During this week, the Los Angeles Kings had a busy campaign playing against their division rivals. On Thursday, Oct. 24, the Kings finally opened their home opener against the San Jose Sharks, after they started the regular season on the road for several weeks. Here is how their week went down against the three different teams.
Game One — Kings at Vegas | 10/22
The Las Vegas Golden Knights ended up winning this game with a score of 6-1. There was not much action for the Kings, as the home team primarily dominated the game. Offensive-zone presence was lacking for the Kings. David Rittich and Ilya Samsonov started in their respective nets.
1st Period
In the first period, Tomas Hertl would score on the power play and open the scoring with Mark Stone’s primary assist. Minutes later, at 13:51, the Golden Knights had another power play opportunity and capitalized on it, as Stone would score the second goal. The scoring was not over in this period, though, as Pavel Dorofeyev would net a third goal to give his team a three-goal lead.
2nd Period
The home team’s scoring drought would end during the following 20-minute segment, as Warren Foegele of the Kings would open the scoring for his team—making it 1–3 before the buzzer.
3rd Period
After the Kings witnessed a scoring episode, the Golden Knights prevented any further scoring from occurring by their division rivals, as they scored three more goals to extend their already substantial lead. At about the 3:00 mark, Alexander Holtz would score, making it 4-1. Minutes later, Tomas Hertl scored from a wrister, securing a four-goal lead for his team and effectively eliminating the Kings’ realistic odds of tying or winning the game. At 13:25, Ivan Barbashev would officially conclude his team’s scoring by making it 6-1.
The Kings really struggled with their d-zone coverage, not only from the defenders but also from Rittich. Passes from the Golden Knights were connecting when it could’ve been blocked or ceased; rebounds turned into quality goals. Vegas simply outplayed them.
Game Two — Sharks vs. Kings — 2024 home opener | 10/24
After spending the first few weeks on the road to start the regular season, the Kings finally commented their home opener at Crypto Bank Arena as they hosted the state neighbours, the San Jose Sharks. Mackenzie Blackwood and David Rittich would start in net for their respective teams.
1st Period
At 4:31, Jordan Spence opened the scoring from the right-wing circle, grabbing his first goal of the season. Trevor Moore earned the primary assist. Later on, Warren Foegele gave the Kings a 2-0 lead. By the midpoint of the first period, the Sharks trailed in shots on goal as the home team dominated them. Minutes later, Foegele scored his second goal of the night, making it 3-0, as the Sharks remained scoreless.
Shots on goal: 8, SJS; 16, LAK
2nd Period
At 10:05, after half a period of no scoring, the Sharks would finally find their luck with a goal, as Mikael Granlund sniped the puck short side above the shoulder of Rittich. For the Kings, they could not find luck in sneaking a goal past Blackwood. So after forty, the score remained 3-1.
3rd Period
The Sharks had buckled down and pressured more, controlling the momentum during this period. Throughout the period, the Kings did not score at all, but shot six shots on Blackwood. A minute left in regulation, Granlund grabbed his second of the night and made it 2-3. This would do it for the Kings’ home opener, hoisting a win from this week.
Total shots on goal: 26, SJS; 30, LAK
Three Stars of The Game
1st: Warren Foegele (2G)
2nd: Alex Laferriere (2A)
3rd: Jordan Spence (1G)
Game Three — Utah Hockey Club vs. Kings | 10/26
The Kings completed their final game of the week at home on Oct. 26 against the Utah team. Darcy Kuemper and Connor Ingram got the starts in goal for their respective nets.
1st Period
For the final game of the week at Crypto Bank Arena, both teams wouldn’t score in the first 20 minutes of hockey. Thus, the first period concluded scoreless, with much momentum rolling into the second frame.
2nd Period
Brandt Clarke would open up scoring with a power play goal at 8:07 from a hard blue line wrister. Joel Edmundson would score off a two-part rebound in a close-to-crease situation. Kempe originally shot from the left-wing slot near the blue line, then Byfield attempted to push the puck in around Ingram’s paint, but ultimately Edmundson intercepted the play to score from an open net opportunity. Minutes later, the Kings took a cross-checking penalty and sent the Utah team to the PP, where they would capitalize on it by their captain, Clayton Keller.
3rd Period
Starting off the final frame of action, Edmundson netted his second goal of the night at 1:09 from a slapper on Ingrams net — adding some insurance over the Utah club. Then minutes after, Logan Cooley would tip it in net front from Micheal Kesselring’s original short-side shot to make it 2-3. With breathing room, the Utah Hockey Club had enough time to tie it. But they couldn’t, as the Kings buckled down and made necessary blocks and backchecks to keep the game score in their favor.
Ultimately, it would pay off. Holding their ice, the Kings took game three of the week and game two on home turf at a final score of 3-2 over Utah.
Three Stars of The Game
1. Joel Edmundson (2G)
2. Brandt Clarke (1G/1A)
3. Adrian Kempe (2A)
The LA Kings will start next week at San Jose (Oct. 29), and return back home at Crypto Bank Arena the following day against the Golden Knights.
ITR 44: We Have A Champion…Again – Inside The Rink
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