In Los Angeles Tuesday night, the Kings got just enough offense in the first period to go with their rediscovered defense to defeat the Detroit Red Wings, 1-0.
Jonathan Quick stopped 20 shots for the shutout win.
Justin Williams provided all the offense the Kings would need at 2:24 of the first on a power play.
Jonathan Quick’s 20 saves gets shutout over Wings – file photo by Jack Lima
“You win one, you win two, you feel a little bit more confident again, and we knew just because we were in the position before, a streak like this would pull us out of that hole,” Kings center Anze Kopitar said. “Now we broke even, but now we’ve got to keep going like this.”
It was the Kings’ eight straight win and they have apparently found the switch.
“We weren’t together,” Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader said. “We didn’t make our adjustments right away like we should have. We kept pucks on the walls, which is where L.A. wants the puck. We need to communicate better. Our power play has won us a lot of games this year, but it’s got to come through with at least one goal there.”
Jonas Gustavsson made 26 saves in the loss. It was his first start since November.
“It’s all about the team, it’s not about me,” Gustavsson said. “I’m just going to try and take advantage of the opportunities I get and work hard in practice. It’s only six weeks or so left in the season, so we’ll see what happens. But that’s not really my focus. I’m just going to whatever I can when I get the chance, and show that I can be out there. Then we’ll see how many chances I get.”
The shutout was Quick’s 35th career blanking.
“It just feels like some nights, where you look at him (Quick), and you look the saves he makes, and you think, ‘You know what? He’s not going to let anyone score tonight,'” Williams said. “He’s been a rock, certainly throughout this winning streak, and he’ll continue to be. He’s got a heavy workload right now, and he’s answering the bell like he always does.”
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