Marchment scores twice, Blue Jackets defeat Kings

LOS ANGELES -- Mason Marchment scored two power-play goals in the Columbus Blue Jackets’ 3-1 win against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Monday.

Marchment has three goals in his first two games with the Blue Jackets after being traded to Columbus from the Seattle Kraken on Friday.

“Like I said, it’s just hockey,” Marchment said. “There’s going to be different systems, but for the most part, you’ve just got to play the game. There’s going to be space where there’s going to be space, and you’ve got to find it and try to take advantage of it.”

Kirill Marchenko scored on the power play, and Jet Greaves made 23 saves for the Blue Jackets (15-15-6), who won for the second time in their past nine games (2-6-1).

Columbus defenseman Zach Werenski did not play because of a lower-body injury he sustained blocking a shot against the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday.

Andrei Kuzmenko scored, and Anton Forsberg made 27 saves for the Kings (15-11-9), who have lost five of six (1-3-2).

“We obviously want to put on a show for our great fans,” Los Angeles defenseman Joel Edmundson said. “We’re not scoring goals. Special teams is kind of killing us right now, so we’ve got to figure that out soon.”

The Blue Jackets went up 1-0 at 4:07 of the first period. Marchment skated through Joel Armia and Trevor Moore to get to the slot and put a wrist shot in off Forsberg’s blocker on the power play.

Columbus took a 2-0 lead at 19:36 on the power play when Marchment scored his third goal in two games. Boone Jenner’s shot from the high slot took a double deflection off Damon Severson’s stick and in off Marchment.

“Two is nice, three is better, you know,” Marchment joked. “Just trying to get some shots on net and happy that one went in. And then the other one was a great shot from the point, and went off my chest and in, so we’ll take it.”

Marchment had 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 29 games with the Kraken, with no goals on the power play, before he was acquired for a second-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft and a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

“He’s an unbelievable player,” Marchenko said. “He can score goals, make passes, he can do everything on the ice.”

Los Angeles got within 2-1 at 18:41 of the second period on Kuzmenko’s wrist shot from the blue line through traffic.

Marchenko made it 3-1 at 14:16 of the third period on the power play. The Blue Jackets were 3-for-7 on the man-advantage; the Kings were 0-for-5.

“That’s a huge goal by ‘Marchie,’ you know, get up by two,” Marchment said. “And I thought all night we had good chances.”

Los Angeles has allowed goals on the penalty kill in five of its past seven games, having conceded at least four power plays in six of those contests.

“I mean, when we take eight minors a game, teams can start breaking us down, so we’ve just got to be smarter,” Edmundson said. “Keep our sticks down and take less penalties. It gets tiring for killers. It seems like every game we’re taking way more minors than the other team.”

NOTES: Marchment’s three goals are the most by any Blue Jackets player in his first two games with the team. … The Kings have scored fewer than three goals in six straight games and 13 of their past 17. … Severson had two assists on the power play for the third time in 820 career games. He did it twice with the New Jersey Devils (Oct. 25, 2016, against the Arizona Coyotes; April 29, 2021, against the Philadelphia Flyers).