The Kings got their first home win of the season on Oct. 29, after losing their first three home games in regulation. Inconsistent offense and struggles on special teams have been a big part of that slow start. The Kings were 0-for-11 on the power play at home before Erik Haula tied the game 1-1 in the first period with the man-advantage. Then the scoring came in bunches.
On their road trip, the Kings nearly averaged five goals in their three wins, but only one goal in their two losses.
They scored four times in the second period, including a five-on-three power play goal by Artemi Panarin, giving the Kings a 5-1 lead through two periods. Ottawa came roaring back in the third, scoring four goals. Ottawa tied the game with 1:40 left in regulation, forcing overtime for the fourth time this season. Quinton Byfield scored in overtime, getting his first point since the second game of the season off a wrist shot on a pass from Drew Doughty, who had three assists. Kings defenseman Brian Dumoulin also added an assist in his 800th career NHL game.
Two days later, the offense went the other way. Buffalo scored first on the power play and led 2-0 in the second period before the Kings got on the board. Corey Perry and Andre Lee scored the Kings goals, one in the second and the other in the third. With the score tied, Tage Thompson of the Sabres scored his second goal of the game, at 13:40 to win it. Unfortunately, the swing in goals is the point. The Kings scored six goals one night and two the next, with both games decided by a single goal. When the scoring drops, they have little room for anything else to go wrong.
Against their rivals the San Jose Sharks, the Kings came out flying when Adrian Kempe scored just 1:23 into the game, which was his first goal back after he missed the previous game due to illness. The Kings continued to show their offensive advantage by going up 3-0 with Kempe scoring his second of the night, and Quinton Byfield scoring on the powerplay. The Kings quickly regained control, adding two more goals, including Kempe’s hat trick on the power play, making the score 5-1. The Kings forwards kept contributing with Joel Armia scoring and Byfield scoring his second of the night, pushed the lead to 7-2. Armia, Byfield, Haula, and Kempe all found themselves on the scoresheet in the 7-2 victory, which gave the Kings their second win of the homestand, making them 2-1 in their first three games. Overall, it was a dominant offensive showing from a deep group of forwards.
The season so far has shown what the offense looks like when it works and what happens when it does not. At home, they scored six against Ottawa, two against Buffalo, and seven against San Jose.
Three things will tell whether the offense is settling in. The power play needs to produce more goals such as Haula and Panarin’s against Ottawa. The scoring that came from Moore, Anderson, Armia, and Byfield needs to continue, because the Kings cannot rely only on their top players to win. Lastly, the Kings need to turn good scoring nights into wins, without needing overtime to survive a collapse. The Kings have shown they can score in bunches, but those offensive explosions have largely been the difference between winning and losing. Finding a way to generate that production more consistently will be key to turning occasional victories into sustained success.
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