FINAL – Kings 1, Canucks 2 (OT) – Moore, Gavrikov, Hiller

The LA Kings picked up a point in overtime, as they moved into third place in the Pacific Division standings, but came up short in overtime in a 2-1 defeat against Vancouver on Tuesday evening at Crypto.com Arena.

The Kings scored the lone goal from the opening period of play, as they took a 1-0 advantage into the first intermission. Forward Phillip Danault stripped the puck loose in the offensive zone, spun and fired a pass into the slot for forward Trevor Moore, who shot past Vancouver netminder Thatcher Demko for his third goal in his last five games and the game-opening goal.

After controlling the bulk of the play in the second period, Vancouver finally got on the board with just over three minutes remaining on the clock. Following an extended shift in the offensive zone, forward Elias Pettersson took the puck into the middle of the ice, worked his way to a dangerous area and shot five hole for his 30th goal of the season and a tie game through 40 minutes.

After the third period came and went without a goal either way, Vancouver ended the game in overtime.

After a delayed penalty was called against the Kings, the Canucks set up in the offensive zone with the extra attacker, playing 4-on-3. Forward J.T. Miller fed forwrd Brock Boeser down low, with Boeser returning the puck to Miller for a one-timer, which he snuck past Kings netminder Cam Talbot for the game-winning goal.

Hear from Moore, defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov and Head Coach Jim Hiller following tonight’s game.

Trevor Moore

Trevor Moore speaks with the media after the OT loss🎤@LAKings I #LAKingsLive pic.twitter.com/JPP15JltQP

— Bally Sports West (@BallySportWest) March 6, 2024

Vladislav Gavrikov
On his impressions from tonight’s game
I would say we had a good first period, second period was a little scrambled because we got a couple penalties and some guys didn’t play enough, some guys were overplayed, that was up and down. Solid third, we had a couple chances to score, but unfortunately didn’t accomplish that. So, just got to be ready for next games, we’ll play that team twice again, so we’ve got to be ready for that.

On if tonight was a good point, considering the grind throughout the night
I would say it’s always disappointing, we didn’t accomplish that, but I feel we’re in a pretty good direction right now as a team. We’ve just got to work day by day and step by step. It’s not going to be a huge jump right away. We’ve just got to fight to get two points every single night, that’s our goal.

On Cam Talbot’s performance in getting the team through the second period
Our goaltender are huge for us all the time. Talbs kept us in that period, pretty solid, he made a couple of huge saves for us, which is great. Him and Ritter are doing good.

On how the 11/7 approach has impacted the defensemen
It’s fine for us. We are rotating pretty good. I mean, it’s maybe a little harder for the forwards, but as a D, I don’t feel anything, because we can play with everyone. We’re fine with that.

Jim Hiller
On his takeaways from the overtime defeat tonight
That was a hard game tonight, I give them credit, they played very well. They pushed us in the second period, we took those two penalties and really got on our heels, they got momentum even though they didn’t score on that, they got momentum, but I’ll give our team credit. We regrouped after the second and came out and played a real strong, first half of the third and then they took it again. Back and forth, two good teams playing hard.

On if he expected a strong push from the Canucks, after winning in Vancouver last week
Yeah, it was a good game. They played well. I haven’t heard [Rick Tocchet’s quotes] but I’m sure he would feel that they played a good hard game and so did we. It goes to overtime and they make a nice play and score. So, we don’t hang our heads on that one. We would have liked two for sure, but we don’t hang our heads. We’ll take a rest tomorrow and we’ll get ready to play the next one.

On Cam Talbot’s performance tonight, especially in the second period
I thought he was really good, because they really did come at us in the second. Talbs has been on a bit on a pretty good run lately, but this was probably his best game for me.

On the three chances early in the third period and if getting one could’ve swung the game
I mean, those were probably our three best chances of the night. Dewey, I think, hit the post on the inside of the post, and Lewie, the pass across jammed him just a little bit in, it was a little bit in front of his front foot, so he didn’t get it right where he wanted, but that sequence of chances, the way we’re playing defensively, if you get one of those, it could be a different result.

On the team’s play in the neutral zone tonight and if anything was specific to playing the Canucks
I think that’s us. We want to do that versus anybody, it just happened with Vancouver because they can come at you quick. I thought we were pretty tight through the neutral zone, but that’s our game, that’s part of our game, and whether it’s Vancouver or anybody else, we take pride in making that a difficult piece of the ice to get through.

On the team moving into the third playoff position in the Pacific with tonight’s point
We want to hold it. If we can continue to play like this, and I think you know you guys follow the team, I think the guys are playing hard. They’re playing a style of hockey that can win, that’s difficult, that can get you into the playoffs. We’ll just have that as what’s right in front of us right now. The league is extremely tight, the standings change every night, but we’re starting to play pretty consistently as the type of game that’s going to get you into the playoffs.

Notes –
– Trevor Moore (1-0=1) scored his team-leading 24th goal of the campaign. Moore has now recorded at least one point in his past three games against the Canucks (2-2=4), dating back to April 10, 2023. Moore’s 32 goals on home ice are the third most on the team since he made his Kings debut in 2019-20, behind only Anže Kopitar (43) and Adrian Kempe (60).
– Phillip Danault (0-1=1) recorded his 23rd assist of the season. Since joining the Kings in 2021-22, Danault’s 43 assists at home are tied with Adrian Kempe for the third-most among Kings skaters at Crypto.com Arena, trailing only Drew Doughty (46) and Anže Kopitar (64).
– The Kings allowed one goal in regulation for the third consecutive game, just the second time they’ve achieved that feat this season (11/16 vs. FLA, 11/18 vs. STL, 11/20 @ ARI)
– Goaltender Cam Talbot made 29 saves in the overtime defeat. Talbot has allowed two or fewer goals in five of his six starts since the NHL All-Star break.

The Kings have a scheduled team off day tomorrow. They will return to the ice on Thursday, March 7 for morning skate at 10:30 AM at Toyota Sports Performance Center in El Segundo, prior to that evening’s game versus Ottawa.

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