In Los Angeles, the Kings’ Kevin FIala scored with 35 seconds gone in the game on Tuesday night to take a 1-0 lead over the visiting New York Rangers.
Then LA took the dreaded 2-0 lead with a strike by Gabriel Vilardi in the opening frame.
“Our game tonight has matched our year, where we’re inconsistent,” Los Angeles coach Todd McLellan said. “We’re up and down, whether it’s within a game, whether it’s two-game segments, one-game segments, back to backs. We’re still searching for that [consistency].”
Inconsistent because the Kings surrendered three goals to the rangers in the middle frame and ended up losing not only the 2-0 advantage but the game, 5-3.
Igor Shesterkin settled down after the two first period goals and made 35 saves for the win.
“We’re just sticking to it and just knowing that if we play the right way, we’re going to have success,” New York defenseman Ryan Lindgren said.
The Rangers improved to 1-6-4.
The second period was all Rangers.
New York’s Braden Schneider fluttered a puck at the Kings cage from the right point that got through to make it 2-1.
Vincent Trocheck went end to end for the Rangers and then scored off a weird combination of deflection and air currents to tie the game, 2-2.
Kaapo Kakko cleaned up some garbage in the Kings crease to make it 3-2 just ahead of the end of the frame.
“Going in with the lead like that, 2-0 in the first, we’ve got to find ways to just keep going, you know,” Fiala said. “It’s no reason to step off the gas.”
The Kings tied it in the third period on a strike from Sean Walker to make it 3-3.
The Rangers’ Chris Kreider scored the first of his two goals in the third off a set play.
Mika Zibanejad fired the puck to the right side of the Kings cage from the neutral zone, Kreider skated down the carom off the backboards and snapped the puck into net for a 4-23 lead.
“It’s something that he mentioned a little earlier, if you’re coming down the strong side that sometimes there’s space on the short pipe, so I just tried to put it there and there was space on the short side,” Kreider said. “So, good coaching by Mika and a good play by Mika.”
Kreider then added an empty-net strike for the 5-3 final.
New York’s Alexis Lafreniere, Filip Chytil and Adam Fox all collected two assists in the win.
“For us to kind of regroup and come back and put our foot on the gas, that’s definitely a good sign,” Kreider said.
LA dropped to 11-9-1.
Cal Petersen made 20 saves in the Kings loss.
McClellan was not happy about the game-winning goal by Kreider.
“Sometimes it’s the one that you need rather than all the ones you’ve made that makes a difference in the game, and we needed that one,” McLellan said.
Peterson had made a brilliant save on a Kakko shot just prior to the Kreider goal.
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