Once again the Los Angeles Kings avoided dropping three straight games in regulation, something they have been able to do all season long. Bouncing back continues to be a relatively common theme with this group and after a disappointing loss to one of the worst teams in the league in the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Kings responded with a 2-1 win over the defending Cup champs.
With goal scoring being scarce and the Kings dropping four of their last five before last night, a loss against the Florida Panthers would have solidified this stretch as a slump; another thing the Kings have yet to endure fully.
Getting Back to the Basics
Getting back to the “meat and potatoes” of it all is what captain Anze Kopitar said following the 5-1 loss to the Penguins. Throwing pucks to the net and getting bodies in front was his message to reporters when asked how the Kings were going to try to get out of their scoring slump.
While this group is still having difficulty executing on many of their opportunities, the ones that did find the back of the net were exactly how Kopitar said they would come. All it took was simplifying it a bit and getting back to the basics. Not to mention how little time and space is available when playing the Panthers, a team that also prides themselves on their defensive strengths and structure.
“It’s really the recipe most nights. When you’re playing the defending Stanley Cup champion I mean what else was out there […] they know how to play, they won the Cup, and they make it hard on you so that’s all you’re going to get,” said head coach Jim Hiller.
Good things happen when you go to the net and boy did a good thing happen for Kings rookie Samuel Helenius when he followed the puck to the net and deposited the secondhand opportunity into the empty cage. In his 25th NHL game, Helenius scored his first NHL goal. Not expected to contribute to the offensive production, Helenius potted a crucial goal tying that game up at one six minutes into the third period.
“Of course, the first one is like a dream come true for me, and I’m so excited and let’s keep it going,” said Helenius postgame.
Kempe Putting the Offense on His Back
The Kings are having trouble scoring goals but that hasn’t stopped Adrian Kempe from finding the back of the net – and consistently too. It’s during times like these when a player like Kempe shows just how important he is to this team.
Let’s just go through how consistent and how much of the offense Kempe has carried over the last little while. First of all, he leads the entire team in goals with 24. Over the past 10 games, he has scored eight goals and is currently riding a four-game goal streak. Just with that information, it’s a no-brainer that he is the heart and soul of the Kings’ offense, but here’s where it gets even better. Over the past eight games, the Kings as a whole have scored 15 goals. Minus that outlier game against the Canucks and that number drops to 10. Out of those 10 goals, Kempe has scored five of them. One player has been responsible for 50% of the Kings’ goal-scoring over a stretch where they have rarely been able to find the back of the net.
As if Kempe needed to go out and do anything else to show just exactly what he means to this team, but this is exactly what great players do and during a time where his team is struggling, he has been able to help pick up some of the slack.
It was his deflection in front of the net off of a Kevin Fiala shot from the point that gave the Kings the all-important 2-1 lead with about seven minutes remaining in regulation, which ended up being enough.
“Juice is a guy who scores goals […] he scores our nicest goals and also knows where you have to score to get the greasy one,” said Hiller.
Best 3rd Period Team in the League?
It might be time to classify the Kings as the best third-period team in the league. It was the fourth time this season that they were able to come back in the third period and win when trailing after the second.
After letting the Panthers have their way with them in the second (like most teams do) and opening the scoring on the power play, the Kings flipped the script in the third and didn’t let their foot off the gas. It’s something that’s expected at this point and when the game is within reach during the final frame, you know the Kings are about to take full control and empty the tank in an attempt to collect the two points.
Related: Kings’ Youth Blossom Alongside Kopitar and Kempe
The Kings registered 14 shots on goal in the third period, the same amount they registered in the first two periods combined. It wasn’t until the Panthers pulled their goalie late that they got their first real scoring chance of the period. The Kings led in scoring chances 13-9 and high-danger scoring chances 9-4. Once again, they were determined to come out successful in the third period because when there’s a will there’s a way, and that will is never higher for the Kings than it is in the third period.
“It was a big third, I mean one down we didn’t have much, you know they didn’t give us much. We kept grinding, shooting pucks to the net, had a guy in front all the time, it felt like we tried and I think we deserve it,” said Fiala.
After two quick games at home, the Kings now head back on the road again for another five games. A tough eastern road trip featuring some of the top teams in the East, including a rematch against the Panthers, is right around the corner, and it all starts in Columbus on Saturday (Jan. 25).
