Detroit Red Wings' Tomas Holmstrom (96), of Sweden, attempts to squeeze the puck past Los Angeles Kings' Tom Preissing (42) and goalie Jason LaBarbera (35) during the first period of an NHL hockey hockey game, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Gus Ruelas)

LOS ANGELES (AP) -Chris Osgood made 27 saves in his third shutout of the season, and Detroit got goals from Tomas Holmstrom, Mikael Samuelsson and Johan Franzen to beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-0 on Tuesday night.

In a matchup of NHL's best and worst teams, the Red Wings improved to 36-10-4 for 76 points. It was the fourth shutout loss by the Kings, who have 40 points and have won only one of the last 18 meetings with Detroit.

Osgood, who will play in his fourth All-Star game on Sunday, shaved his league-leading goals-against average down to 1.87 with his 46th career shutout. The victory was his 356th, edging him past former Kings goaltender Rogie Vachon for 15th place all-time.

The Red Wings played without leading scorer Henrik Zetterberg, whose sore back also will keep him out of Wednesday night's game at Anaheim and next Sunday's All-Star Game in Atlanta. Defenseman Chris Chelios, who became the second-oldest player to appear in an NHL game on Jan. 8, was rested three days shy of his 46th birthday. He usually doesn't play on back-to-back nights, and wasn't about to miss Wednesday night's showdown with the defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks.

The Red Wings came in averaging a league-high 34.7 shots on net, 11 more per game than their opponents. They were outshot 7-0 by the Kings over the first six minutes, but scored on their second shot of the game to take the lead at 6:57 of the opening period.

Holmstrom, who turns 35 Wednesday, beat Jason LaBarbera to the glove side with a 15-foot wrist shot for his 19th goal after Pavel Datsyuk threw a cross-ice pass into the slot.

Matt Ellis, inserted into the lineup because of Zetterberg's injury, set up Detroit's second goal at 14:47 of the second period. He worked the puck away from Derek Armstrong at the Detroit blue line and fed it ahead to Samuelsson, who beat LaBarbara high to the glove side with a 25-foot wrist shot from the right circle for his eighth of the season.

Samuelsson, who missed Monday's practice because of flu-like symptoms, set up Franzen's ninth goal with 17:05 remaining. He took a shot that went wide of the net, but Franzen played the carom off the end boards and stuffed the puck inside the right post while LaBarbera and defenseman Brad Stuart were trying to smother it in the crease.

Notes: This was the first meeting between the teams since Chelios' told a Detroit radio station last week the following about Kings captain Rob Blake: "He's in a situation there where there's just no light at the end of the tunnel and he's lost his drive right now. I've been there. I talked to him last time we played him, and he would love to come here." ... Zetterberg pulled out of the All-Star game for the second straight season. He missed it last year because of pain in his wrist. ... Lidstrom's assist on Holmstrom's goal was his 45th point, the most among defensemen. Teammate Brian Rafalski, who assisted on Franzen's goal, is second on that list with 42. ... The Kings will host Anaheim Thursday night in their final game before the All-Star break, then go on an eight-game road trip that includes a stop in Detroit - where Los Angeles hasn't won since Feb. 18, 2000.