Kings End Long Slump at Montreal

Bryan Erickson’s second goal of the game with 24 seconds left in overtime Monday night gave the Kings a 3-2 victory over Montreal and marked the Kings’ first win at the Montreal Forum since early 1979.

The Kings’ surprise win kept the Canadiens in second place in the NHL’s Smythe Division.

The last time the Kings won here was Jan. 4. 1979, when they beat the Canadiens, 5-4. The Kings were 0-9-2 in their last 11 games at Montreal.

The win also broke the Kings’ season-high, six-game losing streak and moved them out of sole possession of last place in the Smythe Division.

Erickson took a pass from center Bernie Nicholls and sent a low shot toward the goal that bounced off the right leg of Canadiens’ backup goalie Patrick Roy. It caromed into the net at 4:36 of the five-minute overtime. Doug Soetaert, who started in goal for Montreal, left the game late in the first period with a sprained left knee after wing Phil Sykes of the Kings collided with him.

The Canadiens, who remained one point behind the idle Quebec Nordiques, led, 2-1, when Erickson used Montreal defenseman Gaston Gingras as a screen for a 15-foot wrist shot that caught the short side at 9:59 of the third period.

Erickson’s first goal came shortly after Montreal’s Lucien DeBlois got a fluke goal, thanks to King defenseman Larry Playfair. Playfair sent a clearing pass in front of his goalie, Roland Melanson, but it hit DeBlois’ stick and trickled into the net at 8:50. It was DeBlois’ seventh goal of the year and first in more than six weeks.

Melanson was starting his second straight game after sitting out a month with a groin injury. It was his first win since he joined the Kings after a three-way deal with the New York Rangers and Minnesota North Stars last December.

Marcel Dionne of the Kings extended his scoring streak to eight games with a first-period goal against Soetaert. Montreal’s Stephane Richer tied it when he jammed the puck behind Melanson in the second period.

The Kings (18-33-66) are tied for fourth with the Winnipeg Jets, a point behind the third-place Vancouver Canucks. The Kings and Jets each have 42 points, but the Kings have played two fewer games than Winnipeg.

The Kings had lost 9 of their last 11 games before the start of the five-game trip. They play the Nordiques tonight.