The Los Angeles Kings are sure taking advantage of their special teams play, and it's coming at special moments. As the Stanley Cup playoffs get underway, the Kings find themselves in a position they haven’t been in for some time, a higher power play percentage over their opponents, the Edmonton Oilers.
The Kings went 2 for 4 in Game 1 (50%) and 3 for 5 in Game 2 (60%), resulting in a combined power play percentage of 55.6%. This marks a significant improvement over their regular-season average of 13.2%.
The Oilers, who normally are a machine when it comes to special teams, have scored on 2 out of 9 power play opportunities with a surprising 22.2%. The Oilers had the fourth-best power play in the NHL this season but currently find themselves in a bit of a struggle early in the playoffs.
This is not only a notable shift from the regular season but what was a glaring difference between the two teams last year in their playoff meeting. The Oilers had no problem capitalizing on the man advantage while the Kings failed to score a single power play goal in five games.
Adrian Kempe leading the way for the Los Angeles power play against the Edmonton Oilers
Leading the way for Los Angeles is Adrian Kempe. Kempe recorded two goals and two assists in Game 2 and has been an offensive threat in the first two games for the Kings. Anze Kopitar has also been making his presence known around the net, and the young stars like Quintin Byfield, Brandt Clarke, and Andrei Kuzmenko have been adding to the score sheet. Combined they have a total of 15 points so far after two games.
The series now shifts to Edmonton, where the Kings hope to maintain the momentum and continue their strong performance. During the regular season, the Kings split the series with the Oilers at Rogers Place. Meanwhile, Edmonton hopes to improve on their power play and rebound from a 0-2 deficit. Friday night should be a raucous affair if there ever was one, with tons of goals, lead changes, and some scrappy play too. After all, that's what the hockey playoffs are all about!