The Los Angeles Kings (27-23-15) bounce back, defeating the New York Islanders (37-24-5) 3-2, for the second time this season to complete the season series sweep.
Los Angeles scored three times on its first nine shots and never trailed, building a cushion that proved crucial when the Islanders mounted a push in the final two periods.
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Anze Kopitar also made history for the Kings’ victory today, officially surpassing Marcel Dionne for the most road points in LA Kings history with 608 points. After the game, the Islanders showed their respect by shaking his hand before leaving the ice.
Los Angeles now has 69 points and is in sole possession of moving into the fourth seed in the Pacific Division if Seattle and San Jose lose.
Hot Start
The game began with the Kings scoring three goals in the first period, with Trevor Moore opening the scoring with an unassisted goal at 16:27, capitalizing on the fastbreak possession after blocking the shot on the other side of the ice.
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Just under 10 minutes later, Anze Kopitar doubled the score, giving Los Angeles a 2-0 lead after burying the rebound shot from Mikey Anderson, moving him into history.
Los Angeles kept the pressure going after forcing a turnover on the Islanders. The Kings got a 2-on-2 breakaway led by Artemi Panarin, who delivered a slick feed to Adrian Kempe driving the net. Kempe finished the play with an incredible one-handed tip shot past Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin to extend the lead to 3–0.
Late Push
The Kings’ defense was once again impressive early on, holding the Islanders to just four shots in the period, outshooting them 10-4 in the opening frame. But, despite the early dominance, Los Angeles would go quiet on the offensive side, giving New York time to claw its way back into the game.
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Emil Heineman got the Islanders on board midway through the second period after a deflection shot that went past Darcy Kuemper’s glove and in, to cut the lead to 3-1.
The rest of the period would end with the Kings scoreless, but we’re playing great defense, blocking shots, and forcing a lot of missed shots for the Islanders. The Kings had an impressive 23 blocked shots, constantly putting pressure on the Islanders whenever they tried to get a shot up.
Despite that, New York carried its one-goal momentum into the third period with Heineman once again scoring his second goal of the game to make it a one-goal game, setting up a tense finish in New York.
New York tried to get back in this game late, even had a chance with just three seconds remaining when they got in the face-off, but failed to get a shot up, and Los Angeles held on to the late push by the Islanders.
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Key Stats
Darcy Kuemper had another solid game, finishing with 21 saves on 23 shots, once again looking healthy and comfortable at the right time of the season.
Los Angeles finished with 27 shots while killing off all three Islanders’ power plays in a disciplined defensive effort.
Huge win for the Kings today, now they are in the playoff picture for the first time in over a month and can move up in the standings with a win tomorrow, and if the teams above them lose.
The Lakers will continue their road trip tomorrow, where they play the New Jersey Devils at 4:00 PM PT
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