Throughout the five-game road trip, the Los Angeles Kings have had trouble putting the puck in the net, despite the fast starts and chances generated. The lack of finishing and execution on scoring chances and being met with some hot goaltending resulted in two losses in a row in which the Kings only tallied one goal total.
The Kings have yet to lose three games in a row in regulation this season, and their offensive surge in Vancouver last night kept that stat alive as they took down the Canucks with ease, 5-1.
Kings Capitalize on Fast Start
You kind of knew a game where the Kings rack up a bunch of goals was coming eventually considering the tough luck they have had scoring over the course of this road trip, especially coming off a game in which they were shut out. They have been itching for goals and it’s frustrating when you are doing everything you can to create those chances but they just aren’t falling for you.
Even though a few goals and an energetic start were expected from the Kings, the same was expected of the Canucks, who just suffered a 6-1 beatdown courtesy of the Winnipeg Jets. A bounce-back game was needed from both sides but only one looked like they wanted it. While there were definitely times when the Canucks had their legs and were finding their looks, a majority of the game saw a disengaged, uninterested group plus Quinn Hughes, the only player who looked fully invested.
For the third game in a row, the Kings had a terrific start, generating quality looks right out of the gates. Less than a minute into the game, the Kings were on the board, scoring on their first shot. They then went on to collect goals two and three all before 10 minutes had passed in the first period.
“We hadn’t scored much the first three games (of the road trip) but it wasn’t like we weren’t getting chances […] nice to see the puck go in, I mean we got a little lucky at the start but you’ll take them, it kind of balances itself out,” said head coach Jim Hiller.
The floodgates had opened with the Kings scoring three goals on four shots in half a period and that was all Canucks fans had to see before expressing their displeasure with boos raining down throughout Rogers Arena.
The Kings are used to having to grind out games until the last minute. They generate just enough offense to win on most nights and rely on their defensive structure to close out games. You give a team that has been comfortable holding down a one-goal lead plenty of breathing room in the first period, and it’s going to be very hard to try and get through that.
There was no need to let up defensively to try and push for a game-tying or game-winning goal in the third period like this team has needed a lot of in the past. That allowed them to be in tip-top shape defensively until the last buzzer and there was never even a scare that the Canucks were going to pull off a comeback.
“Great start, obviously last two games we haven’t scored as much, especially last game we didn’t score at all, so we wanted to get the first one, you know had a good jump, we did it, we kept going and going so we had a great 60 minutes,” said forward Kevin Fiala.
Turcotte Collects First Career 3 Point Night
The biggest surprise of the season continues to get better and better each game. Alex Turcotte has made the kind of impact no one thought he would and he’s thriving on that first line alongside Adrian Kempe and Anze Kopitar.
“He’s been really good for us […] we didn’t expect to see him playing as much as he is and playing as well as he is and the thing I like about him is he’s very responsible, plays both ways, goes through the neutral zone, d zone blocks shots, you know so it’s really a credit to him,” said Hiller.
It was all Turcotte to start this game and propel the Kings to a very early 3-0 lead. He collected his sixth goal of the season less than a minute in on a 2-on-1 with Kempe who fed him perfectly right in front of the net. Turcotte’s second of the night came because he was in the right place at the right time. Fiala worked his magic up high before he spun around and threw one toward the net. Turcotte picked up the rebound and gave the Kings a 2-0 lead.
Related: Kings Takeaways: Drop Second Straight With Shutout Loss to the Oilers
Turcotte scored the first two goals yet that wasn’t even his best play of the night let alone the period. A picture-perfect play executed seamlessly between all three of Turcotte, Kempe, and Kopitar allowed Kempe to pot his team-leading 21st of the season. A desperate swipe from Kopitar to keep the play alive, a no-look backhand pass to the slot from Turcotte, and a set of hands from Kempe to cap it all off. It was probably the silkiest play the Kings have had all season.
Two goals and an assist for Turcotte in the first 10 minutes of the game allowed for his first career three-point game. It’s taken longer for him to bloom, but the fifth overall pick in 2019 has arrived and he has found a home on the top line being a significant part of their success on both sides of the puck.
“It’s been great this year, it’s been everything I’ve dreamed of and to go through the adversity earlier in my career this definitely feels good, but you know I want to keep pushing and I’m not satisfied and I want to keep going and see where I can go from here,” said Turcotte.
Perfect Penalty Kill Plays Key Role
Sure the Kings helped themselves by getting a few goals early to build some momentum and make it hard on the Canucks to ease themselves into the game and try and get back into it, but they were also playing with fire with the amount of time they spent in the box.
The penalty kill has been great for the Kings all season long, it ranks ninth-best in the league so usually they are pretty comfortable on it not giving up a whole lot. Regardless, continuing to give a Canucks team that can throw out some pretty dangerous guys on the power play chance after chance is asking for it.
They asked for it alright but the Canucks chose to decline. The Kings gave the Canucks five power play opportunities, including three that came in between the Kings’ first goal and their second goal. Back to back to back opportunities on the power play were given to a team only down one goal but each time the Kings had no trouble killing it off. It was effortless really, the Kings not only killed all five Canuck power plays but they also only gave up one shot in total.
How often does a team that gives up 5 power play opportunities, be up 5-1 with less than 5 minutes left in the game? Kings practically begged the Canucks to keep this game interesting with the amount of time they spent in the box. #GoKingsGo #Canucks
— Raz Devraj (@razdevraj) January 17, 2025
Five power-plays are a lot and the fact that the Kings gave the Canucks that many chances to make things interesting is a problem. Luckily enough we don’t need to dive into the Kings’ penalty trouble because of how rock-solid their kill is. Giving up just one shot through five power plays is remarkable and just proves furthermore how solid this team is when it comes to keeping the puck out of their net.
“We did a really good job, our penalty kill has been pretty good for awhile […] you have to be able to make plays on the penalty kill, it’s not just the power play that makes plays, the penalty killers have to make plays, we made a bunch of them,” said Hiller.
The road trip will end on Saturday (Jan. 18) in Seattle against the Kraken for another divisional game. The Kings who are currently 2-2-0 on the trip will look to end it above .500.
