Kings stop Red Wings

DETROIT -- The mighty Detroit Red Wings had a record in sight, entering the third period with a two-goal lead against the lowly Kings.

The Kings had other plans.

Brad Stuart scored the go-ahead goal at 13:07 of the third, helping the Kings rally for a 5-3 victory over Detroit on Thursday night.

“It’s always great when you can come back and win a game in the third period,” Stuart said. “But it’s much better when you can do it on the road against the best team in the league.”

Jason LaBarbera had 26 saves for the Kings, who hadn’t won a regular-season game in Detroit since Feb. 18, 2000.

Kris Draper was unaware the Red Wings blew a chance to match a franchise record with a ninth consecutive victory, but he was upset about the way they missed the opportunity.

“I care because of the way we lost,” Draper said. “You know over the course of an 82-game schedule, things are going to happen, but when you’re up 3-1 you have to find a way to bury hockey clubs.”

Alexander Frolov tied it in the third on a power-play goal.

The NHL-leading Red Wings have a double-digit advantage over the rest of the league, but they were vulnerable against a team that entered the game with the fewest points.

Kings Coach Marc Crawford said the surprising victory wasn’t a fluke.

“We played very well all night and we deserved to win,” Crawford said. “We were a much better team tonight than Detroit. That’s no disrespect to them -- everyone knows that’s a great team -- but we really challenged them.”

The Kings scored on four of their first eight shots in the third period against Chris Osgood.

The Kings put defenseman Rob Blake on injured reserve because of an ankle injury and recalled goaltender Dan Cloutier from the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League.