Carter, Kings top Golden Knights for third straight win

LOS ANGELES --Jeff Carter scored the tiebreaking goal in his 1,000th NHL game, and the Los Angeles Kings defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 at Staples Center on Saturday.

Carter redirected Matt Roy's shot from the right point after winning the face-off at 12:42 of the third period.
"Nothing special about it, you know," Carter said. "Win a face-off, shoot a puck, and go to the net. That's kind of how the games go for us. … We stuck with it and grinded it out, and at the end of the day, it's a big two points."
WATCH: [All Golden Knights vs. Kings highlights]
Drew Doughty had a goal and an assist, Nikolai Prokhorkin scored his first NHL goal, and Jonathan Quick made 28 saves for the Kings (8-11-1), who have won three in a row and are 4-2-1 in their past seven games.
"Overall, we're happy with the win," Kings coach Todd McLellan said. "Wouldn't call it our best game, it's probably one of our uglier games this year, but team's got to learn to how to win different ways."

Max Pacioretty and William Karlsson each had a goal and an assist for the Golden Knights (9-9-3), who are 0-4-1 in their past five games. Malcolm Subban made 21 saves.
"I thought we were right there most of the night, battled back when we were down 3-1. Just a bad result at the end," Golden Knights coach Gerard Gallant said. "We had a great second period, got back to even. Played good besides the winning goal, but that happens."
Blake Lizotte put Los Angeles ahead 1-0 at 10:59 of the first period with a shorthanded goal on a 2-on-1, scoring past the outstretched right pad of Subban after Adrian Kempe lost control of the puck in the crease.

Doughty made it 2-0 at 15:10 on a one-timer from the left circle during a power play.
Pacioretty cut it to 2-1 at 7:24 of the second period when Reilly Smith's shot from a sharp angle redirected in off his skate. The play was looked at to determine if Pacioretty used a distinct kicking motion on the goal, but the call stood after a video review.
"Any time the confidence is down, it seems like every chance against ends up in the back of your net, but we got to fight through it," Pacioretty said.
Prokhorkin, who was playing his fifth NHL game, scored to make it 3-1 at 9:08 of the second at the left post after Kyle Clifford couldn't control the puck in the slot.
"First goal's special, so you could see it on his face," Clifford said. "Obviously, he's been working pretty hard the last five games and it's good to see."

Jonathan Marchessault cut it to 3-2 at 14:52 on a one-timer from the point that made it through traffic.
Karlsson tied it 3-3 at 17:06. After Shea Theodore's initial shot hit off the glass, Kings defenseman Sean Walker overskated the rebound, and Pacioretty dropped it to Karlsson for the one-timer.

They said it

"It's time for everyone to kind of be selfish and just worry about their own game. And what I mean by that is if you're not going, just find a way to get going and worry about the process, and that'll help the team a lot."-- Golden Knights forward Max Pacioretty on losing four straight in regulation
"I just felt like that was just going to happen. Jeff's a goal-scorer and has scored big goals like that his whole career, so I don't think anyone is too shocked in here." -- Kings defenseman Drew Doughty on Jeff Carter

Need to know

Carter, who also played in his 500th game with the Kings, has 713 points (371 goals, 342 assists) in the NHL. … Kings center Anze Kopitar had an assist to extend his point streak to six games (three goals, six assists). … Kings forward Alex Iafallo had an assist for the fourth straight game. He has five points (one goal, four assists) in that span. … The Golden Knights signed forward Peyton Krebs, who was selected with the No. 17 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, to a three-year, entry-level contract on Saturday. ... Marchessault has four points (two goals, two assists) during a four-game point streak.

What's next

Golden Knights: Host the Calgary Flames on Sunday (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, TVAS, ATTSN-RM, NHL.TV)
Kings:At the Arizona Coyotes on Monday (9 p.m. ET; ESPN+, FS-A PLUS, FS-W, NHL.TV)