Fiset Finally Reaches Milestone

Goaltender Stephane Fiset began the season needing only three victories to reach 100 in his NHL career and he had hoped to reach that plateau on the Kings’ season-opening six-game trip.

Despite some solid play, however, Fiset fell short from getting a victory on that trip, but Sunday night, he finally reached 100 with a 3-1 victory at Tampa Bay.

“It’s about time,” said Fiset, who improved to 100-96-29. “I had been thinking about [getting 100] since the beginning of the season. I feel really good because the guys played really hard to get it [tonight].”

Fiset, 3-5-2 this season, had 30 saves against Tampa Bay.

After starting the season in Coach Larry Robinson’s doghouse, left wing Vladimir Tsyplakov may have moved out of it with a strong effort against the Lightning.

Tsyplakov, a healthy scratch for six of the first seven games, scored a goal and made a key defensive play to get an assist on Yanic Perreault’s eventual winning goal in the third period.

“I didn’t get off to a good start,” said Tsyplakov, who has played five consecutive games and has two goals and two assists for the season. “It was hard for me to get going . . . but I’m comfortable now.”

The Kings were outshot by Tampa Bay, 31-23, but had a 13-4 edge in the third period. Defenseman Garry Galley recorded his team-high 10th assist. . . . The Kings did not dress forwards Donald MacLean, Steve McKenna and Olli Jokinen, along with defenseman Mattias Norstrom. For Jokinen, the third pick overall in the June draft, it was the third time in five games he has been a healthy scratch. For MacLean, it was his second scratch in the last three games.