Kings defeat Flames in shootout, close Pacific Division gap

CALGARY --Viktor Arvidsson scored with 4:22 remaining in the third period to help the Los Angeles Kings to a 3-2 shootout win against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome on Thursday.

Alex Iafallo scored, and Cal Petersen made 26 saves for the Kings (37-23-10), who moved five points back of Calgary for first in the Pacific Division and three points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers for second.
"It's tight. The West is really tight, and we've got to earn every [bit of] ice there is out there," Arvidsson said. "It's fun to play."

Johnny Gaudreau and Erik Gudbranson scored, and Jacob Markstrom made 30 saves for the Flames (40-18-9), who lost consecutive games for the first time since a four-game losing streak from Jan. 4-13.
"I think we were kind of slow tonight, but we found a way to get a point and that was huge," Gaudreau said. "It wasn't one of our best games, everyone in our locker room knows that. We come to work tomorrow ready to get better."
Kings forward Lias Andersson scored five-hole on Markstrom in the first round of the shootout, and Petersen stopped all three Flames shooters.
"He's poised and he's got some good hands," Arvidsson said regarding Andersson. "I trust him with the puck alone with the goalie. It was nice to see it go in for him."

Iafallo put Los Angeles up 1-0 at 1:05 of the second period when he shot over Markstrom's blocker after receiving a cross-ice pass from Adrian Kempe on a 3-on-1. It was his first goal since Jan. 30 (24 games).
"Happy for him because he's had a lot of chances," Kings coach Todd McLellan said. "You can see him squeezing his stick a little bit, but in the meantime, he's paid attention to the other details in his game. Often when top-end players go dry for a while they begin to cheat and it doesn't go well for them. 'Al' isn't that type of player. If I'm him now, I'm shooting every puck I get my hands on because maybe he'll turn hot."
Gaudreau tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal at 1:36 of the third period, and Gudbranson put the Flames up 2-1 at 13:33 with a wrist shot from the point through traffic.
"We've put a lot of work in this season to get our game to a place where we trust it and build that foundation," Gudbranson said. "We expect that out of ourselves every night and [it is a] desperate time of year. Teams are trying to get into the playoffs and teams that seem to be out of it or are playing loose and they're playing good hockey. So, every single night's a really tough night that we have to prepare heavily for."

Arvidsson tied it 2-2 at 15:38 off a backhand centering pass by Phillip Danault from behind the net.
"They're a desperate team trying to catch us in the standings," Gaudreau said. "We've got to be ready for their little pushback there in the third and try to win it in overtime."
NOTES:Calgary defenseman Oliver Kylington left the game with an apparent injury after hitting the boards at 5:40 of the third period following a stick check by Kings forward Rasmus Kupari. … Los Angeles, which lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday, has won six straight on the second game of back-to-back games. ... Calgary is 1-11-2 when trailing after two periods this season. ... Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk had a five-game point streak end (12 points; four goals, eight assists). ... Calgary forward Sean Monahan had an assist on Gudbranson's goal to end a 15-game point drought.