Blues rally past Kings in OT, win fourth straight

LOS ANGELES -- Mike Hoffman scored 1:30 into overtime, and the St. Louis Blues rallied to defeat the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 at Staples Center on Friday.

Hoffman scored on a one-timer from the right face-off circle with goalie Ville Husso off for an extra attacker during a delayed penalty, giving the Blues (14-8-2) their fourth straight win.
David Perron scored twice, including the tying goal with 44 seconds left in the third period, Ryan O'Reilly had three assists, and Husso made 28 saves.
"It was huge to tie the game late," Hoffman said. "Give everyone and our team a huge lift and it translated into overtime."

Dustin Brown and Jeff Carter scored for the Kings (9-8-5), who lost their fourth straight after a six-game winning streak. Cal Petersen made 19 saves.
"I think it's a good lesson for us as a group," Brown said. "Maybe [during the] six-game winning streak, we squeaked out a couple games where bounces went our way. It's a good lesson to learn, you're going to have to play a full 60 to get out of this little skid we're in. A lot of good things we can take from this game, but it is a frustrating loss."
The teams will play again here Saturday.
Perron tied it 2-2 with a wrist shot from the right circle after the Kings were caught in transition trying to score with Husso pulled.
Hoffman helped set up the goal by beating Los Angeles center Anze Kopitar to a puck that was headed toward the open net, then backhanding it to O'Reilly, who passed ahead to Perron in the neutral zone. It was St. Louis' seventh 6-on-5 goal this season.
"Just finding ways to win games," Blues coach Craig Berube said. "I think we have played some good hockey. It's not great. We don't panic, stay calm and come around to get a goal. It's really a team goal and contributing to help out."
The Blues are 10-2-0 on the road and have won the first four of a six-game trip.
"It is just the way it is going right now," Perron said. "We play the same every night."

Brown scored his fifth goal in five games against St. Louis this season to put Los Angeles in front 2-1 on the power play 37 seconds into the third. After his initial shot was saved by Husso, the rebound went in off the skate of Blues defenseman Justin Faulk.
It was Brown's sixth power-play goal this season.
Carter tied it 1-1 at 16:41 of the second period, cutting across the crease and scoring with a backhand.
The Blues took a 1-0 lead at 2:08 of the first period when Perron scored a power-play goal from the high slot. The Kings had been penalized for too many men on the ice.
Los Angeles coach Todd McLellan said he was disappointed the Kings were hurt by mistakes early and late in regulation.
"Fifty-eight and a half minutes were pretty darn good," McLellan said. "There's still mistakes, but we couldn't be happier with that part of the game."
NOTES: Blues center Oskar Sundqvist (undisclosed) did not play in the third period. He skated to the bench slowly and immediately went back to the dressing room after playing on the penalty kill late in the second. Berube did not have an update. … Kopitar got an assist and tied Dave Taylor for the third in Kings history (638). … Los Angeles forward Rasmus Kupari, a first-round pick (No. 20) in the 2018 NHL Draft, won 5 of 7 face-offs and played 10:07 in his NHL debut.