By MATT BEARDMORE
STATS Writer
The Los Angeles Kings have lost once in regulation in the last three weeks. They’ll look to continue their strong play in a place they haven’t won in nearly four years.
The Western Conference-leading Kings try to snap a seven-game slide in Calgary on Thursday night when they face a Flames club looking to avoid its first four-game losing streak.
Los Angeles (22-11-3) improved to 8-1-1 since Nov. 26 with Tuesday’s 3-2 victory at Edmonton, as defenseman Sean O’Donnell scored the winner with 4:33 remaining.
“It had been a while,” said O’Donnell, who had not scored in his previous 157 games. “It was a big goal for the team, too. We lost a tough game to Vancouver on Monday (3-1). It was our ninth game in 15 nights, coming into a tough building and playing a team that had been playing pretty well.
“Moving into first in the West is a real shot in the arm. We are starting to really believe in ourselves.”
The Kings will be trying to win their first game at Pengrowth Saddledome since Dec. 21, 2005. In these teams’ last matchup in Calgary, the Flames won 4-1 on April 6 behind a goal and an assist from Jarome Iginla.
The Flames captain has eight goals and 10 assists in his last nine home games against Los Angeles.
Iginla, though, has not scored in a season-high seven straight games and has found the back of the net twice since notching his ninth career hat trick in a 5-2 victory in Los Angeles on Nov. 21.
Miikka Kiprusoff, who made 23 saves in that matchup, had his streak of consecutive wins over the Kings snapped at five in a 2-1 loss at Staples Center on Dec. 7.
Kiprusoff will likely be in goal Thursday when the Flames (19-10-4) try to avoid their first four-game slide since Feb. 2-7.
Calgary’s last six losses have all been by one goal, and the team fell 4-3 at St. Louis on Tuesday. Dustin Boyd’s goal gave the Flames a 3-2 second-period lead, but they managed four shots in the third.
“I think we’ve just got to get back to our game,” Boyd said. “The last three games we’ve shown flashes, but not enough.”
The Flames will likely have to increase their output against Jonathan Quick, who is expected to make his first career start in Calgary after going 7-1-1 with a 2.25 goals-against average in his last nine starts. Ten of his 27 saves Tuesday came in the third period.
“(The Oilers) came back on us and thankfully he was able to keep us in it,” defenseman Matt Greene said. “They were all over us in the third. It’s huge for this team to get this win. We were playing back to back and they had been hot lately.”
Center Jarret Stoll, third on the Kings with 25 points, could miss his second straight game after injuring his groin Monday in Vancouver.
Right wing Rene Bourque, who leads the Flames with 17 assists, has a goal and an assist in each of his last two games.