Miller makes season-high 46 saves to lift Ducks past Kings

LOS ANGELES --Ryan Miller made a season-high 46 saves for the Anaheim Ducks in a 3-1 victory against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on Saturday.

Miller's win was his 384th in the NHL, one behind Mike Vernon for 15th in League history.
"I'm feeling it right now," Miller said. "I'm tired, but I felt good to get in there and see some pucks. I felt like I was playing the game that I've been trying to strive for for a little while, so that was rewarding to feel that way."
WATCH: [All Ducks vs. Kings highlights]
Max Jones, Derek Grant, and Jacob Larsson scored for Anaheim (21-26-5), which was coming off a 4-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday but is 4-2-0 in its past six games.
Tyler Toffoli scored, and Jonathan Quick made 25 saves for Los Angeles (19-29-5), which has lost six of its past seven games (1-5-1). Drew Doughty missed his third straight game because of an undisclosed injury.
"They got goals from third and fourth-line players, and good for them, they played very well," Kings coach Todd McLellan said. "Deep into their back end, they got a goal from that group, and we didn't get that, and that's the difference at the end of the night. We had a push, but too little, too late."
Jones gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead at 5:43 of the first period. He received a pass by Sam Steel from behind the net and scored with a backhand at the edge of the crease after the Kings failed twice to the clear the puck out of their zone.

Grant made it 2-0 at 2:33 of the second period by redirecting Cam Fowler's pass from the left point past Quick in front.
Larsson extended the lead to 3-0 at 6:52 with a one-timer from the left point through traffic. It was his first goal since Nov. 5 (26 games).
"Well with that shot tonight, if he can put them in all the time, he can shoot more," Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said. "But I think he's always trying. It's not like he looks away from shots, and obviously, he can pound it."
Toffoli pulled the Kings to within 3-1 at 17:21 on the power play after his slap shot from the right circle trickled through the pads of Miller. Originally ruled no goal because of an early whistle, the play was overturned after the Situation Room determined the original shot completely crossed the goal line as the culmination of a continuous play where the result was unaffected by the whistle.

Los Angeles outshot Anaheim 18-4 in the third period, but the majority of the shots came from distance and the Ducks kept players away from Miller for rebound opportunities.
"He was unreal. Looked like a 25-year-old in there tonight I think," Grant said of Miller. "They throw a lot of pucks at the net and those are tough for a goalie, especially from weird angles and stuff, and he controlled all of them pretty well and didn't give them any second chances on those, which is tough to do."

They said it

"When they tell me I'm going to have a certain game, I can try and peak at the right time so to speak, get my conditioning to a certain point, and then I just try to get my timing to a certain point the day prior and not expend too much energy. But I had a little extra energy tonight." -- Ducks goalie Ryan Miller on starting for the first time since Jan. 17
"They were on their toes and we were on our heels, and we're responsible for at least 50 percent of that. They were responsible for the other share, and they were much better in their portion than we were." -- Kings coach Todd McLellan

Need to know

Miller's 46 saves were his most since he made 47 against the St. Louis Blues on March 19, 2016. … The Ducks allowed a power-play goal for the second time in their past nine road games. They have killed 15 of 17 power plays (88.2 percent) in that span. … Anaheim forward Rickard Rakell had an assist, his third point (one goal, two assists) in the past two games. … Anze Kopitar recorded his 30th assist of the season and has seven points (one goal, six assists) in the past five games. … Kings defenseman Alec Martinez had an assist and is two points shy of 200 in the NHL.

What's next

Ducks:At the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TSN5, RDS2, PRIME, NHL.TV)
Kings: At the Washington Capitals on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSWA, FS-W, NHL.TV)