Lindblom, Flyers get past Kings for second straight victory

LOS ANGELES -- Oskar Lindblom had a goal and an assist to help the Philadelphia Flyers to consecutive wins for the first time this season with a 5-2 victory against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on Thursday.

Defenseman Ivan Provorov scored his second goal in as many games, and Brian Elliott made 25 saves for the Flyers (6-7-0), who opened their four-game Western Conference road trip with a 3-2 win against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday.
"We've played pretty good hockey at different times. We just haven't been consistent enough from one game to the next, "Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. "And there's been games we haven't been consistent enough period to period. That's what we've been able to do the last two games], is put consistent play together for 60 minutes."
***[WATCH: [All Flyers vs. Kings highlights]*
Ilya Kovalchuk had a goal and an assist for the Kings (3-8-1), who have lost seven of eight games. Jack Campbell made 26 saves in his first start since No. 1 goalie Jonathan Quick had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee.
Lindblom gave Philadelphia a 3-1 lead at 14:05 of the second period. After it was ruled a good goal on the ice, the Situation Room confirmed the decision by video review that showed the puck hit Los Angeles defenseman Sean Walker's stick after Lindblom kicked it.

Kovalchuk pulled the Kings to within 3-2 at 18:41. He has five points (two goals, three assists) his past two games.
Claude Giroux put the Flyers ahead 4-2 at 14:27 of the third period, and Robert Hagg scored into an empty net to make it 5-2 at 16:49.
"I think the guys feel great, feel confident," defenseman Radko Gudas said. "You can see everybody is making plays in the hard areas, having their heads up, and making the right plays and the hard plays. I think it's a step in the right direction."
Wayne Simmonds put the Flyers ahead 2-1 at 10:53 of the second with a one-timer from the right face-off circle, 49 seconds after Jeff Carter tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal for the Kings at 10:04.
The Flyers had a similar response against the Ducks, when Nolan Patrick scored the game-winning goal 21 seconds after Anaheim's Pontus Aberg tied it 2-2 late in the third period. The ability to get goals back quickly, center Sean Couturier said, is a sign of their improvement.

"We're learning from our mistakes earlier," said Couturier, who had an assist. "It's a long game, and we're getting some good response right after, and we need that. It's a tight game, you got to keep playing."
Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead at 17:35 of the first period when Provorov scored on a one-timer in the slot off a pass from Dale Weise.
Los Angeles had three power plays in the first period, including 1:35 at 5-on-3. But the Flyers penalty kill, which is ranked 30th in the NHL (68.8 percent), allowed two shots on goal during the two-man advantage and prevented the Kings from establishing early momentum.
"I think we played really good the whole game," Lindblom said. "We had a good PK the first period and just kept building on that. They didn't have much, so it was a perfect away game."

They said it

"I think it's a step in the right direction. It's a long season, but we have two good games after each other. It's definitely a better feeling than we had a week ago." -- Flyers defenseman Radko Gudas on winning two straight for the first time this season
"A step slow with the puck, and a step slow checking to get the puck back, and too much time in your zone. Too many bad things happening." -- Kings coach John Stevens

Need to know

Patrick had two assists and has four points (one goal, three assists) his past two games. … Kovalchuk has consecutive multipoint games for the first time since Feb. 7-9, 2013. … Elliott got his eighth NHL point with an assist on Hagg's goal. … The Kings has scored at least one power-play goal in four straight home games (6-for-16). … The Flyers scratched goalie Michal Neuvirth for "precautionary reasons." Calvin Pickard backed up Elliott.

What's next

Flyers: At the San Jose Sharks on Saturday (10:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCA, NBCSP+, NHL.TV)
Kings:Host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday (10:30 p.m. ET; FS-W, FS-O, NHL.TV)