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The Los Angeles Kings shut out the San Jose Sharks tonight, taking a 3-0 win.
Los Angeles was coming off a 3-0 shutout loss to the Colorado Avalanche at home on Tuesday. The Kings had found themselves down early against Colorado, with Valeri Nichushkin capitalizing off a pass from Mikko Rantanen on a power play under seven minutes into the game.
Los Angeles then struggled to get chances in the second frame as well, managing only five shots in the period. Late in the frame, Anze Kopitar got a chance on a partial shorthanded breakaway but couldn’t score and the Avalanche went right back the other way and converted on their power play to make it a 2-0 game. It was a key stretch, where instead of heading into the intermission with a potential tie game if Kopitar had converted, they went down 2-0. Mikko Rantanen then capitalized for the Avalanche in the third period, as Colorado took a 3-0 win.
In tonight’s game against San Jose, the Kings managed to start strong, outshooting the Sharks by a 10-6 margin in the opening frame. They couldn’t convert, however, and the game remained scoreless through 20 minutes.
Anze Kopitar did manage to open the scoring for Los Angeles on a power play in the second period, wiring a shot past James Reimer after the Sharks couldn’t clear the zone. Then later in the frame, Phillip Danault went to the net to put in a rebound, as the Kings went up by two heading into the second intermission.
The final frame was far from the Kings’ best, being outshot 9-3. However, they managed to hold off the Sharks and Adrian Kempe added an empty net goal, as the Kings took a 3-0 win.
Considering how many injuries the Kings are facing, it’s impressive that they were able to keep the game close against Colorado and limit chances throughout the game, then shut out the Sharks tonight. Looking at their defense group alone, the Kings were literally missing all six defensemen from their opening night lineup against Colorado on Tuesday.
That said, Alex Edler did return to the lineup tonight, playing his first game since December 11. It’s a big boost for Los Angeles to get him back and while he was eased into the lineup a bit tonight, he’ll likely start progressing to a larger role given all the absences.
Despite the injury issues present within the forward group as well, with four regular forwards missing, the Kings are managing to stay in games despite this and are fighting to maintain their position in the standings. The win helps to keep the Kings second in the Pacific Division and with just 19 games left now, each one is crucial.
It’s also an important win given their opponent, with Los Angeles having lost both halves of their home and home against San Jose last week. The Kings’ next game comes on Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights.
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QuizMaker
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Kings beat Bruins in overtime to sweep back-to-back set
Kings swept in home and home vs. Sharks, rebound to beat Panthers 
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