Alexander Edler scores the tiebreaking goal early in the third period, and the Kings close in on their first playoff berth in four years with a 4-2 victory, their fifth in six games.
LOS ANGELES — Like the Kings’ postseason fate, their 4-2 victory over the Ducks on Saturday night at Crypto.com Arena went down to the wire in a grudge match befitting retiring Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf’s final game against the Kings.
The Kings could clinch a playoff berth as early as Sunday if Vegas loses to San Jose in regulation. Second-place Edmonton, which has already clinched one of the Pacific Division’s three spots, and fourth-place Vegas were both idle on Saturday. Vancouver lost to Calgary, rendering catching the Kings impossible and leaving the Canucks’ playoff hopes hanging by the very thinnest of threads.
The Kings withstood yet another late surge to protect their one-goal lead. Though their second line was held scoreless for just the ninth time since Jan. 1, center Phillip Danault drew a penalty in the waning moments of the game that abated the Ducks’ intensity with Stolarz pulled. A faceoff win by Byfield and a long shot from Edler that changed direction off Ducks center Isac Lundestrom had given the Kings their second edge of the evening with 13:39 left.
At the 3:34 mark of the middle frame, it was a bridge from past to present on the power play as Getzlaf sent a pass across for Zegras, who ripped a rising shot from the right faceoff dot. Getzlaf is the Ducks’ all-time leading scorer, and Zegras’s goal gave him sole possession of the franchise’s rookie scoring record with 58 points. It had been held by Bobby Ryan since 2009.
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