Kings defeat Stars in overtime for first win

DALLAS --Alec Martinez scored 1:20 into overtime to give the Los Angeles Kings their first win of the season, 4-3 against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center on Thursday.

The victory ended a three-game losing streak for the Kings, who got 17 saves from backup goalie Peter Budaj.
Tanner Pearson screened goaltender Kari Lehtonen on Martinez's goal, and Tyler Toffoli got the assist.
"I was just the beneficiary of all that," Martinez said. "They were making the plays … all I had to do was really hit the net. I like playing with those two guys."
Jason Spezza scored to tie it 3-3 with 2:07 remaining in the third period after the Stars pulled goalie Kari Lehtonen for an extra attacker. Spezza put a wrist shot over Budaj's right shoulder after a pass from Tyler Seguin.
"It would have been a good feel-good win for us if we had pulled that out in overtime," Spezza said. "That makes it more frustrating, because it could have been a pretty good feeling."

Nic Dowd put the Kings ahead 1-0 when he scored his first NHL goal on the Kings' first shot of the game. The 26-year-old rookie finished a quick passing play with Tom Gilbert and Dustin Brown when he beat Lehtonen with a wrist shot from the slot at 8:18 of the first period.
Dallas tied it 1-1 at 11:40 when Budaj mishandled the puck to the left of his net and turned it over to Spezza. He made a quick pass to Radek Faksa, who scored into the vacated net.
Jeff Carter gave the Kings a 2-1 lead 1:24 into the second period on a 3-on-2. He took a drop pass from Pearson and picked his spot over Lehtonen's shoulder from the top of the left hash marks.
Jamie Benn tied it 2-2 at 5:00 on the power play with a short-side wrist shot.
Pearson gave the Kings a 3-2 lead with 27 seconds remaining in the period. Devin Setoguchi took a hard initial shot that Lehtonen kicked out to his left, where Pearson easily scored on the rebound.
Lehtonen made 35 saves.
Kings defenseman Brayden McNabb put a hard hit on Stars left wing Patrick Sharp in the second period. Sharp went into the concussion protocol and did not return. Dallas forward Patrick Eaves left the game with a lower-body injury.

Goal of the game

Martinez's overtime goal allowed the Kings to breathe a sigh of relief after their 0-3-0 start. Pearson drove hard to the net, creating enough space for Martinez to take a wide-open shot from the slot.

Save of the game

Budaj made his most difficult save with 8:56 remaining in the third period. Antoine Roussel collected a cross-ice pass and took a hard shot high on the stick side that Budaj turned away with his blocker to keep the Kings ahead by one goal for the time being. "I didn't get as many shots as maybe I'd like, but you have to be ready for moments like that," Budaj said.

Highlight of the game

Dowd's first NHL goal was a pretty one. With the Kings on the power play, Brown sent a pass from the top of the left faceoff circle to the top of the right circle for Gilbert, who found Dowd skating to the net. The rookie was patient and slid the puck past Lehtonen's left pad after the goalie committed early on the shot.

Unsung moment of the game

Budaj came up with a big save in the first period with the game tied 1-1 and Dallas pressing. Brett Ritchie drove the net hard and took a backhand shot that Budaj got with his stick. The rebound went straight to Devin Shore, but Budaj kicked out Shore's chance with his right leg at 14:27 while was sliding to his left.

They said it

"We know what kind of group of guys we have. This wasn't us, starting 0-3. We definitely showed today in a hot building against a very good team we came out hard. We outshoot them and we played a real strong defensive game. It was great to see the guys have that desperation." -- Kings goalie Peter Budaj
"The rest of the game was a battle. Considering we lost a couple players, it was a battle. Too many penalties, but I liked how hard we battled. You kill too many penalties, it kills the rhythm." -- Stars coach Lindy Ruff

Need to know

Dallas right wing Jiri Hudler missed his second game because of illness. … Ruff said the Stars likely will have to call up a player from the American Hockey League after Sharp and Eaves were injured.

What's next

Kings: Home against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday (10 p.m. ET; FS-W, CBC, NHL.TV)
Stars: Home against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; FS-SW, FS-O, NHL.TV)