Skinner scores hat trick, Sabres hand Kings fourth straight loss

LOS ANGELES -- Jeff Skinner scored his fifth NHL hat trick to help the Buffalo Sabres defeat the Los Angeles Kings 5-1 at Staples Center on Saturday.

Jack Eichel had three assists, Jason Pominville had one goal and two assists, and Linus Ullmark made 19 saves for the Sabres (4-4-0), who had lost two in a row.
"Probably our best all-around game of the year I would say," Eichel said.
WATCH: [All Sabres vs. Kings highlights]
Drew Doughty scored for the Kings (2-5-1), who
lost their fourth straight game
and have been outscored 21-5 in that span. Jonathan Quick made 21 saves and has allowed 10 goals on 54 shots in two starts since returning from a lower-body injury.
Afterward, Los Angeles held a closed-door meeting that lasted almost 20 minutes.
"I don't feel like we're in a funk when I'm out on the ice, no, but I do feel once things go bad that it really goes south, rather than when things go bad we pick each other up and come back and get a goal," Doughty said.

Buffalo reconfigured its forward lines in practice Friday after scoring one goal in three games of its previous four.
Skinner and Pominville were moved to the first line with Eichel, and the impact was evident from the start, with Pominville giving the Sabres a 1-0 lead at 10:24 of the first period. Los Angeles used a coach's challenge for goaltender interference, but the call on the ice was upheld.
Skinner scored twice in the second period, at 3:31 to give Buffalo a 2-0 lead and at 15:52 for a 3-0 lead.
"The key was generating some offensive-zone time I think," Skinner said. "Both my goals sort of came off the cycle, and I think [Jason's] goal off the rush, but again, it's being hard at the net."
Zach Bogosian scored his first of the season to make it 4-0 at 19:45 of the second.

Pominville had the secondary assist on Skinner's second goal for his 700th NHL point in 995 games, joining Ilya Kovalchuk and Jason Spezza as the only players selected in the 2001 NHL Draft with 700 points.
Skinner completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal at 19:35 of the third period to give the Sabres a 5-1 lead.
Eichel, Skinner and Pominville combined for nine points and were plus-11. Nine Sabres had a point, and 13 had a rating of plus-1 or better.
"It was great that it worked out (with the first line), but I think if you looked throughout all the lines, they all contributed in one way or another," Housley said.
Doughty scored a power-play goal at 12:16 of the third to make it 4-1.
The Kings were outscored 12-3 in a two-game homestand, including a 7-2 loss to the New York Islanders on Thursday.

They said it

"A guy that plugs away every day, as professional as he is, he's a good example for the younger players, and seeing him get rewarded with 700, that's awesome for him." -- Sabres defenseman Zach Bogosian on Jason Pominville
"We've accepted being OK. It's not OK. It's not working. It's going to be a long year, guys will be moved if this continues." -- Kings defenseman Jake Muzzin

Need to know

The Sabres had not won at Staples Center since Oct. 23, 2003. Buffalo also won that game 5-1. ... Buffalo defenseman Jason McCabe had an assist to extend his point streak to three games (one goal, two assists). ... Los Angeles forward Alex Iafallo had an assist to extend his point streak to three games (three assists), which matches his NHL career high.

What's next

Sabres: At the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; FS-W, MSG-B, NHL.TV)
Kings: At the Dallas Stars on Tuesday (8:30 p.m. ET; FS-SW, KCOP-13, NHL.TV)