Kings vs. Caps: Return of Mr. Game 7

Whatever the outcome the Kings/Caps game was going to be a big game. Jonathan Quick, injured and out for three games, whose presence had been dearly missed, was back in net. (Kings fans could breathe a sigh of relief – our backups didn’t quite step up the way that Ben Scrivens and Martin Jones did after Quick’s last big injury.) And of course, the Capitals now have in their ranks ex-Kings Justin Williams

Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) deflects the puck off his shoulder with Washington Capitals right wing Justin Williams (14) nearby, in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon).

and Mike Richards. Say what you will about Richards and his somewhat shady departure (and believe me, I’ve said a lot against him,) in his prime he did help us win two Stanley Cups. Williams was a harder pill to swallow, with salary cap issues being his reason for moving on; seeing Mr. Game 7/Stick/J-Will/Conn Smythe Trophy winner again for the first time was bittersweet. Williams we love you. We miss you. But we’re going to have to crush you now.

The Kings had the first shot on goal from Tyler Toffoli, but as the Kings took the first penalty of the game (holding on Trevor Lewis) the next four came from the Capitals. The teams traded penalties so much it seemed the first period was all special teams and very few 5-on-5 minutes played. The Kings got their chance on the power play next, and while they had some great zone time they didn’t get many great chances. As the penalty expired Alec Martinez didn’t see T. J. Oshie come out of the box behind him and ended up tripping him, causing the Kings to go on the PK again. Trading back the Caps took a holding penalty the Kings couldn’t capitalize, then we were back to the Kings turn to be in the box. Jordan Nolan for boarding. Which turned out to be a spot of luck for the Kings, as Anze Kopitar opened up the scoring a shorthanded goal!

He cleaned up his own rebound with a sharp angle shot top shelf to put the Kings up 1-0 with 3:17 remaining. (Huge credit to Drew Doughty for a spectacular block on Alex Ovechkin that lead to the puck ending up on Kopitar’s stick. A huge diving whole body and stick block that’s Norris Trophy worthy if ever I’ve seen a star play.) Dwight King and Trevor Lewis ended up with a 2-on-1 that could have led to another shorthanded goal if they could have coordinated a little better when they got down to the Caps goal. And just like that the period was over, surprisingly at even strength, the Kings leading 1-0.

6 minutes into the second period, Tom Wilson pushed Luke Schenn straight into Quick who went down (it’s his first game back! Don’t mess with the goalie!) Unsurprisingly Schenn took offense and ended up attempting to beat the remaining brain cells out of Wilson. Both got five for fighting; Wilson got the extra minor for goaltender interference (as so he should.) The resulting Kings power play didn’t end in a goal but some excellent chances – there was 18 seconds remaining before the Caps stopped play for the first time. They had 24 SOG to the Caps 11 at this point. With 29 SOG to the Caps 12, Brayden McNabb continued the parade of penalties which led to some grade-A Caps chances. Justin Williams fanned on his first shot but allowed Quick an impressive save on his next bid. He was on point and at this point he needed to be.  The Kings kept shooting and kept not quite getting the puck in the back of the net. The Caps tried shooting, though nowhere near as much as the Kings, but couldn’t get any past Jedi Knight Quick. Until they did, with 49 seconds remaining in the period, a tip in Quick really had no chance at.

Washington Capitals center Mike Richards, left, reaches for the puck with Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The third period opened with – wait, what’s that? Another penalty? Of course! This time it was a bogus call on Toffoli that thanks to Quick didn’t get the Caps anywhere. Things had evened up shots wise, allowing fans to see just how well Quick had recovered. In fact all things being even the third period was a variable heart attack from Kings fans. They interchanged some great shifts with some great looks from the Caps. Every shot was met with resistance. Both goalies made some great saves (how is it the Kings make other goalies look so good all the time?) Neither team could gain enough ground to make that go ahead goal until 2:02 remained. Of course it was the wrong team, when Quick found himself extended to his left as the puck found its way behind the net. Williams dug it out to an open Evgeny Kuznetsov who wasted no time in burying the goal. The Kings pulled Quick with less than a minute to go, who managed to ice the puck twice and waste all the Kings time. An empty net goal with 8.6 seconds remaining would seal the deal. Until this point the Kings hadn’t lost two games in a row in regulation. They had the chances in this game – many of them – but couldn’t bury when they needed to. They continue the Grammy road trip Thursday against St Louis.

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