Kings defeat the Islanders 3-1 for their 6th straight win

Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Adrian Kempe and Kevin Fiala scored, Darcy Kuemper made 19 saves and the Los Angeles Kings beat the New York Islanders 3-1 on Tuesday night for their sixth straight win.

The Kings started a seven-game road trip, their longest of the season, with a strong performance. Mikey Anderson added an empty-net goal as Los Angeles improved to 17-8-3 with its eighth victory in 10 games.

Anders Lee scored for the Islanders, who won their previous two.

Kempe opened the scoring at 13:51 of the first period with his 14th goal. Kings captain Anze Kopitar, playing his 1,401st career game, assisted along with Trevor Moore.

The 37-year-old Kopitar leads the Kings with 32 points, including eight goals.

Fiala increased the lead, beating Islanders netminder Ilya Sorokin with his 10th goal at 3:09 of the second.

Lee, the Islanders captain, narrowed the deficit with his team-leading 13th goal at 9:47.

Sorokin finished with 27 saves.

New York won at Ottawa on Sunday after edging Carolina 4-3 on home ice last Saturday.

The Kings were coming off home wins over Ottawa, Dallas and Minnesota.

Takeaways

Kings: Kuemper, who helped the Colorado Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 2022, improved to 6-2-3 this season.

Islanders: Fell to 5-7-2 at UBS Arena. They are 6-5-5 on the road.

Key moment

Kuemper stopped Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s shot from the high slot with 2:37 left in the third. He also denied Simon Holmstrom on the power play with just under eight minutes remaining to preserve a one-goal lead.

Key stats

Lee has 273 career goals, moving him past former Islanders captain John Tavares into eighth place on the franchise list. … The Islanders have outscored opponents 50-42 in the first and second periods but have been outscored 47-26 in the third period and overtime.

Up next

Kings: Visit the New Jersey Devils on Thursday.

Islanders: Host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday.

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