on the stick side.Trailing 2-0, the Bruins closed to 2-1 on a po

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Tampa Bay Lightning got off to a strong start last season www.kingsproshop.com , only to lose momentum after Christmas.They aren’t about to let that happen again, as the Los Angeles Kings found out.Nikita Kucherov had a goal and three assists as the Lightning kept steamrolling along, beating the Kings 6-2 on Thursday night for their seventh straight victory.“This group has been together for quite a while, so we know what we’re capable of,” Tampa Bay forward Ryan Callahan said. “Make sure we continue to rise and continue to play well, not have that dip we had last year, and so far out of the break we’ve done that.”The NHL-leading Lightning have earned at least one point in 16 consecutive games — the longest streak in the league this season. They are 15-0-1 during the run.“We’re on a good stretch, obviously, and we’re having fun with it,” Callahan said. “We’re coming to the rink and we’re ready to work is the biggest thing. Tonight was no different.”Steven Stamkos added a goal and two assists, and Brayden Point had a goal and an assist for Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 28 saves for his sixth consecutive win.Austin Wagner and Drew Doughty scored for the Kings, who have lost three of four. Jonathan Quick stopped 27 shots.The Lightning jumped out in front 3-0 in the first period, with Kucherov getting his 400th NHL point by scoring during a 5-on-3 power play at 6:28.“He’s dangerous every time he’s on the ice, and you give our team a 5-on-3 there at the beginning, you kind of expect Kucher and these guys to put it in the back of the net,” Mathieu Joseph said.Kucherov has eight goals and 19 assists during a 12-game point streak. He has scored in five straight games and has seven consecutive multipoint games, getting at least four points in three of his past five.Point made it 2-0 at 7:53 during the same two-man advantage Womens Josh Anderson Jersey , and Callahan scored on a breakaway at 14:05.“When you play a team like that, you know you have to play well or they can make you look bad in your own rink, so our guys were ready ’cause they knew that could happen,” Kings coach Willie Desjardins said.Ryan McDonagh pushed it to 4-0 just 25 seconds into the second period before Wagner scored at 7:55 for the Kings. Stamkos scored a power-play goal at 17:05.Joseph extended the lead to 6-1 at 10:04 of the third period as the Lightning scored at least six goals for the fourth time in five games.As dominant as the offense was, Callahan was just as pleased with the defensive effort.Tampa Bay has allowed three goals over the past two games after conceding a total of 10 in the previous two outings, though Doughty scored a second goal for Los Angeles on the power play at 17:36.“The quicker you nip it and the quicker you realize areas that you need to improve in even when you’re winning, the better off you are as a team and we’re doing that,” Callahan said.NOTES: Kucherov is the first player from the 2011 draft to reach the 400-point milestone. … Point has three goals and 10 assists during an eight-game point streak. … Lightning D Victor Hedman had an assist for the fifth straight game. … Kings forward Dustin Brown played in his 1,077th career game, tying Luc Robitaille for second-most in Kings history.UP NEXTLightning: Conclude their three-game California road trip at San Jose on Saturday.Kings: Host the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) The Florida Panthers are still alive for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. They’re going to need some help, though.Jared McCann scored with 5:37 left and Roberto Luongo got the win in his 1,000th career game, helping the Panthers stay in contention with a 3-2 victory over the Boston Bruins on Thursday night.The Panthers trail the Philadelphia Flyers by four points for the final Eastern Conference wild card and have two games remaining, including a matchup Sunday night with Boston. Florida needs to win both games and have the Flyers lose to the New York Rangers in regulation Saturday.”It would be nice to control our own fate, but we don’t have that luxury,” coach Bob Boughner said. ”Who knows what’s going to happen Adam Henrique Jersey , but we know we have a job to do. Let’s just hope that we are in a situation Saturday when the puck drops we’ve got a chance to make the playoffs.”The Panthers were also chasing the Devils and Blue Jackets, but both teams clinched playoff spots with victories Thursday.The 39-year-old Luongo became the third goalie to reach the 1,000-game mark, joining Hall of Famers Martin Brodeur (1,266) and Patrick Roy (1,029). Luongo is the 322nd player to reach the milestone overall. He stopped 26 shots Thursday.”It wasn’t easy. I was feeling a little bit sluggish today for some reason, but tell you what, the boys probably played their best game of the year,” Luongo said. ”That’s the best gift the boys could have given me.”Aleksander Barkov scored his 100th career goal, and Florida’s Frank Vatrano scored a goal against his former team.Barkov left the game with 6:51 left in the third period with an apparent upper-body injury after he was checked hard into the boards by Colby Cave. McCann took his spot on the top line and was able to make an impact.”I was ready to go,” McCann said. ”I look for those opportunities every day. I was able to step up.”There wasn’t an update on Barkov after the game.”I know the doctors are back there checking him out, so I don’t have anything as of now. It didn’t look great when he was going off the ice, to be honest,” Boughner said.Danton Heinen and Ryan Donato scored for the Bruins. Tuukka Rask stopped 32 shots.”Yeah, a tough start,” Rask said. ”They came to play, that’s not a surprise to anybody. They’re fighting for their lives and need every point they can get. You have to be ready for that and we weren’t.”The Bruins have lost three straight Womens Andrew Cogliano Jersey , their longest losing streak since a four-game skid from November 8-15.”You don’t want to go into the playoffs limping,” Rask said. ”You want to go in full stride and that’s something we have to fix the last two games.”Boston remains tied with Tampa Bay for the lead in the Atlantic Division, but Tampa owns the tiebreaker. Each team has two games left.”We’ve got one out of six points on this trip,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. ”That’s what happens in this league, I don’t care what teams you play. A bad formula to play from behind. Guys have to be ready to go when the puck drops. That’s something we have to look to correct.”McCann tipped in the winner off Mike Matheson’s shot from the left side.The Bruins tied it at 2 on Heinen’s goal 2:11 into the second period. After a defensive turnover, David Krejci passed across to Heinen, who beat Luongo on the stick side.Trailing 2-0, the Bruins closed to 2-1 on a power-play goal by Donato, who corralled a bouncing puck in front and swept it behind Luongo with 4:41 left in the first.The Panthers took a 1-0 lead on Barkov’s goal. Evgenii Dadonov made a nice pass from the right side to Barkov, who tucked the puck into the corner of the net at 7:42.The Panthers went ahead 2-0 after Vatrano, acquired by the Panthers in a trade with Boston on Feb. 22, poked in a rebound at 9:34.NOTES: Bruins F Brad Marchand played in his 600th NHL game. … Donato has eight points in his first 10 NHL games. … A video tribute to Luongo’s 1,000-game mark, midway through the first period, drew a standing ovation, including from Bruins players.UP NEXTBruins: Hosts Ottawa on Saturday night.Panthers: Hosts Buffalo on Saturday night.—