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Kings take series lead with Game 3 OT win over Oilers

April 23, 2023, 3:06 AM ET [0 Comments]
Ben Shelley
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The Los Angeles Kings pulled ahead 2-1 in their first round series, with a 3-2 overtime win in Game 3 against the Edmonton Oilers last night.

Zack MacEwen and Jaret Anderson-Dolan both came into the lineup for the Kings, with Blake Lizotte out and Arthur Kaliyev scratched.

Despite a penalty-filled first half of the opening frame, there actually weren’t a ton of shots exchanged. With under a minute to go in the period though, Alex Iafallo managed to knock in a rebound in front, giving Los Angeles the lead through 20 minutes.

However, the Kings ended up taking some penalties early in the second period and of course, the Oilers capitalized, with Connor McDavid roofing a shot past Joonas Korpisalo to tie the game. Then under two minutes later, McDavid beat Korpisalo with a great shot over the other shoulder, putting the Oilers ahead. However, Leon Draisaitl took a needless penalty after the goal, slashing Drew Doughty, and the Kings responded right away on the power play, with Adrian Kempe winning a race to a dump-in off the end boards and beating Stuart Skinner to tie it up once again. The Kings then had an excellent chance to retake the lead after Viktor Arvidsson picked off a pass from Draisaitl in his own end, as he and Anze Kopitar went down ice on a 2-on-0, but Stuart Skinner made the save.

In the third period, the Oilers did outshoot the Kings pretty badly, but Joonas Korpisalo came up big to keep things going and get the game to overtime. Then only two minutes into the extra frame, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins took a slashing penalty, putting the Kings on the power play. On the ensuing man advantage, Gabriel Vilardi found Trevor Moore in front and Moore beat Stuart Skinner for the game winner. It did end up leading to a long review to look at a possible missed stoppage but the call stood, leaving the Kings with the win.


It’s arguably the third game in a row where Los Angeles was outplayed, but regardless, they find themselves up 2-1 in the series. Despite being outplayed through a lot of the series, I also don’t think it can be understated how impressive it is for the Kings to have the lead without having Kevin Fiala to this point. They haven't necessarily been generating a ton of chances consistently at times, but they've been able to hold off the Oilers and keep finding ways to win.

Joonas Korpisalo also continues to be key for the Kings. He’s posted a .931 save percentage across the three games and has been a legitimate difference-maker for the team. It's a major change of pace for goaltending to be an asset for the team, rather than a liability, like it was through much of the year.

While the Kings also gave up two power play goals to the Oilers, they held their own in the special teams battle as well, scoring two goals on the man advantage themselves.

So now, the Kings have a chance to take a stranglehold on the series, if they can squeak out a Game 4 win. The teams will face off again tomorrow night.



OTHER ARTICLES FROM APRIL

Kings end road trip with back-to-back wins, clinch playoff spot
Kings come up short in another key showdown against Oilers
Looking at different playoff scenarios for the Kings after recent slide
Kings at risk of slipping to wild card spot amidst three-game losing streak
Breaking down the playoff picture in West before Kings’ 82nd game
Kings lock up third place in Pacific, will face Oilers in first round
Previewing the Kings’ first round series against the Oilers
Kings battle back from two-goal deficit in Game 1, defeat Oilers in OT
Kings erase another two-goal deficit but fall to Oilers in Game 2
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