LOS ANGELES (AP) – The struggling St. Louis Blues got goals from seven players and routed the Los Angeles Kings 7-2 on Saturday, handing them their worst defeat of the season.
Robert Bortuzzo, Colton Parayko, Alex Pietrangelo, Ivan Barbashev, Vladimir Tarasenko, Kyle Brodziak and Jaden Schwartz scored for the Blues, who had lost nine of 10. Jake Allen made 40 saves.
The loss left Los Angeles one point back of Colorado for the second Western Conference wild card, and two points ahead of St. Louis. The Kings had not lost by more than four goals all season.
Drew Doughty and Dustin Brown scored for the Kings. Jonathan Quick made 29 saves before he was pulled after the second period. Jack Campbell stopped 14 of 17 shots in the third.
The Blues, shut out in their previous game against San Jose, jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period.
Bortuzzo opened the scoring during a 4-on-4, scoring from long range when the puck skipped under Quick’s pads. It was only Bortuzzo’s second goal of the season.
St. Louis made it 2-0 when Parayko came up with the puck during a scramble in front and whipped it past Quick for his sixth goal.
After the Kings pulled within one in the second, the Blues answered with two quick goals to take a 4-1 lead into the final period.
Doughty put Los Angeles on the board, redirecting a pass from Anze Kopitar past Allen to cut it to 2-1. It was Doughty’s ninth of the season.
St. Louis then came back with two goals in a 2{-minute span.
After a Kings turnover, Pietrangelo knocked in a rebound for his 12th goal. Storming down center ice alone, Barbashev split two Los Angeles defenders and squeezed another shot under Quick’s pads for his fifth goal.
After the Kings pulled Quick to start the third with Campbell, the Blues scored two quick goals to put the game away.
Tarasenko scored off a crossing pass from Schwartz 26 seconds into the period, and Brodziak scored on a backhanded 32 seconds later. Schwartz completed the scoring with his 20th goal.
