Los Angeles Kings’ Jonathan Quick emerges as elite goaltender

Jonathan Quick moved into the NHL elite category with a regular season that earned him a nomination for the Vezina Trophy, given to the league’s top goalie.

He continued that play during the Stanley Cup playoffs, allowing no more than two goals a game during an eight-game winning steak from April 22 to May 17. Quick put the Kings on the path to the Stanley Cup against the Vancouver Canucks in the first round. He stopped 46 of 48 shots in a 4-2 victory in Game 2 and 41 shots in a 1-0 victory in Game 3.

“There’s no doubt there’s a maturity aspect ... in the way he approaches things,” Kings goaltender coach Bill Ranford said. “He was the type of guy that would come out for practice some days and just goof off and I’d have to reel him in and say, ‘You know what? We don’t want to start picking up bad habits.’ And you don’t see a lot of that with him anymore.”

NHL teams probably wish Quick would goof off a little more.

He allowed only seven goals in Stanley Cup Final games, including a shutout in Game 3. His efforts earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy.

Quick finished second in the NHL with a 1.95 goals-against average and his .929 save percentage was fifth. Both set Kings records. He also led the league with 10 shutouts, breaking Rogie Vachon’s single-season team record.

The season got off to a strong start. Quick set a team record by not allowing a goal for 202 minutes 11 seconds, a streak that included three consecutive shutouts. He also became the first Kings goaltender to have three consecutive 30-win seasons.

“He rises to the occasion and he doesn’t let bad goals get to him,” Kings GM Dean Lombardi said.

Quick was a third-round pick in the 2005 NHL draft out of Massachusetts.

chris.foster@latimes.com