Lightning Ends Stauber’s Streak : Kings: Andersson scores on penalty shot with 32 seconds to play, giving Tampa Bay a 3-2 victory. L.A. goalie is 9-1-1.

Through King goaltender Robb Stauber’s 10-game unbeaten streak, his aggressiveness had served him well.

Tuesday, it helped cost him the game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa Bay right wing Mikael Andersson’s penalty shot with 32 seconds remaining lifted the Lightning to a 3-2 victory over the Kings before 15,753 at the Forum.

Stauber himself created the penalty shot when he threw his stick at the puck with Andersson pursuing it into the left corner. Referee Michael McGeough immediately signaled a penalty shot.

“It wasn’t an accident,” Stauber said of throwing his stick. “I shouldn’t have dropped my stick. I should have tried to force him into the corner.”

Said King Coach Barry Melrose: “If you saw the tape, you can see he hesitated. If he would have jumped right out there, it wouldn’t have been a problem. It was one of the few times he hesitated.”

On the penalty shot, Andersson took the puck at center-ice and, as always, Stauber came out to challenge him. Faking to his backhand, Andersson put the puck in off the right post and off Stauber’s pad. The red goal light never went on, but McGeough had an excellent view of the play and signaled a goal.

Several replays of the penalty shot backed up his call. King fans, protesting, littered the ice with debris.

“I thought for sure I had him,” said Stauber, who went down on his side trying to block the shot. “My left leg was on top of my right leg, and it forced my right leg back and the puck went in. It was just enough to be in.”

Said Andersson: “First I was going to go in and shoot, but he kind of challenged me. He didn’t give me anything to shoot at. So I was trying to do something else. Fortunately for me, it was sliding in.”

Stauber had been going for his eighth consecutive victory, a club record, and the King coaches altered the rotation to give him a chance at the mark. The previous team record of seven consecutive victories was set by Kelly Hrudey last season. It was also Stauber’s first loss of the season after a 9-0-1 start.

The Kings (20-9-3) lead second-place Calgary by one point in the Smythe Division.

Near the end of the second period, Stauber’s lofty status as the league’s only undefeated goaltender seemed in jeopardy. Tampa Bay was looking to increase its 2-1 lead and started picking up momentum in the Kings’ zone.

The Lightning nearly scored on a two-on-one break at 17:18 after left wing Steve Maltais picked off a pass by Tony Granato. Maltais skated into the King zone down the left wing and launched a slap shot from the top of the left circle. It took an excellent glove save from Stauber to stop the Lightning from taking a 3-1 lead.

The Kings then benefited from a Lightning turnover. King center Corey Millen poked the puck away from Andersson and created a two-on-one with left wing Mike Donnelly, who was on the leftside.

Tampa Bay defenseman Marc Bergevin was the only one back, and he forced Millen to take the shot. Millen, in deep on the right wing, beat goaltender J.C. Bergeron between the pads with 45 seconds remaining in the second to make the score 2-2.

It was the 19th goal of the season for Millen, who has scored 12 goals in the last 11 games.

The Kings had fallen behind by 2-1 on second-period goals by former King defenseman Doug Crossman at 7:46 and another former King, forward Chris Kontos, at 16:24 on a redirected shot for his 22nd of the season.

King left wing Luc Robitaille had opened the scoring with his 25th of the season, at 18:20 of the first period. Robitaille, taking a pass from Paul Coffey, beat Bergeron on the stick side with a shot from the middle of the right circle.

King Notes

Former King center Steve Kasper is now with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Kasper was traded from Philadelphia to Tampa Bay on Dec. 8 for left wing Dan Vincelette. In 21 games with the Flyers, Kasper had one goal and three assists. . . . The Kings’ injury list continues to grow and right wing Bob Kudelski continues to sit and wait for a trade. Kudelski has played in only 14 of the the Kings’ 32 games, getting four points. After left wing Lonnie Loach suffered a broken left thumb on Sunday, the Kings called up center Guy Leveque and and forward Frank Breault instead of putting Kudelski back in the lineup.

Tampa Bay right wing Danton Cole suffered torn ligaments in a knee in a first-period collision with King defenseman Brent Thompson and will be sidelined from two to six weeks.