Yamamoto helps Oilers defeat Kings for third straight win under Woodcroft

LOS ANGELES --The Edmonton Oilers won their third straight game under coach Jay Woodcroft, 5-2 against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday.

Kailer Yamamoto broke a tie with 4:46 remaining in the third period for the Oilers, who replaced the fired Dave Tippett with Woodcroft on Thursday.
"'Woody' has obviously come in and made some changes, but I think, all in all, players got to want it," Oilers goalie Mike Smith said. "You got to want it as a player. You got to want to win and do anything it takes to do that. The details in the game matter so much, and that comes down to the players willing to do that, willing to do what it takes to play a whole 60."

Connor McDavid and Evander Kane each had a goal and an assist, and Smith made 30 saves for the Oilers (26-18-3).
Phillip Danault and Arthur Kaliyev scored, and Cal Petersen made 24 saves for the Kings (24-17-7), who had gone 4-0-2 during a six-game road trip prior to the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game. It was their first game since defeating the Detroit Red Wings 5-3 on Feb. 2.
"We definitely didn't play our best," Los Angeles defenseman Drew Doughty said. "First period was OK, second wasn't very good, and then the third was … I don't even know."
On the game-winning goal, Leon Draisaitl took a pass from Kane behind the net and found Yamamoto for a one-timer from close range and a 3-2 lead at 15:14.
"He's one of those guys that just kind of goes to the dirty areas and doesn't take no for an answer, so definitely happy for him to get that one," Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said. "It was just an all-around good effort on the goal and it's big for him to bury it, for sure."
Zach Hyman made it 4-2 at 18:35, scoring into an empty net, and Kane scored an empty-net goal at 19:42 for the 5-2 final.
"We've asked everybody to up the work rate," Woodcroft said. "We're asking the team to play a certain style, a demanding style, and very happy that the team is seeing results."
The Kings tied it 2-2 at 11:42 of the third period on Danault's 13th goal. Viktor Arvidsson was behind the net and found Danault charging into the slot to score.
Nugent-Hopkins put the Oilers in front 2-1 at 7:44 of the third. He scored on a wrist shot from the slot through traffic for his seventh goal.
McDavid tied it 1-1 at 17:45 of the second period. The officials on the ice ruled that Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson pushed Jesse Puljujarvi into Petersen before McDavid scored his 25th goal, negating any goaltender interference.

It is the sixth straight season McDavid has scored at least 25 goals.
"What I liked about his goal tonight was it wasn't just him. It was his line," Woodcroft said. "Started with a great neutral zone forecheck. We picked one off, Puljujarvi picks one off, we go right back down the Kings' throat. I loved the skill play to knock the puck down, and then to see the bodies around the blue paint and score a May-type goal when we're down 1-0 at the end of the second period."
The Kings took a 1-0 lead at 16:00 of the first period when Kaliyev beat Smith at the near post on a soft chip from the edge of the right circle. Kaliyev's ninth goal was set up by Brendan Lemieux.
"We had some good practices and I thought we were prepared, but we just didn't have all our stuff tonight. We didn't have everybody," Doughty said.
NOTES: Edmonton played with 11 forwards and seven defensemen for the second straight game after using that alignment in a 3-0 win at the San Jose Sharks on Monday. … McDavid has scored six points (two goals, four assists) during a four-game point streak. … Draisaitl (33 goals, 33 assists) and McDavid (25 goals, 41 assists) are tied for the NHL lead with 66 points. … Doughty got his 431st assist, tying Bernie Nicholls for sixth in Kings history. … Anderson had three hits and blocked four shots in 20:10 after missing two games with an upper-body injury. … Kings defenseman Matt Roy returned after missing two games in COVID-19 protocol. He was minus-2 and blocked three shots in 17:59.