Kempe scores twice, Kings edge Lightning to end 4-game skid

TAMPA -- Adrian Kempe scored twice, and the Los Angeles Kings ended a four-game losing streak with a 2-1 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena on Thursday.

Anton Forsberg made 31 saves for the Kings (15-10-9), who were 0-2-2 in their previous four games. Forsberg also made 26 saves in a 3-2 loss at the Florida Panthers on Wednesday.

"I felt great. I thought we played really well," Forsberg said. "I felt like the team had good energy. It was a hard-fought win from start to finish. We battled hard and we got out with two points, which is huge for this group."

Oliver Bjorkstrand scored for the Lightning (18-13-3), who have lost three straight (0-2-1). Andrei Vasilevskiy, who returned after missing the previous seven games with an undisclosed injury, made 18 saves.

"Our execution [at home] just hasn't been the way we execute on the road," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. "We outshot and attempted them like 78-33. I don't know how much more we could do, but some of it comes down to execution. When we had a chance to execute we really didn't, and when we did execute the goalie made the big save."

Bjorkstrand gave the Lightning a 1-0 lead on a power play at 12:54 of the first period after Anthony Cirelli found him open in the low slot. Forsberg stopped the first shot, but Bjorkstrand put the rebound through his five-hole.

"Obviously, disappointed in the result. We haven't done a good enough job this year of making this a tough place to play," Tampa Bay defenseman Ryan McDonagh said. "For whatever reason we just didn't quite have that killer instinct, that urgency to keep putting the gas pedal down on them."

Kempe tied it 1-1 at 5:21 of the second period when he skated into the offensive zone and beat Vasilevskiy with a long-distance wrist shot from between the circles.

"I had lots of room in the neutral zone. I just tried to skate it in the O-zone and then their 'D' kind of just backed off, so I just tried to find the spot between his legs to shoot in," Kempe said. "It just happens off instinct. You don't try to go in and shoot through guys all the time. I know it's hard for the goalie when you do that. That was something I was aiming for."

Kempe then put Los Angeles ahead 2-1 at 15:58 of the second period. He intercepted a pass from Lightning forward Pontus Holmberg in the Kings' defensive zone, skated down the ice and scored on a short breakaway with a backhand deke around Vasilevskiy's left pad.

"I was fresh. Felt good, legs felt good. Just tried to beat them up the ice," Kempe said. "Faked the goalie a little bit and go around him. It worked."

Forsberg preserved the one-goal lead early in the third period when he swept the puck away from rolling into the net after a shot from Tampa Bay forward Zemgus Girgensons squeaked through his left arm.

"It was a tough back-to-back. Anytime you go Tampa-Florida or Florida-Tampa ... they're two of the elite teams in the League," Los Angeles coach Jim Hiller said. "We spent a lot of energy last night in Florida trying to battle back, so I didn't think we had quite the same legs, but our will was there and I think that's really what carried the day for us."

NOTES: The Lightning played with 11 forwards and six defensemen after forward Nikita Kucherov was a late scratch because of an illness. ... Cirelli left the game after colliding with Kings forward Kevin Fiala at 6:15 of the third. Cooper did not have an update postgame. ... McDonagh was minus-2 and had one shot on goal in 17:49 of ice time after missing the past 18 games with an undisclosed injury. ... Tampa Bay forward Brandon Hagel is day to day after he was injured in a 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Monday.