LOS ANGELES (AP) — Quinton Byfield scored for the seventh straight home game, and the Los Angeles Kings beat the Boston Bruins 7-2 on Sunday night to set a franchise record with their 14th straight home game without a regulation loss.
Anze Kopitar, Warren Foegele, Andrei Kuzmenko, Drew Doughty, Tanner Jeannot and Samuel Helenius also scored, and the Kings have won six in a row on home ice. Darcy Kuemper made 11 saves as he improved to 13-0-1 in his past 14 home starts.
Elias Lindholm and Morgan Geekie scored, Jeremy Swayman made 16 saves, and the Bruins have dropped six straight as their postseason hopes continue to dwindle.
Los Angeles started off flat-footed, allowing a goal 19 seconds into the game, but took charge for good in the second period with goals from Doughty and Kuzmenko.
The Kings are 25-3-4 at home, including their current run of 11 victories and three overtime defeats, and need two wins from their final nine contests to set a new franchise record for victories on home ice in a season.
Takeaways
Bruins: Geekie has been one of the few bright spots in a disappointing season for Boston, reaching 25 goals for the first time in six NHL seasons.
Kings: Byfield is the sixth different Los Angeles player to score in at least seven consecutive home games, joining Luc Robitaille, Jari Kurri, Jeff Carter and Marcel Dionne and Charlie Simmer.
Key moment
Kuemper and Swayman were ready to fight after Kuemper’s feisty response to Marat Khusnutdinov intruding into his crease late in the second period, but the officials intervened, much to the disappointment of both teams and the crowd.
Key stat
Foegele scored his 100th career goal playing in his 500th NHL game. All 20 of his goals in his first season for Los Angeles have come at even strength.
Up next
Bruins visit Anaheim on Wednesday, and the Kings host the New York Rangers on Tuesday.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Dan Greenspan, The Associated Press
