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Playing for a spot in the Stanley Cup finals, it didn't figure to let up any.
Game 1 was plenty testy, with multiple scrums, hard hits and a roughing penalty on a goalie (Smith) in the first period -- a trend that continued throughout the game.
"We've played these guys a lot over the years and this time of year, you do whatever you can do to get an edge," Brown said.
The Kings had it against Phoenix early, swarming the Coyotes while getting the game's first eight shots. Kopitar scored his fourth goal of the playoffs early on, scooping up a loose puck in front before flipping a backhander past Smith's glove side.
With Los Angeles still in control -- a 12-3 advantage in shots -- Morris caught everyone off-guard, particularly Quick, by ripping a slap shot from the red (center) line past the Vezina Trophy finalist. That tied it at 1 and left Kings coach Darryl Sutter smirking in disbelief on the bench.
"It's a rare bad goal against them," Sutter said. "Our team was resilient enough just to play through it."
They sure did.
Los Angeles kept up the pressure in the second, setting up King's rebound goal on a 2-on-1 with Mike Richards midway through.
As they have all postseason, the Coyotes answered, scoring with just under 2 minutes left in the period. Boedker got the goal, one-timing a pass from Doan after Antoine Vermette won a battle behind the goal and Quick had to scramble back to the crease.
Brown put the Kings up 3-2 early in the third period, beating Smith stick side on a mini breakaway for his seventh goal of the playoffs after a long, right-on-the-tape pass from Slava Voynov.
The Coyotes had been resilient throughout the playoffs, snatching a few wins after being outplayed.
They had no answer this time, unable to get a puck past Quick in their closing flurry before giving up King's empty-netter with less than a minute left.
"They played better than us," Doan said. "They beat us in all kind of different areas. It is frustrating when you get beat, disappointing when you get beat. It is no good especially when you don't play as well as you can."
They better figure it out quick or it could be a short series against the hottest team in the playoffs.
NOTES: Coyotes D Adrian Aucoin didn't play after sustaining an undisclosed injury in Game 5 against Nashville. ... Kopitar has seven points his past four games. ... The Kings have won eight of 14 playoff series after taking Game 1. ... Los Angeles has killed off 24 straight penalties after holding Phoenix scoreless in five tries.
[Associated Press;
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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