Devils' Keith Kinkaid notches first NHL shutout to beat Kings

NEWARK, N.J. - Keith Kinkaid made 25 saves to record his first NHL shutout in leading the New Jersey Devils to a 1-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday.

David Schlemko scored the game’s lone goal, and New Jersey won its third straight. The Devils leapfrogged the idle New York Islanders for third place in the Metropolitan Division.

The Kings, who got 18 saves from Jhonas Enroth, have split the first four outings of their seven-game road trip, their longest of the season.

New Jersey broke through on Schlemko’s power-play goal 5:19 into the first period. Four seconds after Vinny Lecavalier was assessed a two-minute minor for hooking Reid Boucher, Travis Zajac won an offensive zone faceoff back to Schlemko, who skated to the top of the ice and fired a shot that beat a screened Enroth.

It was Schlemko’s seventh goal of the season. The game then settled into the expected defensive battle. The Devils and Kings are among the NHL’s leaders for fewest goals allowed.

Both teams cut off the middle of the ice, forcing each other to play on the outside. The few shot attempts Kinkaid and Enroth faced were mostly from the perimeter.

The toughest saves of the game came in the third period. Kinkaid made a pad stop on a shot from the slot with two Kings at the top of the crease. Then Enroth matched Kinkaid with pad stops on Lee Stempniak later in the period.

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