Short version: the Los Angeles Kings didn’t deserve to win this one. They somehow led after 1 despite being outshot 17-2, gave up two second period goals while getting outchanced, couldn’t really get much going in the third.
Dave Bolland leveled Mike Richards late with a controversial hit, which at least takes some of the attention off of the Kings’ lackluster performance. No word on his status, as he was shaken up but declined comment after the game. [EDIT: Colin Fraser and Darryl Sutter didn’t seem too concerned about Richards postgame. Hopefully a good sign.] Here’s the hit, which probably should have been a charging penalty, but probably won’t see any supplemental discipline…
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Jeff Carter immediately took a tripping penalty to seal the Kings’ fate. Can’t blame the refs for this one, however. LA and Chicago get to face off again at 5:00 PM Pacific tomorrow. On one hand, two tired teams could allow the Kings to find a few more chances and steal a road win; on the other hand, the Kings looked really disjointed today and won’t have much time to figure things out against the Chicago Blackhawks… who looked as good as advertised.
Game 2 is just 24 hours away. Is the quick turnaround going to help or hurt the Kings?
| It’ll help. | 40 |
| It’ll hurt. | 68 |
| It’ll make no difference whatsoever. | 55 |