The Los Angeles Kings are heading home today after a seven game road trip that concludes against the Washington Capitals. This is probably their toughest game of the entire trip as it is against arguably the best team and is the second of a back-to-back game.
The Kings would end up falling behind 1-0 after Aliaksei Protas was able to score off a pass by Pierre-Luc Dubois after a bad turnover by Alex Turcotte in their own zone. It was more bad luck than a bad play as Turcotte's stick appears to break before he can clear it.
However, in the second period the Los Angeles Kings were able to respond and tie the game up in what has been one of the more improbable ways this season. It would end up being Kevin Fiala beating Logan Thompson for a power play goal.
Fiala-la-la-LA POWER PLAY GOAL pic.twitter.com/UqX4u7iChm
— LA Kings (@LAKings) December 22, 2024
Los Angeles Kings power play has been among the worst in the NHL
Entering the game on Sunday, the Los Angeles Kings were 28th in the NHL in power play percentage at 14.9%. They also were 29th in the NHL in power play goals with only 13.
What is even more surprising is that the Washington Capitals have been one of the better teams in killing penalties with a penalty kill percentage of 84.2%, which is the sixth best in the NHL.
As for Kevin Fiala, he has been one of the few players on the Kings that has been productive on the power play. He now has five power play goals on the season, while the remainder of the team combined has nine. Fiala is well on his way to matching his career-high of 11, which he set last season.
The game has been very much back-and-forth between the Kings and Washington Capitals. A win this afternoon would be a great way to end a long road trip for Los Angeles.