LA Kings cook on the road trip in the East

The Los Angeles Kings played their final three games of their five-game road trip in the New York area with another back-to-back set on March 13 against the Islanders and March 14 against the Devils. Their road trip concluded on March 16 against the Rangers. 

Multiple wins this past week highlight a successful road trip in the East for the Los Angeles Kings

Against the Islanders, the scoring opened up in favor of the Kings when Trevor Moore scored his 8th goal of the season on a wrist shot a little over three minutes into the first period. Midway through the same period, Anze Kopitar scored, giving the Kings a 2-0 lead. Kopitar’s goal was his 1,306th career point, leaving him one point behind the Kings' all-time leader Marcel Dionne.

With two minutes left in the period, Adrian Kempe scored his team-leading 26th goal of the season, giving the Kings a 3-0 lead. About halfway into the second period, the Islanders got on the board when Emil Heineman scored his 17th goal of the season on a tip-in. This was the only goal in the period, leaving the Kings ahead 3-1 after two. A little more than three minutes into the third period, Heineman scored his second goal of the night to get New York within one.

Late in the period, the Islanders pulled their goalie, but the Kings were able to hold on, earning a 3-2 victory. The win continued the Kings' road trip success, giving them 5 out of a possible 6 points in their first three games on the road.  

The Kings then drove out across the Hudson River into Newark to keep the momentum going against the Devils. New Jersey struck first when Cody Glass scored his 15th goal of the season twelve minutes into the game. Three minutes later, Nico Hischier scored his 22nd goal of the season, giving the Devils a 2-0 lead at the end of the first period.

About four minutes into the second period, the Kings got on the board when Anze Kopitar scored for the ninth time this season on a much-needed power-play goal. This goal was Kopitar’s 1,307th career point, which tied him with the Kings' all-time leader Marcel Dionne. Only two minutes later, Artemi Panarin tied things up at two-all with his 22nd goal of the season.

After tying things up, Taylor Ward gave the Kings a one-goal lead when he scored for the third time this season. The period ended with the Kings holding a 3-2 lead. However, only 25 seconds into the third period, Arseny Gritsyuk scored his 12th goal of the season, tying the game at three-all.

Halfway through the period, Hischier scored his second of the night on the power play, giving New Jersey a 4-3 lead. A minute later, Kopitar tied things up at four-all and scored his second goal of the night on the power play as well. This was his 1,308th career point, giving him the Kings all-time points lead over Dionne.

The whole team skated on the ice after the goal to celebrate with him. However, the celebration was short-lived when Brandt Clarke got called for a questionable holding penalty.  On the ensuing power play, Jack Hughes scored his 17th goal, giving the Devils a late 5-4 lead. New Jersey sealed a 6-4 victory when Timo Meier scored his 18th goal of the season on an empty-netter. This was the Kings' first regulation loss on the road trip. 

The Kings concluded their road trip back across the Hudson River in New York City against the Rangers. The game at Madison Square Garden marked Artemi Panarin’s return for the first time as a member of the Kings after playing for New York from 2019-2025. The Kings got on the board first when Drew Doughty scored his fifth goal of the season, with Panarin earning his 48th point on the secondary assist. This was the lone goal of the first period. 

In the second period, Mikey Anderson gave the Kings a 2-0 lead with his fourth goal of the season. The scoring kept rolling for the Kings in the same period, when local area native Alex Laferriere scored his 17th goal of the season on the power play. 

His goal was a highlight reel tip-in, ending the period with the Kings holding a 3-0 lead. Two minutes into the third period, Vincent Trocheck got the Rangers on the board with his 14th goal of the season on the power play. This would be the lone goal for New York. The 4-1 victory was sealed for the Kings when Trevor Moore scored his ninth goal of the season on an empty-netter, and Laferriere earned his second assist of the game, earning him a three-point night. The Kings ended their road trip with a respectable 3-1-1 record, earning them seven out of 10 points. 

The Kings now return to Los Angeles for a quick two-game homestand that begins on March 19 against the Flyers and concludes on March 21 against the Sabres.