In Los Angeles Wednesday, the visiting New Jersey Devils used a four-goal second period to outlast the Kings, 5-3.
“It’s nice to be playing better hockey, but I think we need to show up on Friday night in Anaheim with the same game,” goalie Cory Schneider said. “We’ve kind of been up and down. We’ll have a good game and we’ll have a really bad game … for us, it’s more about our consistency and where we’re at as a group night to 
night.”
The Devils are 3-1-1 in their last five.
“We had everybody going tonight,” interim co-coach Lou Lamoriello said. “Every line contributed. The defense, we lost one [defenseman Marek Zidlicky] in the first period [and had] one in the penalty box. Everybody just [made it up] where they had to. It was a team effort.”
The Kings meanwhile are 2-3-3 in their last eight games.
“We didn’t get the momentum or goals that we needed on power plays,” forward Justin Williams said. “Deflating, and it’s on us, on the players that get the ice time that are expected to score goals, to not only produce, but create energy and momentum. We didn’t do that.”
The Kings special teams have been overworked of late and yielded two power play goals to the Devils on four chances, something head coach Darryl Sutter pointed to after the game.
“Our penalty kill is just draining us,” Sutter said. “It takes so much out of your team. [The Devils] score the goal at the end of the first and then you come back and score, and then you give it up right away. It’s disappointing.”
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