Savard crowns Kings

LOS ANGELES - "We got the win," said Marc Savard. "That's all that matters."

Savard was sure about that, having scored the winning goal and notching four assists in Boston's upside-down 8-6 win over Los Angeles last night at Staples Center.

The Bruins were a little foggy about everything else.

For the first three games of 2007-08, Boston's biggest problem was a lack of production, having scored only five goals all season.

But last night, the Bruins scored more goals than they had all season. Phil Kessel recorded the first hat trick of his career. Savard put up a 5-point effort after missing one game with a groin strain. Milan Lucic notched a Gordie Howe hat trick, scoring his first goal, his first assist, and his first big-time fight against Raitis Ivanans, an established heavyweight.

"I think the fight," Lucic said when asked which feat he was most proud of, although he planned to give his commemorative puck to his parents, who were in attendance. "I held my ground in the fight."

It was a night of crazy events that left even coach Claude Julien dumbfounded when trying to explain what had happened. The Bruins held a 4-1 advantage at one point that turned into a 5-5 tie in the third period. They committed multiple defensive-zone gaffes, a peculiar happening given Boston's tightness in the first three games.

And Manny Fernandez, making his second start, saw six pucks go past him, with rebound control being his biggest issue.

"Not really," said Fernandez when asked if he'd ever gone through such a stretch. "This is quite unbelievable."

The Bruins held a 4-1 lead in the second period (two goals by Kessel, singles by Glen Murray and Aaron Ward), but the Kings wiped out the advantage, tying the game at 5 in the third.

But the Bruins scored the winning power-play goal at 9:42 of the third. After the Kings failed to clear the zone, the puck landed on the stick of Murray in the slot. Murray faked a slapper, throwing off Jonathan Bernier's timing, and instead fired a pass to Savard, who one-timed it for his first goal of the season to give the Bruins a 6-5 advantage.

Earlier in the third, the Kings tied the game at 8:19. Forward Anze Kopitar fired a shot off the crossbar that dropped into the crease. Fernandez scrambled to cover the puck, but knocked it over the line instead.

In the second, Murray, who had been held without a point in the first three games, scored his first goal to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead. During Boston's third power play, ex-Bruin Brad Stuart blocked a point shot by Savard. But Murray, stationed in the slot, found the loose puck and fired it over Bernier's right shoulder at 4:05.

The Bruins took a two-goal lead less than two minutes later when Ward scored his first of the season, putting a long-distance slapper past Bernier at 5:56. Lucic earned his first career point on the play.

Kessel, who scored in the first period, potted his second at 8:56 during a four-minute power play (a high-sticking double minor on Brady Murray). Savard controlled the puck at the left circle. Bernier played Savard for a shot, but the slick centerman spotted Kessel going to the far post. Savard hit Kessel with a pass that the winger collected for an easy tap-in at 8:56.

But the Bruins folded late in the second. LA forward Scott Thornton buried Savard behind the Boston net, forcing a turnover that led to an easy goal by Brady Murray at 17:45.

After David Krejci was whistled for hooking at 18:49, the Kings scored a power-play goal. Fernandez, who had made a spectacular stop on forward Derek Armstrong several minutes earlier, blocked an initial shot by forward Dustin Brown. But neither Fernandez nor Andrew Alberts could sweep aside the rebound, allowing Kopitar to swoop in and put the puck in the net at 19:11, making it a 4-3 game.

It was a tough end of the second for Fernandez, who was making his second start of the season.

Fernandez looked strong early, making his best save after a behind-the-net turnover by Dennis Wideman led to a scoring chance. Armstrong, left open in the slot, took a close-range shot that Fernandez smothered at 9:12.

However, the Kings, down, 1-0, after a goal by Kessel, solved Fernandez with 12.1 ticks remaining in the first. With Ward in the penalty box for hooking, Stuart, quarterbacking the power play, ripped a slap shot that beat Fernandez five-hole. Forward Kyle Calder was in front setting a partial screen on the play.

Earlier in the period, Kessel scored his first of the season just as a holding penalty on forward Michal Handzus expired. Kessel, taking a pass from Krejci, attacked from the left-side half-boards and ripped a wrist shot that whizzed past Bernier at 16:54. It was only Boston's second even-strength goal of the year.

During Handzus's penalty, Boston's top power-play unit got some good looks, only to be foiled by Bernier. Glen Murray had the best opportunity, cranking a one-timer from his trademark position in the slot, but Bernier turned the attempt aside.

Lucic, playing on Boston's third line for the first time this season, mixed things up with Ivanans at 12:47. Lucic kicked things off with a heavy shoulder hit on Ivanans against the glass, prompting the fight. The 263-pound Ivanans socked Lucic with a heavy right, but the 19-year-old Boston rookie held his ground.