Everything seemed to start unraveling even before the game began.
Saturday night in Calgary was likely a game coach Jim Hiller would like his team to forget.
The Flames defeated the visiting Kings in convincing fashion, handing them their second straight defeat on the road.
Even more troubling, LA surrendered four power play goals in those two games. The Kings took a whopping six minor penalties on Saturday, as well. For a team who has relied so much on the penalty kill for their success this season, having the PK numbers slip is not a recipe for success.
What’s equally concerning is the Kings only have one goal at even-strength over their past six periods of play, a goal that came off the stick of Arthur Kaliyev in the third period at Edmonton.
One encouraging sign that could be taken from the otherwise deflating loss is the team continues to cash in when they have a man advantage, largely aided by the return of Viktor Arvidsson. A pair of power play goals from Adrian Kempe and Anže Kopitar stood as the lone tallies for LA in Calgary. LA will now look to carry that offensive momentum over to even-strength.
Stat Sheet Takeaways: Through 40 minutes of action on Saturday, the Kings mustered a season-low nine shots on goal (that is not a typo). A stifled offense has been LA’s achilles heel of late, and it showed again against Calgary. Winnipeg is a strong defensive team as well, and they’ll provide a tough test for LA on Monday.
Calgary Woes: Much like their trips to Buffalo in recent years, the Scotiabank Saddledome hasn’t been kind to the Kings; they are 2-6-0 in their last eight trips there. Despite the fact LA has put together a strong record against most Pacific Division opponents in recent years, Calgary continues to be a team they’ve struggled with, especially on the road. These two teams will meet up once more, coming during the final week of the season in Los Angeles.
Notable Call-Up: With Phil Danault sitting out Saturday night’s contest due to injury, Mayor’s Manor is reporting Akil Thomas will be an emergency recall prior to the game against Winnipeg on Monday. It’ll be a huge opportunity for the 2018 second-round pick – he sits second on the Ontario Reign in goals and has yet to make his NHL debut.
With Danault out, Kempe wore an ‘A’ on his jersey for the first time in his career.
Some College Hockey Talk: On Saturday, Kings prospects Jack Hughes and Jared Wright advanced to the NCAA Frozen Four for Boston University and Denver, respectively. The two will meet up in the National Semifinal on Thursday, April 11th.
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