KINGS HANG TOUGH L.A. 16-0-1 WITH 2ND PERIOD LEAD KINGS 3, BUFFALO 2.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

The Buffalo Sabres were in full gallop as time was winding down Thursday night and everybody at Staples Center knew the only person who could stop them was Jamie Storr.

Ziggy Palffy was gone with a concussion. Coach Andy Murray had no more timeouts to rally the team. And with the mighty St. Louis Blues here Saturday, the final 13 minutes against the Sabres might have been the biggest so far this year.

Storr, who has not always been up for such occasions, was brilliant holding on to the Kings' 3-2 victory. He made just 20 saves, but was at his best in the final minutes when he stopped J.P Dumont's shot at an open Kings net that would have tied the game.

``What did that mean?'' Murray said. ``It meant everything.''

It meant everything for a team that has struggled to find a consistent goaltender. It meant for a night they didn't look longingly down the ice at Buffalo's aging master Dominik Hasek, a pending free agent who hadn't lost in Los Angeles in four years.

It meant the Kings had won two in a row behind Storr and had kept some of the momentum they will need against the Blues.

``You can't say enough when your goaltender comes up big,'' said captain Rob Blake, who also saved his best defense for the end. ``That's who you need to win games and stay in the hunt.''

It wasn't until Kelly Buchberger cleared the puck from a pile of Sabres with 17 seconds left that the Kings could relax. When it was over they mobbed Storr, who was coming off Saturday's 5-0 shutout over Calgary.

Bryan Smolinski had given the Kings a 3-1 lead by beating Hasek just 3:31 into the third period. But without Palffy, who left midway through the second period when he was struck in the head by Denis Hemel at center ice, they weren't going to get much more.

After taking control of the Kings' zone, Buffalo inched closer. Chris Gratton redirected a long shot from Alexei Zhitnik past Storr to make it a one-goal game with 13 minutes to go.

Hasek, the two-time NHL MVP, was back in net Thursday after watching his replacement, Martin Biron, play brilliantly the past three games. Storr watched as Hasek got sharper as the game moved along.

``When you get three goals against the world's best goalie, you have got to get those wins because it is not often you can do that,'' Storr said. ``We just wanted to play solid and just play a simple game and just win the one-on-one battles. I think we did that tonight.''

The Kings now are 16-0-1 when leading after two period, but the Sabres were going to make them work for this victory.

The Sabres entered the game fifth in the East with 21 wins and 48 points. They were coming off Tuesday's 3-1 loss to Pacific-leading San Jose, which opened a four-game trip.

Like the last time they played Buffalo, the Kings were coming off an impressive victory and scored early. This time, rookie Steven Reinprecht, who did not have a goal in his last nine games, muscled his way to the Buffalo net and scored on a pass in front by Blake at 2:21.

Late in the period, Stu Grimson made it 2-0, also by working in front, rebounding a shot from Ian Laperriere and batting the puck past Hasek.

But also like the last time they played, the Sabres came back. Just 4:44 into the second period, Jason Woolley streaked up ice with Jere Karalahti trying to keep the puck away from Chris Brown. Woolley finally made his move and threaded a perfect pass to Brown, who beat Storr.