Los Angeles Kings Blanked 5-0 by Washington Capitals in D.C.
Well it was fun while it lasted. The Los Angeles Kings had their 5 game winning streak snapped by the best team in hockey, losing in DC to the Washington Capitals 5-0.
Washington extended their league-leading points total to 78 with this win, and have now won 9 straight games at home.
Scratches for the Kings were Andy Andreoff and Paul Ladue. The only scratch for the Capitals was Taylor Chorney.
Alex Ovechkin was honored in a pre-game ceremony by the team for eclipsing the 1,000 point mark, all in a Washington jersey.
The starting goaltenders were Peter Budaj for the Kings and Philipp Grubauer for the Caps. Budaj entered this game with a streak of 7 consecutive periods without allowing a goal.
As for Grubauer, he came this game undefeated at home this year, and that streak continued. Unfortunately for Budaj, his streak ended early on in this game.
The Caps jumped out to a lead at 3:16 into the 1st period with a goal from Lars Eller, which was generated by a Brett Connolly takeaway in the offensive zone. Connelly did a great job getting the puck to Eller, who was all alone in front of the net.
At 8:45, the Kings got a chance to equalize on the power play when Daniel Winnik got called for interference of Budaj. The Kings didn’t get a shot on net during that man advantage.
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The Kings were called for interference themselves at 13:32 when Nic Dowd made contact with Nicklas Backstrom. The Caps got 1 shot on goal during that power play, but couldn’t score.
Marcus Johansson lit the lamp at 18:12 on a nice centering pass from Evgeny Kuznetsov. Brooks Orpik got the other assist.
The Kings went to the locker room during the 1st intermission with a bit of a deficit to overcome if they wanted to continue their winning streak.
The 2nd period began with Alec Martinez being called for hooking Ovechkin at 1:02. The Caps got 1 shot on Budaj during the power play, but the penalty was killed off.
The Caps made it two periods in a row getting a goal within the first 4 minutes, when a 2-on-0 resulted in a goal from Connolly on assists from Karl Alzner and Tom Wilson.
At 9:43, T.J. Oshie was sent to the box for cross checking Jake Muzzin. The Kings got 1 shot on goal, but remained scoreless.
The Caps continued to control the period. At 13:33, Oshie was delivered a great pass from behind the net by Backstrom, and he proceeded bury it top-shelf near-post. He even exploded the water bottle on top of the net in the process. Ovechkin got the other assist.
The Kings outshot the Capitals 15-6 in the 2nd period, but they still found themselves in a huge hole with just a period remaining.
Jeff Zatkoff replaced Budaj in net at the beginning of the 3rd period. Budaj had made just 11 saves on 15 shots he faced.
Dmitry Orlov was whistled for interference of Marian Gaborik at 7:10 into the 3rd period. Grubauer saved the 1 shot against him during the power play to maintain his shutout.
In a game filled with uncharacteristic defensive lapses by Los Angeles, former Kings Conn Smythe winner Justin Williams found himself completely alone in front of the net off a faceoff, and he put the Caps up 5-0 at 16:38 on an assist from Johansson.
Grubauer completed his shutout, saving all 38 shots against him. It was his 3rd shutout of the season in his 13th start.
The Kings outshot the Caps 38-20, which makes the blanking all the more frustrating. Neither team scored on their power play chances. Los Angeles went 0 of 4, while Washington went 0 of 2.
Next: Los Angeles Kings Win in OT 1-0 Against Philadelphia Flyers
The Kings will now head south to play the Tampa Bay Lightning on February 7. The Capitals will stay in DC and play the Carolina Hurricanes on February 7.