"I thought we played pretty solid," Kings center Anze Kopitar said. "Obviously we gave up some chances, but Quickie was there standing tall like he always is. We definitely miss a guy like Drew, and hopefully he'll be back soon."
Erik Cernak gave the Lightning a 3-2 lead at 4:13 of the third period with a shot from the right point through a screen.
Stamkos tied it 2-2 with a one-timer from the left circle at 11:58 of the second period after a Tampa Bay power play expired. The Lightning had the puck in the offensive zone for the entire power play and an additional 13 seconds before Stamkos scored, a sequence that he felt turned the game in their favor.
"Oh, it was obviously a great power play for us," Stamkos said. "Did everything but score. I thought that was kind of a momentum shift in the game too. I mean, it goes either way. If they kill it off, they gain some momentum."
Stamkos, who scored an empty-net goal with one second left in the third period for the 4-2 final, has nine points (five goals, four assists) during a five-game point streak.
Tyler Johnson got the Lightning within 2-1 at 5:48 of the second period when he put Ondrej Palat's pass into an open net during a 2-on-1. It was Johnson's 151st NHL goal to break a tie with Brad Richards for fifth in Lightning history.
Tyler Toffoli gave the Kings a 1-0 lead at 6:44 of the first period with a power-play goal. Alex Iafallo made it 2-0 1:18 into the second period with a slap shot from the left circle.
"I can't complain a lot about the effort," Kings coach Todd McLellan said. "We're happy with the way we started the game. Coming out of the break, I was concerned about whether we would be able to get our engine going, especially against that team, and we got it going. Didn't get it to 3 when we had some really good chances, and that probably hurt us. Good teams make you pay for mistakes, and we made some tonight, and they made us pay."
The Kings had not played since Jan. 18 because of the League-mandated five-day break and the 2020 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend.
It was also the first sporting event at Staples Center since former Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant and eight others died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, on Sunday.
Kings players wore Bryant's No. 8 and No. 24 Lakers jerseys as they arrived. Kings and Lightning players also wore shirts honoring Bryant and his daughter Gianna under their equipment, and a moment of silence was held prior to the game.
