Kings end their skid thanks to Williams

DALLAS â€”  Justin Williams kept the Kings’ faint playoff hopes alive.

Meanwhile, the Dallas Stars wasted a chance to improve their longshot playoff chances.

Williams converted in the third round of the shootout and the Kings ended a three-game losing streak with a 1-0 victory over the Stars on Thursday night.

“We can’t lose a game,� Williams said. “We know we have to win out to have a chance.�

The Stars, 0-4-1 in their last five games and 2-7-1 in their last 10 at home, are 12th in the Western Conference with 75 points. That’s three points better than the Kings, 1-5-2 in their last eight games.

The Kings and Stars both have eight games left, five each on the road.

Anze Kopitar gave the Kings the advantage in the first round of the shootout, making a nifty move to fake goalie Marty Turco out of position, then tucking the puck into the net one-handed.

But Jere Lehtinen drew the Stars even in the third round, beating Jonathan Quick with a forehand shot from the slot.

Williams was up next, and he gave the Kings the extra point when his shot trickled into the net after Turco appeared to make the stop. At first, the referees ruled no-goal, but they went to video replay, which showed the puck over the goal line. “I thought I saw it go into the back of the net,� Williams said. “But I looked at our bench and nobody was celebrating.�

As soon as the goal was announced as good, the Kings poured off the bench to congratulate Williams and Quick, who made 29 saves.

The Kings had a little luck on their side when Dallas’ James Neal hit the post with his second-round attempt.

The Kings have two goals in the last four games, both on the power play. They haven’t scored at even strength since a 3-2 win at Boston on March 19.