The Anaheim Mighty Ducks didn't have to travel very far to find success on a crucial five-game road trip.
Chris Kunitz scored two goals and Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 25 saves for his 28th victory of the season as the Ducks beat the Los Angeles Kings 4-2 on Saturday in Los Angeles.
Rob Niedermayer and Joffrey Lupul also scored for Anaheim, which maintained fifth-place in the Western Conference.
The Ducks will play four of their final five games on the road. The team can clinch a playoff spot with a win at Vancouver on Monday before traveling to Calgary, Edmonton and San Jose.
"It was huge win for us, we are one step closer" said Giguere. "Its good because we need to prove to ourselves that we can play good on the road before the playoffs start. There are another four big games coming up."
Andy McDonald and Teemu Selanne each had two assists for Anaheim.
Craig Conroy and Nathan Dempsey scored for the Kings, who have netted six goals in their last six games.
The 10th-place Kings have three games left to maneuver into a playoff spot. They trail San Jose by four points for eighth place.
"We have no confidence in our ability and no confidence that we are doing it right," said Kings forward Jeremy Roenick. "We just made too many mistakes. We are afraid of failure and doing something wrong."
Anaheim won the last four meetings between the teams, taking the season series with a 5-2-1 mark.
Niedermayer deflected in a shot by Francois Beauchmin 2:45 into the game and Lupul tapped in a feed from Selanne on a power play five minutes later to give the Ducks an early 2-0 lead.
"We had a good start, I think they came out a little flat but the two goals in the first period were the difference," said Selanne.
Conroy got the Kings back into the game with a power-play goal in the second period. But Anaheim quickly responded 28 seconds later, as Kunitz fired a 30-foot wrist shot past Kings goalie Mathieu Garon to make it 3-1.
"That's the character in this room. Just because they capitalized on a chance doesn't mean we can't go out and get one back one or two shifts later," said Kunitz.
ISLANDERS 5, CAPITALS 0: At Uniondale, N.J., Alexei Yashin scored two of New York's three power-play goals in the first period, and the Islanders snapped their season-worst, six-game losing streak by shutting down Alexander Ovechkin and Washington. Yashin stole the spotlight from his young Russian countrymate, who is trying to become the second NHL rookie to notch 50 goals and 100 points. Ovechkin needs two goals in the final five games to accomplish both feats, after he got to 99 points Friday in a home loss to Carolina.
MAPLE LEAFS 5, FLYERS 2: At Philadelpia, Jeff O'Neill had two of Toronto's five power-play goals. The Flyers fell five points behind the Atlantic-Division leading New York Rangers with five games remaining for each, including one meeting between the teams. Philadelphia is fifth in the Eastern Conference.
DEVILS 3, CANADIENS 2: At Montreal, Brian Gionta got his 43rd goal and Scott Gomez scored twice — his 29th and 30th — and New Jersey took sole possession of sixth place in the Eastern Conference. Martin Brodeur made 40 saves for New Jersey, which won its sixth in a row and moved two points clear of seventh-place Montreal. The Canadiens, who outshot the Devils 42-29, ended an eight-game winning streak, their longest in over 13 years.
RED WINGS 4, BLUE JACKETS 2: At Columbus, Ohio: Jason Williams scored the go-ahead goal and Chris Osgood made it stand for the Red Wings. Brendan Shanahan and Tomas Holmstrom also had goals for Detroit, which cemented its position atop the Presidents' Trophy standings with 114 points. Chris Chelios added an empty-net goal.
THRASHERS 5, HURRICANES 2: At Atlanta, Ilya Kovalchuk scored his 51st goal to offset Justin Williams' two-goal effort and keep the Thrashers' slim playoff hopes alive. Atlanta has won two of three, but remain six points behind Tampa Bay for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.
LIGHTNING 1, PENGUINS 0: At Tampa, Fla., Sean Burke made 25 saves for his second shutout of the season. The Lightning opted to stay with Burke, who had allowed three goals in two straight wins. He posted his 37th overall shutout. John Grahame, who has a 9-1-1 record against Pittsburgh, was the backup.
SABRES 6, SENATORS 2: At Ottawa, Tim Connolly scored two goals and had an assist to lead Buffalo over the Senators. The win allowed Buffalo to get within six points of Ottawa for the Northeast Division lead. Buffalo has four games left to play while the Senators have five.
PREDATORS 2, BLACKHAWKS 1, SO: At Nashville, Tenn., Paul Kariya scored in the second round of a shootout, and the Predators finally clinched their second straight playoff berth. The Predators had lost six of their last eight before their matchup with Chicago.