Blues
beat Kings for fifth straight win
Send a link to a friend
[March 14, 2017]
LOS ANGELES -- The St. Louis
Blues found a way to get out of Los Angeles with two points in a
pivotal contest with a strong performance from a revitalized player
while the Los Angeles Kings lost a critical contest in the same
manner they have all season.
Magnus Paajarvi scored the decisive power-play goal and Jake Allen
stopped 38 shots as the Blues defeated the Kings 3-1 Monday.
The Blues (36-27-5) won their fifth straight game and extended their
lead over the Kings to five points for the second wild-card spot in
the Western Conference.
Los Angeles (33-29-6) had a two-game winning streak snapped. Dustin
Brown registered the Kings' lone goal and Jonathan Quick made 23
saves.
Jake Allen, who was left behind on a road trip earlier this season
due to poor play, continued his strong goaltending during this
streak. He shut out Colorado on March 5 and shut down Los Angeles
Monday despite facing a barrage of shots, including 21 in the second
period.
"Every game is huge, but I think both teams understood the
significance of this game tonight and I think it showed in the
desperation from both teams," said Blues coach Mike Yeo. "Obviously,
Jake was outstanding tonight. From top to bottom, we had a really
strong team effort."
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Mar/14/images/ads/current/castlemanor_sda_WINTER_2017.png)
"Jake was fantastic," Blues left wing David Perron said. "We lost
some players like Kevin Shattenkirk and Robby Fabri and we all have
had to dig deep here."
For Los Angeles, the loss put it in a deeper hole in its quest to
return to the postseason. The Kings' lack of scoring has dogged them
throughout the season despite having the same core group that led
them to two Stanley Cup titles. The Kings have the 24th-ranked
offense in the league and despite adding rookies Adrian Kempe and
Paul LaDue to the offense late in the season they continue to
sputter.
"We have a lot of players in the lineup who have scored zero goals
this season," coach Darryl Sutter said. "I don't scratch my head
over it."
With time running short and a difficult schedule ahead, the Kings
had targeted this game as close to a 'must-win' as possible. The
disappointment was evident in their post-game locker room.
"This one stung," said Drew Doughty "We were pretty excited for the
game before, knowing what is at stake. Before the game, I felt good
about us getting the two points and we had some chances, and if we
capitalize on those chances the game is a lot different. It's a
frustrating loss, and we got to get over it quick because we play
again tomorrow and have to win that game."
Alexander Steen added an empty-net goal at 19:53 of
the third period to close out the scoring, with an assist from Alex
Pietrangelo.
[to top of second column] |
![](../images/031417pics/sports61.jpg)
Kings goalie Jonathan Quick (32) and defenseman Alec Martinez (27)
defend a shot on goal against St. Louis Blues defenseman Alex
Pietrangelo (27) during the third period at Staples Center.
Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Mar/14/images/ads/current/tires250x300.gif)
With Quick pulled for an extra skater, Brown converted a rebound for
his 11th goal of the season to narrow the margin to 2-1 at 17:05 of
the third period. Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar had assists on that
goal.
St. Louis had taken a 2-0 lead on Paajarvi's fifth goal of the
season at 1:10 of the third period. With Los Angeles' Jeff Carter in
the box for holding, Paajarvi got credit for the score after Patrik
Berglund's rebound try of his own initial shot deflected off
Paajarvi and past Quick.
The Blues took a 1-0 lead on Perron's 14th goal of the season at
13:47 of the second period. Perron took an errant pass by Kings
defenseman Jake Muzzin and worked a give and go with Steen. Quick
stopped Perron's initial attempt but the puck remained loose in the
crease for the winger to shovel into the net.
NOTES: St. Louis scratched C Jori Lehtera, D Jordan Schmaltz, RW
Nail Yakupov and LW Zach Sanford. ... C Paul Stastny and D Colton
Parayko returned to the Blues lineup after missing the 4-3 victory
over the Islanders on Saturday. Stastny appeared in his 200th game
as a Blue. ... The Blues continue a five-game road trip on Wednesday
against the Anaheim Ducks. ... Los Angeles did not dress C Nick
Shore, D Kevin Gravel and C Jordan Nolan. ... Los Angeles RW Tyler
Toffoli continues to struggle after returning from a lower body
injury. He has failed to score a goal in seven straight games and
has scored only four goals in 17 games since returning to the lineup
on Feb. 4. ... The Kings face the Arizona Coyotes Tuesday, the sixth
contest of a seven-game home stand. Los Angeles has played six sets
of back-to-back games this season and have a 3-2-1 record in the
second game of the pairs. [© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten
or redistributed.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Mar/14/images/ads/current/peasley%20lda%20080907.png) |