RALEIGH, N.C. -- Justin Faulk's breakout 2014-15 All-Star season was just that -- one season. Skeptics wondered if the Carolina defenseman was the real deal heading into his fifth NHL season.

The whispers have quickly disappeared after 20 games.

Faulk scored two power-play goals -- his NHL-leading seventh and eighth with the man-advantage -- as the Hurricanes avoided a disastrous homestand with a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday afternoon.

Faulk's two goals extended his point streak to five games with a team-leading 15 points coming off a year in which he scored 15 goals and 49 points. He now has 23 goals in his last 92 games, some pretty heady numbers for a defenseman.

"I'm just trying to do the same thing every time; create some momentum, create some chances and hope for the best," said Faulk, who has eight of the team's 10 power-play goals.

First-year Carolina teammate Kris Versteeg, who played with some of the top offensive defenseman in the league during his time with Chicago, put it more bluntly.

"He pretty much is the power play," Versteeg said. "When he's shooting it we know he's dangerous. Teams are going to have to start keying on a guy like that so it's going to open up other players on the ice.

"He just shoots it so hard and he's a smart player," added Versteeg. "There are some guys who shoot the puck hard but after a few years it's tough to keep getting it though because they don't think the game as well as Justin."

Carolina came into the game 0-1-3 at PNC Arena over the last 10 days, but was able to jump out to a three-goal lead early in the second period, chasing starting goalie Jonathan Quick after two periods and improving to 6-2-2 at home against the Kings.

"I like the way we're going," Hurricanes coach Bill Peters said. "We're quarter of the way through the season and I like our group. We're done with them for the year; would love to play them again because we both know what that means. We need to be hungry for points and it was nice to score some goals."

The Kings had been rolling on the road but have now dropped two straight.

"They scored four goals on 20 shots," Kings coach Darryl Sutter said of his goalie change. "That's not good enough."

Los Angeles center Anze Kopitar pulled the Kings within one goal midway through the third with a power-play goal, but the Hurricanes were able to hold off the Kings despite spending the final 18.4 seconds shorthanded.

Carolina, which entered the game in last place in the Eastern Conference, scored four or more goals for just the second time this season and first since beating Detroit 5-3 on Oct. 16. It was also the first game Carolina scored two power-play goals.

Faulk, who now leads the team with eight goals -- all on the power play -- scored his seventh man-advantage goal, and left winger Jeff Skinner broke out of a scoring drought in the second period as the struggling Hurricanes jumped out to a 3-0 lead before the Kings made it interesting.

"There are probably four or five guys in the league that guys don't quite find the shooting lane on because it hurts (to block the shot) and he's in that group," Peters said of Faulk. "Sometimes the guys just miss that lane, I don't know why or how. He has a quick release, guys are putting it on good spots for him and keep shooting it."

The Hurricanes scored just their seventh first-period goal in 20 games 4:31 into the game when rookie defenseman Brett Pesce, playing in his 13th game, beat Quick from inside the blue line with a fluttering puck that eluded the goalie's glove for his first NHL goal.

Later in the period, Carolina registered its first fighting major of the season when center Brad Malone took exception to a hit on left winger Nathan Gerbe by Los Angeles left winger Kyle Clifford. Gerbe was helped off the ice, unable to place any weight on his right leg and did not return. Peters had no immediate update on Gerbe following the game.

Then, within a 2 1/2 minute stretch early in the second, Skinner banked one in off the blocker of Quick from behind the goal line for his first point in six games, and Faulk blasted yet another man-advantage goal past an opposing goalie, this time during a 5-on-3 scenario.

The Pacific Division-leading Kings didn't fold, though, scoring twice within a 58-second span later in the period. Right winger Dustin Brown scored his second of the season when he was awarded a penalty shot after Carolina defenseman Noah Hanifin closed his hand on the puck in the crease. A turnover less than a minute later on an attempted clearing pass gave Kopitar a clear shot at goaltender Cam Ward for his sixth of the season, cutting the margin to 3-2.

However, Faulk was able to strike again with 2:14 left in the second when his shot from the right point trickled off Quick, into the goal crease and then off Los Angeles defenseman Alex Martinez.

NOTES: Carolina C Victor Rask played in his 100th game. ... Kings G Jonathan Quick beat the Hurricanes 3-0 a month ago and came into the game with a 1.38 goals-against average in five career appearances against Carolina. ... The Hurricanes started six American-born defensemen for the first time in franchise history in a Friday night shootout loss to Toronto and again against the Kings. ... Carolina D Ryan Murphy missed his third straight game with a concussion. ... The Kings are second in the NHL on the penalty kill and the Hurricanes last on the power play. ... Los Angeles D Drew Doughty has logged at least 23 minutes in all 20 games this season. ... The Kings are three games into a stretch in which they play 14 of 19 road games.