Thursday night in Edmonton, the Kings battled hard at Rogers Place before ultimately felling to the Oilers by a score of 6-4, officially bringing their season to a close.
LA jumped out to a 1-0 lead thanks to a breakaway goal from Quinton Byfield, but the home team quickly responded — keeping their fans into the action. However, young defenseman Brandt Clarke wasted no time getting the goal lead back for coach Jim Hiller, only to be tied again within mere minutes. Edmonton later capitalized on the power play to hold a 3-2 lead heading into first intermission.
A strong second-period push from Los Angeles opened up the middle frame, but Edmonton exploited defensive gaps with two quick goals to extend their lead to 5-2. Another Kings defenseman, Jordan Spence, scored a late goal to give the Kings a glimpse of hope heading to the second intermission.
Edmonton all but locked things down throughout the final period of regulation. Kings captain Anze Kopitar scored in the final minute of play, but it just wasn’t enough. The Oilers sealed a 6-4 win with an empty-net goal, taking the series 4-2.
Looking back over the Oilers four wins will likely lead to many people thinking “what if…” In the end, though, LA often struggled to control the pace of play when leading. They were undone by key mental mistakes, many of which appeared to stem from possible fatigue after relying heavily on just three forward lines and four defensemen.
Following a first-round playoff exit for the fourth straight year, the Kings will now need to quickly reassess what they have, what they need, and what adjustments are possible over the summer. Coming off a 105-point regular season gives them something to build upon. There has been progress from a year ago. Still, important decisions loom regarding how to shape a stronger roster for next year, in hopes of getting over the hump.
September’s training camp will be here pretty quickly.
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