After layoff, L.A. Kings do great work against Dallas Stars, 5-1

Kings goalie Jonathan Quick got little to no work during Team USA’s silver-medal run in the Winter Olympics. Defenseman Drew Doughty played plenty in Team Canada’s run to the gold medal.

On Tuesday night, Quick was showing no rust and Doughty was showing no fatigue.

Quick stopped 31 of 32 shots to win his 36th start of this season, setting a franchise mark, and Doughty tallied three assists as the Kings beat the Dallas Stars, 5-1. It was a positive night for the Kings, who jumped into fourth place in the Western Conference when the Phoenix Coyotes lost, 5-2, to St. Louis.

Kings Coach Terry Murray was a bit concerned about Quick’s response coming out of the Olympics, where Team USA’s No. 3 goaltender practiced little. But outside of a third-period Stars power-play goal, Quick was stellar. His 36th victory bests the previous team mark of 35 set by Mario Lessard in the 1980-81 season.

Quick also tallied an assist on Brad Richardson’s second-period goal.

Rust “is something you think about,” Quick said of his quiet Olympic fortnight. “But once you get down to the rink and back into your routine, everything starts to feel natural. I need to be sharp, but I caught a couple lucky breaks there and I got a lot of support from the team scoring five goals there.”

Indeed, the Kings offense more than supported Quick’s stellar evening. Alexander Frolov had a goal and two assists and Team USA silver medalist Jack Johnson had two assists. Ryan Smyth added a power-play goal.

The Kings had energy and drive from the start while the Stars seemed sluggish out of the gate. Outside of a brief Stars burst after Mike Ribeiro’s goal early in the third period, the Kings dominated.

And Doughty was right in the middle of most of it. His setup on Richardson’s goal was especially noticeable, as the youngster took the puck from one end to the other, slowing down behind the Stars’ goal before finding Richardson open between the circles.

The 20-year-old Doughty, who flew straight to Dallas from Vancouver yesterday, said early Tuesday that he wished he had more of a rest after the Olympics. Apparently he was OK with the short turnaround.

Fatigue “hit me by the third period, but I felt good in the first period,” Doughty said. “I guess I brought the play I had at the Olympics. It was kind of my job to lead by example. The guys have been off for a while.”

Murray joked that it was too bad Doughty had to recover so quickly.

“He had a great game,” Murray said. “ He had the puck a lot and made some great plays. He was sharp, alert, brought good focus again. I was clearly concerned with the Olympians coming back and I stepped back their intensity. But everybody was on board tonight.”

The Kings have apparently been carrying that mentality a while now. Tuesday’s victory was their 11th in the last 13 games, dating back to their pre-Olympic surge. The Kings are also 4-0 against the Stars this season.

“This was clearly a big game coming back from the break,” Murray said. “We look at the standings, we know the situation. Every game is going to squeeze someone in the conference. Our effort here tonight was important.”

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Goalies assist

Quick was part of another notable moment on Tuesday night. He and Stars goaltender Marty Turco each had assists, the first time both goaltenders in a game have done that since an Atlanta-New Jersey game on March 23, 2006 (Kari Lehtonen and Martin Brodeur).

Jarret Stoll’s goal on Tuesday night snapped a seven-game scoreless skid for the center.

sports@latimes.com