Kings edge Sabres despite COVID-related absenses

LOS ANGELES – The Kings showed resilience connected Sunday arsenic they rallied to topple the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 astatine Staples Center, contempt a last-second improvement that near them without 2 players.

The Kings scored 3 consecutive goals to triumph consecutive games for the archetypal clip this season, having beaten Montreal connected Saturday. Mere minutes earlier the game, winger Viktor Arvidsson and guardant Gabe Vilardi were scratched owed to their placement connected the COVID protocol-related lack list.

Wingers Carl Grundstrom and Alex Iafallo scored goals for the Kings. Center Anze Kopitar had a extremity and an assistance for his 2nd consecutive multi-point crippled and his 4th of the season. Goalie Jonathan Quick made 22 saves for the win.

Center Rasmus Asplund and winger Victor Olofsson scored for Buffalo. Backup goalie Dustin Tokarski stopped 31 shots.

After storming the nett aggregate times successful the 3rd period, it was immoderate persistent play from halfway Phillip Danault that created momentum that led to the game-winning goal. Danault established possession disconnected a dump-in and past kept the accidental alive. Defenseman Tobias Bjornfot ended up with the puck successful the precocious slot, wherever helium sent a seam walk for Iafallo’s go-ahead extremity with 6:19 to play.

Nearing the four-minute people of the 3rd period, halfway Blake Lizotte dangled done postulation to trial Tokarski, forcing him to marque a sprawling prevention and drafting a hooking punishment connected defenseman Colin Miller.

The Kings scored the equalizer disconnected the ensuing faceoff and powerfulness play. Kopitar won the gully and, 3 passes later, rifled a wrist changeable from the apical of the near ellipse past Tokarski.

After a archetypal play that was comparatively adjacent and mostly uneventful, the 2nd play burgeoned with action, seeing an aboriginal extremity and past 2 much successful a one-minute span.

The Kings applied unit aboriginal successful the second. They went to the powerfulness play 90 seconds into the frame, aft winger Arthur Kaliyev was taken down successful beforehand of the nett by halfway Zimgus Girgensons.

Though their power-play buoyed their triumph with 3 goals connected Saturday, it enactment them down a extremity connected Sunday. Seconds aft a Dustin Brown deflection from the doorstep went wide, a rolling puck handcuffed Kaliyev and past defenseman Kale Clague astatine the bluish line. That created an inopportune turnover that allowed  Asplund to go  the different mode and people a shorthanded breakaway extremity conscionable implicit 3 minutes into the stanza.

Buffalo stretched its pb astatine the 7:39 people aft guardant Adrian Kempe’s changeable was blocked precocious successful the zone, sending the Kings scrambling the Sabres connected a unreserved that ended up being a 2-0. Olofsson kept the puck and fired it past Quick for his team-leading 5th extremity of the season.

But the Kings did not retract, archetypal generating a partial breakaway for Kopitar, who missed the net, and past halving their shortage by taking their skills from hallway shot games to the ice.

Kopitar kicked the puck to himself earlier helium alertly sent it up for Grundstrom, who settled it with his ft arsenic well. Grundstrom danced astir a defender astatine the bluish line, drove the nett hard for a near-side backhand effort and past finished with a forehand extremity disconnected his rebound to the acold side.

The Kings had astir scored shorthanded aft immoderate dogged defence gave them a two-on-one rush, but Kempe’s changeable was thwarted by a lunging prevention from Tokarski.

Not to beryllium outdone, with nether 5 minutes near successful the period, Quick made 2 challenging saves successful accelerated succession and past a 3rd specified instants later.

Further firing up the Kings was winger Brendan Lemieux, who responded to a cheque from guardant Dylan Cozens by dropping his gloves and past dropping Cozens to the ice. It was Lemieux’s 2nd warring large successful 3 games played this season. He besides rocked Vegas guardant Keegan Kolesar with a dense right-hand stroke successful the play opener.