Jeff Carter scores twice in Kings’ big win over Canucks

LOS ANGELES, CA (NEWS 1130) — Jeff Carter scored twice in the third period to get his 300th career goal after Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar scored less than 2 minutes apart in the second period to lift the Kings over the Canucks 5-1.

Carter and Vincent Lecavalier scored 39 seconds apart midway through the third, and then Carter added an empty-netter for his 300th. Jonathan Quickmade 21 saves to help the Kings climb within a point of Pacific Division-leading Anaheim, which lost 2-1 to Washington in a shootout.

The Kings led the Ducks by 16 points on Jan. 20 but fell out of first place with a 3-2 loss to the Ducks on Saturday.

Defenceman Dan Hamhuis scored for Vancouver and Ryan Miller stopped 24 shots.

Canucks captain Henrik Sedin, the franchise’s career leader in games played, was back in Vancouver getting re-evaluated after leaving Saturday night’s 4-2 win at San Jose because of an upper-body injury. Defenceman Christopher Tanev, who leads the club with 156 blocked shots, also had an upper-body injury in that game and was scratched as well.

Doughty tied it 1-all at 10:07 of the second with his 13th goal, on a wrist shot from the left circle that trickled through Miller’s pads and across the goal line.

Kopitar gave the Kings the lead at 12:06 of the period, beating Miller high to the glove side with a wrist shot from the right circle while teammate Tanner Pearson was screening him in front of the crease.

Kopitar’s 20th goal came while Alexandre Burrows was off for tripping Brayden McNabb.

Carter added an insurance goal with 8:21 remaining, beating Miller to the glove side with a short wrist shot from the right circle. Lecavalier capped the scoring moments later with a 40-foot slap shot that again trickled through Miller’s pads.

The teams were skating 4-on-4 after coincidental minor penalties toJake Muzzin and Vancouver’s Burrows when the Canucks opened the scoring at 2:39 of the second. Daniel Sedin had the puck behind the net and sent it into the right corner to Linden Vey, who set up Hamhuis right in front.

It was the second goal in two games for Hamhuis after he had failed to get one in his first 40 games. Last season, the 12-year veteran didn’t score a goal in his first 58 games before ending the drought in his final game of the campaign.

LW Daniel Sedin, one of two Canucks to play in all 65 games, failed to get a shot on net for the first time this season. That leaves Montreal left wing Max Pacioretty as the only player in the league to get at least one in each of his team’s games.

The Canucks, whose 157 goals are the fewest among Western Conference teams, have scored fewer than three in 12 of their last 16 games.