LOS ANGELES (AP) - The New Jersey Devils' dreams of a historical comeback were all but dashed less than 11 minutes into Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals.
Just 10:10 in, Steve Bernier drilled Los Angeles defenseman Rob Scuderi from behind into the end boards and essentially took his club out of the game. Bernier was given a major penalty and was ejected from the game.
The Kings took full advantage of the 5-minute power play and scored three times in a span of 3:58 en route to a 6-1 victory that clinched Los Angeles' first Stanley Cup championship in the franchise's 45-year history.
New Jersey trailed 3-0 after the first period and 4-1 through 40 minutes. The Devils had little left for the third period, when the Kings went into lock-down mode and added two late insurance markers.
The Devils were trying to become just the third team to force a Game 7 in the finals after trailing 3-0. Only the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs came all the way back to win the Cup, and New Jersey were thoroughly thwarted by the Kings in Los Angeles' third shot at the title.
While it is of little consolation, New Jersey became the first team in 67 years to even get to a sixth game in the finals after falling behind 3-0.
Bernier never gave them a chance to get to a Game 7 back to in New Jersey.
The seven-year veteran slammed Scuderi behind the Los Angeles net, slamming him headfirst against the boards. The hit left Scuderi dazed and bloodied before he left the ice under his own power and headed to the dressing room. Scuderi returned to the bench, but Bernier was done for the night - and ultimately the season.
Kings captain Dustin Brown scored first at 11:03, and Jeff Carter made it 2-0 at 12:45. Just 16 seconds later, Trevor Lewis poked the puck past 40-year-old goalie Martin Brodeur's glove after Dwight King's centering pass squirted through the crease.
Adding to the Devils' frustration was a 35-foot one-timer by New Jersey's Patrik Elias that rang off the right post just 38 seconds before the first period ended.
Carter made it 4-0 just 1 1/2 minutes into the second period, beating Brodeur with a 40-foot wrist shot from the slot.
By then, all that was left to determine was the final score. Adam Henrique cut the deficit to 3-1 with 1:15 left in the second period, but the Devils couldn't get any closer.
The Devils had players march to the penalty box all night long, and lost forwards Ryan Carter and David Clarkson to 10-minute misconducts that forced New Jersey to play with a diminished corps of forwards for large chunks of the game.
Defenseman Bryce Salvador also served a 4-minute high-sticking penalty in the second period that didn't produce a goal, but milked important minutes off the clock.
Los Angeles became the second team to win the title without having home-ice advantage in any of the four rounds, a feat first accomplished by the Devils in 1995 when they claimed their first championship.
New Jersey was outdone by the Western Conference champions this time, and scored only eight goals in the six games. The Devils dropped a pair of 2-1 overtime decisions at home in the first two games of the series, and fought uphill the rest of the way.
The Devils were whistled for nine penalties that totaled 47 minutes in Game 6, after coming in with an average of just 8.7 in the playoffs - the second-fewest in this postseason.
New Jersey recorded only 18 shots on Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Brodeur, who backstopped New Jersey to Cup titles in 1995, 2000 and 2003, made 19 saves in the clincher.
