#LAKings Kings blow another big lead, lose in OT to Minnesota (Daily News)

• Los Angeles Kings right wing Adrian Kempe, center, celebrates after a goal by Gabriel Vilardi while Minnesota Wild defensemen Mathew Dumba, left, and Ryan Suter look on during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, left, stretches to block a shot by Minnesota Wild center Marcus Johansson during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
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• Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, center, looks down after allowing a goal by Minnesota Wild defenseman Mathew Dumba, back, during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Los Angeles Kings right wing Adrian Kempe, second from left, and Minnesota Wild defenseman Ryan Suter, top right, battle for the puck after a goal off a deflected shot by Kings center Gabriel Vilardi, right, past Wild goalie Cam Talbot, bottom, during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Los Angeles Kings left wing Andreas Athanasiou, left, celebrates his goal with center Jeff Carter during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Minnesota Wild in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
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• Los Angeles Kings left wing Andreas Athanasiou, right, scores a goal past Minnesota Wild goalie Cam Talbot, left, in front of Wild left wing Kirill Kaprizov during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Los Angeles Kings center Trevor Moore, top, and Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin battle for the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Minnesota Wild left wing Jordan Greenway, right, and Los Angeles Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson-Dolan (44) battle for the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Minnesota Wild left wing Kevin Fiala, center, falls to the ice while battling for the puck with Los Angeles Kings center Trevor Moore, right, as Kings center Gabriel Vilardi, front left, and Wild left wing Kirill Kaprizov look on during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
• Minnesota Wild center Marcus Johansson scores a goal during overtime in the team’s NHL hockey game against the Los Angeles Kings in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  
  
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• Minnesota Wild players congratulate Marcus Johansson, front center, on his overtime goal in an NHL hockey game against the Los Angeles Kings in Los Angeles, Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)
  

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Their season may be a mere two games old, but the Kings have already shown a knack for snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
For the second straight game, a 3-1 second intermission advantage turned into a 4-3 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild.
Forwards Gabriel Vilardi, Blake Lizotte and Andreas Athanasiou scored goals for the Kings, while a rejuvenated Jeff Carter contributed two assists. Jonathan Quick made a mix of thrilling, timely and routine saves, 40 of 44 in total.
Defenseman Matt Dumba, center Joel Eriksson Ek and veteran defender Ryan Suter found the net for Minnesota in regulation, including Suter’s goal as time was about to expire. Center Marcus Johansson ended the game in the waning seconds of overtime. Cam Talbot also made his second straight start and fought off 30 of 33 shots.
Saturday night also began inauspiciously for the Kings, ceding a goal 21 seconds into the match. Dumba sent a shot on net from the sharpest possible angle–parallel to the goalline–the ricocheted off Quick and then defenseman Kurtis MacDermid before entering the net.Related Articles

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The Kings drew even after some purposeful puck movement found Austin Wagner in the slot. His shot generated a rebound that Vilardi pushed home with just under three minutes left in the first period.
The goal was initially waived off but awarded after video review, and the scoring was also changed. For a second straight game, forward Adrian Kempe had a goal come off the score sheet.
Quick made an athletic save late in the period as forward Nick Bonino made a shot fake and cross-ice pass for a point-blank shot by Johansson that Quick pushed across his crease to deny. In the second period, he made another difficult stop, a kick save with his left leg while sliding to his right. In the third, he turned away Eriksson Ek on a breakaway that would have knotted the game at three.
Seven minutes into the second period, the Kings took a lead on another play where a Drew Doughty sap shot turned the puck into a Super Ball. It touched three players as it banked in sharply for a goal that was credited to Lizotte.
Midway through the middle frame, Athanasiou and Carter worked a give and go play off the rush that culminated in a rebound goal for Athanasiou, his second in as many games since joining the Kings as a free agent.
That sent the Kings into the second intermission with a 3-1 lead for the second straight game.
That lead proved ephemeral as 7:38 into the third period the Wild halved it. The Kings killed a penalty successfully but had their defensemen caught out on the ice for a shift that was more than double the ideal length. The Wild capitalized, sending two players to the goal crease in pursuit of a rebound that Eriksson Ek swept into the net.
The Kings managed to sustain possession and maintain intensity protecting the lead late, but with their goalie pulled the Wild sustained over a minute of pressure and later had the puck in the offensive zone in the waning seconds. Suter collected a wobbling puck high in the zone and flung it toward the net, where it knuckled past Quick to tie the game with 1.4 seconds on the clock.
Late in regulation, the Kings hit the post on a long shot toward an empty net, leaving the door open for Suter and the Wild.
The Kings’ heartache persisted in overtime as winger Kirill Kaprizov found Johnansson for a one-timer that sealed the Kings’ fate with 11 seconds remaining in overtime.


https://www.dailynews.com/2021/01/16...-to-minnesota/