds of a 5 on 3 advantage late in the opening period, but Los Angeles got on the board at 3:47 of the second when Williams lifted a rebound past Lehtonen for his third goal of the season.
Richards backhanded a pass through the crease to Parse for a tap-in — Parse's first goal of the season — that gave the Kings a 2-1 edge at 11:27 of the second period.
Voynov capitalized on a power play when he fired a loose puck past Lehtonen from the right circle at 15:21 of the second period for a two-goal lead.
NOTES: The crowd was announced at 8,443, but there were only about half that number in the seats. Local interest in the Texas Rangers' World Series Game 6 at St. Louis helped keep attendance lower. ... The Kings opened a three-game trip. ... The Stars began a three-game homestand following a 3-1 trip. ... The Kings beat the Stars 1-0 last Saturday night in Los Angeles in the only other meeting between the teams this season.