After four straight losses, the Los Angeles Kings (29-25-18) got a much-needed win on Thursday, cruising past the Vancouver Canucks (21-42-8) 4-0. LA dominated Vancouver wire-to-wire from opening tap, outshooting the home team 32-12 in the first 40 minutes of regulation.
Los Angeles won 72.2 % of its faceoffs while Vancouver won just 27.8 %. The Kings also scored on a power-play goal tonight, going 1/2, and held the Canucks 0/2.
After opening the first two minutes of the first period with a deflected shot by Scott Laughton that went inside the net, Los Angeles never looked back, outplaying the Canucks on both sides of the floor to bounce back and get closer to the playoff picture.
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The game started fast with the Kings aggressive on offense, outshooting the Canucks 15-7 in the first period. Los Angeles would once again score the very early goal in the opening frame to hold onto a 1-0 lead.
The defense was great early on, despite Vancouver getting solid looks. Darcy Kuemper was great under the crease tonight, stopping all of the Canucks 19 shots that came at him.
In the second period, the Kings jumped out to a 3-0 lead, first scoring a goal two minutes into the period after Trevor Moore recovered Mikey Anderson’s shot that was deflected on the way through.
It was another dominant period for Los Angeles, holding Vancouver to another single-digit shot period and outshooting their opponent 17-5, dominating on both offense and defense.
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The next 17 minutes would be quiet, until the Kings won the faceoff and Artemi Panarin converted on the power play to give Los Angeles a commanding 3-0 lead on the 2-on-1 rush with 39 seconds left in the period.
Panarin finished the game with one goal and one point, bouncing back after putting up zeroes in the last game against the Calgary Flames.
It was the 30th time this season that Vancouver allowed multiple goals in the second period.
The final period was pretty much the same; Los Angeles held Vancouver scoreless for the remainder of the final frame, and the Kings scored in the last two minutes on an empty net goal to win the game.
This was a dominating game for the Kings, but let’s not overreact. It was against the Canucks, who are the worst team in the NHL, so Los Angeles won a game that they were supposed to get.
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It’s a good way, though, to bounce back against a struggling team and get back in the win column. Los Angeles now has 76 points and is one point behind Nashville for the final playoff spot and three points behind Vegas for the third seed in the Pacific Division.
Artemi Panarin was great, even though he finished with just one point and one goal; it’s his fourth goal in the last five games and his 18th point in 16 games since being a King.
Quinton Byfield once again had a good game, coming around at the right time of the season, tallying one goal, one assist, and two points. Los Angeles is tough to beat whenever Byfield plays well.
Trevor Moore also had a great game, finishing with one goal, one assist, and two points, his second consecutive game with an assist and a point.
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Darcy Kuemper was great tonight, defending the net, saving all 19 of the Canucks shots to earn his third shutout of the season.
The Kings will begin their crucial seven-game home stand Saturday, hosting the Utah Mammoth at 6:00 PM PT.
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