Back home on the second half of a back-to-back, the Kings fell 2-1 to the Seattle Kraken on TNT on Wednesday night. Seeing the Kraken for the second time in a week, the Kings held a large shot advantage against their divisional opponent for the second straight matchup but were unable to replicate the result in their previous meeting when they won 3-2 in a shootout on Saturday, December 15th.
The Kings controlled the first period, but were could not convert on any of their 20 shots on goal. In a period where Kings outshot the Kraken 20-8, the score was 0-0 heading into the first intermission. Despite a heavy edge in play and in the shot department in the first period for the Kings, the Kraken found their footing late in the period and took that momentum into the middle third of the game.
It was there that the game’s first goal was scored. Breaking the ice was the Kraken’s Brandon Tanev, who got the monkey off of his back with his third goal of the season and first goal in 11 games. Tanev found a loose puck in front of the net after a Kings defensive zone face-off win went in the direction of their net and got lost in the skates of Jordan Spence. Shots favored the Kraken 17-16 in the second period and the Kings entered the final 20 minutes of regulation trailing 1-0.
Already leading 1-0, the Kraken doubled their lead 6:27 into the third period when Matty Beniers sprung Jordan Eberle for a breakaway. Eberle beat Cam Talbot glove-side in tight for his fourth goal of the season, snapping a 13-goalless streak. Down a pair, the Kings cut the lead in half just 1:33 later down a man. Killing a penalty, Blake Lizotte took advantage of a fortuitous bounce on the forecheck. After getting a full-ice clear by the Kings, the Kraken goalie Joey Daccord rang the puck around the boards and over the defenseman Justin Schultz. Upon receiving the puck, the puck jumped off his stick and went straight to Lizotte. Making no mistake, Lizotte buried his fifth goal of the season into a vacant Kraken net. The Kings earned a power play with 3:45 remaining in regulation after Kevin Fiala took a high stick to the face, but were unable to tie the game, ultimately going 0-for-4 with the man advantage on this night.
Cam Talbot stopped 28 of 30 shots on the night.
