The 2024-25 season is about three weeks old and finally the Los Angeles Kings had a chance to play in front of their fans. They opened the season with seven straight road games and entered this game with a 3-2-2 record.
The good news was that the Los Angeles Kings won against the San Jose Sharks by a final score of 3-2. It was great to see them secure the two points, but the team will need to address plenty of concerns after this game. These are some key highlights and notes from Thursday night's game.
Los Angeles Kings finally get off to a fast start
One of the biggest issues for the Kings this season has been the fact that they get off to a slow start or at the very least can't build a lead that puts pressure on the opposing team. That wasn't the case on Thursday night as for the first time this season they would score three goals in the opening period, and only the second time with more than one.
The first goal would come from Jordan Spence less than five minutes into this game as Trevor Moore was able to drop the puck back to the defenseman who did a great job pushing into the offensive zone. After that it would be all Warren Foegele as he would score the next two goals for the Kings, both off assists by Alex Laferriere.
SECOND FOEGOAL IN LA pic.twitter.com/3o7u2g323W
— LA Kings (@LAKings) October 25, 2024
Once again the line of Warren Foegele-Alex Turcotte-Alex Laferriere continues to be a consistent bright spot for the Kings team. These three were clearly the difference in this game against the Sharks.
Penalties once again are a problem for the Kings
For most of the season, penalties have been an issue for the Los Angeles Kings but it appeared to be getting better as of late. However, that wasn't the case against the San Jose Sharks as they would be called for eight penalties and the Sharks would have six power plays.
The Sharks were able to capitalize on the man advantage, and was a big reason why they were able to come back in this game, as both goals were scored on the power play. Both goals would be scored by Mikael Granlund with one in the second and then one very late in the third period.
Los Angeles Kings need to get better about playing with a lead
This is also something that is becoming a bit of a trend because there has been a few instances that the Kings have found themselves up with a multiple goal lead and let the other team get back into it. On Thursday night, the Kings would score three in the first period but struggle to get much else from that point forward, which partially was due to the amount of penalties they were taking.
The penalty by Kevin Fiala in the closing minutes almost proved to be disastrous because Granlund would score and make it a one-goal game. The Kings can't afford to have things like this happen, especially against teams who are unlikely to be competing for playoff spots like the Sharks.
Another example was earlier this year against the Ottawa Senators, when they had a two goal lead twice during the second period. The Senators would get back into the game and cut those leads and ultimately win it in overtime.
There has been times that the Kings have shown they can get leads and hold leads, like the game against the Canadiens, but these examples are not the norm currently.